Is the Sweet Solera a two-horse race between Ballydoyle and Godolphin juveniles?

Big-priced winners and short-priced losers have been a theme in Britain's best juvenile races this season. Will we see something similar in the Sweet Solera?

Despite the division’s volatility, as evidenced by some tricky-to-predict outcomes at Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood, the early market suggests many punters will only want to know about Lake Victoria and Mountain Breeze.

That is theoretically fair enough. It’s Aidan O’Brien and Coolmore versus Charlie Appleby and Godolphin and the horses in question are benchmark performers.

Godolphin’s Mountain Breeze is experienced as juveniles go. This will be her fifth run after two novice successes and placed efforts in the Albany and Duchess of Cambridge. If she takes after her esteemed half-brother Pinatubo, which seems likely, this extra furlong can spark a new lifetime best.

Lake Victoria arrives after a Curragh maiden victory on her debut, form which has worked out strongly with subsequent successes from the second, fifth and ninth. It is common for O’Brien’s newcomers to make significant strides on their second start and her popularity is understandable.

While the Sweet Solera is a surprising omission from O’Brien’s CV, the yard is seldom represented (no runner in the last ten years). Only time will tell how Lake Victoria measures up with O’Brien’s leading juvenile pair Bedtime Story and Fairy Godmother.

If another big-priced two-year-old winner is imminent, then perhaps the Gemma Tutty-trained Elsie’s Ruan can provide it.

Tutty is quietly enjoying an excellent campaign. Backing her runners in Britain blindly this term would have yielded a £34.63 level-stakes profit and Elsie’s Ruan downed an odds-on favourite when scoring cosier than the head winning margin implied in a big field at York 15 days ago.

The runner-up was worthy of his price, possessing formlines that tie in with a good yardstick in Billboard Star, and progeny of Ulysses are renowned for improving with racing.
Analysis by Robbie Wilders

What they say

Aidan O'Brien, trainer of Lake Victoria
We were delighted with her on debut at the Curragh. We feel she's ready to start back again and we think the experience will do her good.

Hugo Palmer, trainer of Dream Voyage
I'm happy with her. It's a big step up but she won her maiden, probably more impressively than any of the other horses in the race. She's a beautifully bred filly who we think can make that step up. The step up in trip won't be an issue on the way she's raced or on her pedigree, but you never know until you try.

Gemma Tutty, trainer of Elsie's Ruan
I'm really happy with her. She's fresh and well and we're really looking forward to seeing what she can do.

Barry Mahon, racing manager to Juddmonte, owners of Flaming Stone
She's in good form. She came out of Sandown well but the ground was probably a bit soft for her. She ran a good race and this looks a very hot race. She's a nice filly and hopefully she can add more black type to the pedigree. The favourite [Lake Victoria] looked very good when she beat a filly of ours [Red Letter] that we like and Charlie's filly [Mountain Breeze] is also in good form.

Charlie Appleby, trainer of Mountain Breeze
We feel that stepping up to seven is the right way for Mountain Breeze and it should produce a bit more improvement. She should be very competitive on the back of what she has already achieved and this will hopefully open up a few more doors for her heading into the autumn.
Reporting by Liam Headd

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