THE Group 2 Champagne Stakes saw a hot favourite in the shape of easy Solario Stakes winner Reach For The Moon (John & Thady Gosden/Frankie Dettori), but Queen Elizabeth’s colt was upstaged by Bayside Boy (Roger Varian/David Egan), who battled on well to hold off the pace-setting favourite by a head, with Twilight Jet (Michael O’Callaghan/Leigh Roche) another length and a half back in third in a race which turned out to be more intriguing than expected.

Bayside Boy, a son of Ballylinch Stud’s New Bay, was very impressive despite looking decidedly green on his debut at Newbury in July, and really should have won the Denford Stakes there on his second start, but he showed his inexperience when hitting the front and allowed the more professional Masekela to regain the lead on the line.

It was encouraging, therefore, to see him knuckle down well when the favourite rallied here, and while Reach For The Moon never travelled with the fluency he had at Sandown, making the result slightly suspect, the winner is the type to do better again now that the penny has dropped.

He’s in the Dewhurst and the Vertem Futurity, and the latter race would appear a good fit given how he’s shaped to date.

“Bayside Boy probably showed his lack of experience when he was just worried out of it last time” said Roger Varian. “I was pleased with that today and showed he had learnt a bit at Newbury. He was tough when he needed to be.

“He’s a neat horse and as a three-year-old he looks like he’ll be a miler. Having won this race, you’d have to be thinking something like the Dewhurst next, but we’ll obviously watch his condition in the next few weeks.”

John Gosden reported that Reach For The Moon did not give Frankie Dettori the same feel as he had in the Solario, and he was inclined to blame the dead ground, saying that he would find another race for the son of Sea The Stars before the end of the turf campaign, with the prerequisite being good ground.

Appleby again

On a very good day for Charlie Appleby, the Moulton Paddocks trainer saddled the one-two in the Group 2 Park Stakes, with Glorious Journey running out a comfortable winner despite drifting right to the stands rail in the closing stages.

Ridden by William Buick, the 5/2 second-favourite travelled supremely well behind the pace set by Danyah before hitting the front a quarter of a mile from home.

He looked to have a fight on his hands at that point, as stablemate D’Bai (James Doyle) had improved from the rear appearing to be going easily, but Glorious Journey poached a length or so as the challenger plotted a path between weakening rivals, and he maintained a length and a quarter advantage to the line over D’Bai, with Laneqash (Roger Varian/Jim Crowley) the same distance away in third.

This is the winner’s level, and the six-year-old has been a group winner every year he’s been in training. He’s struggled at the highest level, however, so the chances are he will miss the Prix de la Foret at ParisLongchamp and again take in Newmarket’s Challenge Stakes (third in 2020) as his autumn target.

D’Bai is also entered in the Challenge Stakes, although had a more pressing engagement at Newbury yesterday in the Listed Dubai Duty Free Cup; he was second again.

As well as the pattern races at Doncaster on Saturday, there was the Portland Handicap, which was decimated by non-runners after overnight rain changed the going, but it produced an up-to-scratch winner in the shape of 11/2 favourite Hurricane Ivor (William Haggas/Tom Marquand), who has not always had the best of luck this season, and was certainly not scoring out of turn.

Hurricane Ivor ought to make up in a pattern performer after defying a mark of 102, and misses the Ayr Gold Cup in favour of a crack at the Dubai International Airport World Trophy at Newbury on Saturday.

Chester

The only other blacktype action on the day came at Chester where the Listed tote+ Stand Cup went to Invite (John Egan) on her debut for Andrew Balding.

The Team Valor-owned filly disappointed when favourite for the Oaks d’Italia when with Marco Botti, but Egan, who also rode here there, blamed the parade for getting her too revved up.

She was much more relaxed at the start here, and justified late support into 5/1 to beat favourite and new stablemate Alounak by two lengths having swept through late off the strong pace set by Wells Farhh Go.

She produced a career-best in the process of winning, and clearly relishes soft ground, but much more will be needed if she’s to take up an entry in the Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes.