This six furlong contest provides the grand finale to the British Champions Series Sprint category. The Sprint takes place over the same course and distance as the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot in June.
The race attracts progressive sprinters that have emerged during the season, as well as horses that are dropping down to a shorter trip having not won any races over further this year.
The Champions Sprint Stakes is one of the premier late-season races for sprint distance horses in Europe. With prize money amounting to £500,000, it’s easy to see why horses come from far and wide to race in it.
The Contenders
Kinross (4/1) could well come into this race as the reigning Prix De La Foret champion once more.
Ralph Beckett’s seven-year-old was fourth in the Longchamp contest in 2021, won it easily in 2022 and was just touched off as the odds-on favourite in 2023.
Winner Market -
If he wins in Paris on October 6th you can quickly wave goodbye to the 4/1 currently available in our betting market for the Sprint Stakes.
If the ground comes up soft on Champions Day then this son of Kingman holds an outstanding chance of landing the spoils.
William Haggas’ six-year-old Montassib (6/1) was the shock winner of the Haydock Sprint Cup, holding off Kind of Blue and Unequal Love.
Haggas said after the race “He had a heart condition as a two-year-old, but he’s a good horse and we’ll look towards Ascot – that was always the race that we had an eye on”.
It’s hardly surprising then that antepost punters have latched onto this horse and have plenty of faith in William Haggas and Cieren Fallon doubling up with another Group 1.
Another Group 1 winning sprinter Mill Stream (10/1) has been carefully plotted by his astute trainer Jane Chapple-Hyam.
She deliberately gave the Haydock Sprint Cup the swerve to keep her horse fresh and the four-year-old colt will now be aimed at the Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot with his 2024 finale pencilled in as the Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint in mid-December.
“He's turned out, having a little mini-break and then at this stage he will be next seen at Ascot on Oct. 19, then on to Hong Kong,” said Chapple-Hyam.
One horse that I would love to see line up on Champions Day is the French trained Beauvatier (16/1).
Winner Market -
Yann Barberot’s three-year-old ended last season on a high with an excellent third place behind Rosallion in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere.
This season he has spend his summer filling podium spots and at the time of writing he will be contesting the Prix De La Foret at Longchamp on Arc weekend.
I think he will run well in that contest and I would suggest grabbing some of the early 16/1 available in our horse racing betting before it quickly evaporates.
Champions Sprint Stakes ante post tip: Beauvatier @ 16/1 E/W
*Credit for the main photo belongs to Alamy*
