First we take Japan, then we take Royal Ascot: Goliath's new part-owner issues declaration of intent

The black and sky blue silks of Resolute Racing have come a long way in a short time, but owner John Stewart made it clear he expects Goliath's success in the Prix du Conseil de Paris to be only the first of many visits to the winner's enclosure.

US-based Stewart has made no secret of his opinion that the more international nature of turf racing is what motivates many of his investments, and after Goliath's half-length defeat of Hamish he revealed it had been the wide, galloping expanses of Tokyo racecourse that had been uppermost in his mind rather than the tight turns of Del Mar when buying into this year's King George winner.

Reflecting on the way the imposing Goliath had nimbly sidestepped the potentially trappy nature of a first run in 85 days against six rivals on deep autumn ground, Stewart said: "The track’s really sticky out there and you never know what’s gonna happen in race conditions like that. There’s always a risk but we’re focused on the Japan Cup and he needed a race before that.