Tipperary trained Queenstown is well backed for Ebor Crown
Irish horses catch eye of punters to continue fine recent record
The Ballydoyle-trained Queenstown is the early antepost mover for next week’s York Ebor with BoyleSports, who has slashed the odds about him winning into 8/1 from 14/1.
The four-year-old has twice finished second to superstar stayer and stablemate Kyprios this season, including when beaten just a length in Leopardstown’s Saval Beg Stakes and has been nominated as Aidan O’Brien’s leading hope in the £1m feature next Saturday.
Queenstown shares favouritism with David O’Meara’s Epic Poet and Andrew Balding’s Fairbanks, who was last seen finishing runner-up at Glorious Goodwood over the Ebor’s mile-and-three-quarters trip.
Last year’s winning yard of Willie Mullins could be represented by Royal Ascot scorer Belloccio (10/1) whose connections will be hoping for rain, with Galway one-two Jackfinbar (20/1) and Hipop De Loire (16/1) other likely contenders from team Clossuton.
With Irish horses winning three of the last five renewals since the prize pool was boosted to the £1m mark in 2019, they continue to prove popular in the betting, with Dermot Weld’s Harbour Wind also catching the eye of punters at 10/1 to give the trainer his first win in the race.
Brian O’Keeffe, spokesperson for BoyleSports, said: “The Ebor is always a massively competitive affair, but Aidan O’Brien has voiced his opinion that Queenstown looks well handicapped and punters are following him in. He’s the best backed horse in what is always a very difficult puzzle to solve.”
8/1 Epic Poet
8/1 Fairbanks
8/1 Queenstown
10/1 Belloccio
10/1 Harbour Wind
10/1 Naqeeb
12/1 Magical Zoe
16/1 Burdett Road
16/1 Hipop De Loire
16/1 Klondike
16/1 My Mate Mozzie
16/1 Onesmoothoperator
16/1 Phantom Flight
16/1 Relentless Voyager
16/1 Ziggy
20/1 Bar