'He should go close' - is there another future Lockinge winner lurking in Leicester's feature race?

William Haggas, pictured at his Somerville Lodge base in Newmarket

William Haggas: saddles Mahato for his handicap debutCredit: Edward Whitaker

This race has precedent for throwing up a decent three-year-old and even unearthed a future Lockinge winner two seasons ago in Audience.

The early market for this season’s race favours one from the Classic generation and that is William Haggas’s handicap debutant Mahato, although it's tough to gauge whether his opening mark is a favourable one.

Mahato created a good impression when sluicing through the mud to win at Windsor on his debut last season, but his two subsequent starts on the all-weather have yielded heavy odds-on defeats.

The first of those is easy to forgive as he sustained a wound to his right-fore at Newcastle last November and he may have bumped into a top-notcher at Kempton recently.

With form on a similar surface, Mahato's chance is clear if he can build on his reappearance effort. However, this is a warm race for the time of year and is packed with useful slow-ground performers.

Pearl D’Or is one from one on heavy going and can go well if ready to rock after a four-month break, while Spirit Genie remains competitively weighted after doing the business on that surface at Haydock last time.

Spirit Genie recorded a 0.43secs quicker time than the winner of the second division of the 7f handicap on that card, a race in which Encourageable and Zip were down the field.

Encourageable, one position ahead of Zip in fifth, did shape promisingly on his return from a 419-day absence as he travelled stylishly into the race, and that effort should have brought him forward.
Analysis by Robbie Wilders

What they say

Alan O'Keeffe, assistant to Jennie Candlish, trainer of Spirit Genie
He's been great this season and while he's climbing up the weights all the time, the one big advantage is that he loves this heavy ground. It's competitive and he's carrying top weight, but he's won at the track before and I'd be hopeful of a good run.

Jamie Osborne, trainer of Executive Decision
The time is right to try seven furlongs again. She raced a bit lazily over six the other day at Salisbury and stayed on once the race was over, looking like she needed to go over seven. She loves this ground and I'd be reasonably hopeful she'll run well.

James Horton, trainer of Encourageable
He ran well last time as he'd been off the track for a long time and just got tired in the last furlong. He travelled into it very well. He doesn't seem to mind bad ground and if he steps forward like I hope he will, he should go close.

Mark Walford, trainer of It Just Takes Time
We stepped him back up to seven furlongs last time and he saw it out really well. I thought the three-pound rise would be fair and he's in good nick, so we'd expect him to run well. He seems to go on any ground, so the softish ground won't be against him.
Reporting by Andrew Dietz