See The Fire aiming to make Middleton mark
When briefly eased in grade, See The Fire justified favouritism in the Strensall Stakes at this venue.
She was beaten into fifth place on her return to action in last month's Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown, but jockey Oisin Murphy is expecting an improved performance on the Knavesmire.
'See The Fire ran well at Sandown and she likes York,' he said.
'We are hoping she will run very well. She looks great in her skin.'
See The Fire is the joint highest-rated filly in the field alongside Charlie Appleby's Beautiful Love, who raced exclusively on foreign soil in 2024 and made an encouraging return to British action when third behind stablemate Cinderella's Dream in Newmarket's Dahlia Stakes less than a fortnight ago.
Appleby said on the Godolphin website: 'Beautiful Love ran a solid race on her seasonal return in the Dahlia Stakes and came out of the race very well.
'Stepping back up in trip will help and conditions at York should suit. She should be very competitive.'
The Owen Burrows-trained Nakheel is poised to make her first appearance since claiming Group Two honours in Doncaster's Park Hill Stakes in September, but the Lambourn-based handler has admitted to having concerns about drying ground over this shorter trip.
'In an ideal world, I'd love York to have got a drop of rain. She does seem to appreciate a little bit of juice in the ground, but she goes on fast ground,' he said.
'Physically, she's done very well through the winter – I've been very pleased with her. We need to get her season started.
'She's a Group Two winner, so we'd love to try to make her a Group One winner. I like the idea of the Champions Day Fillies' and Mares' Stakes. Normally always plenty of juice in the ground, a mile and a half round there (Ascot) would really suit her.'
Ralph Beckett's Doha, the James Tate-trained Royal Dress and Marco Botti's new recruit Sioux Life – a prolific winner in Italy – also feature in a competitive field.
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