Bangkok tops nine hunting Winter Derby honours

Balding’s runner bids for Group Three prize.

Bangkok will face a maximum of eight rivals in the Betway Winter Derby at Lingfield on Saturday.

Andrew Balding’s four-year-old was a hugely impressive winner of the trial event at the start of the month and has been favourite ever since given he broke the track record.

Alastair Donald, racing manager for owners King Power Racing, said: “We’d been waiting to try him on the all-weather for a while as his half-brother Matterhorn is a bit of a machine on it.

“I think a reproduction of the type of performance he put up in the trial would make him hard to beat.

“It won’t be a very big field, which means the draw shouldn’t be too significant, but Dubai Warrior has looked promising.

“Bangkok had run in Qatar at the end of year, but things didn’t quite work out that day, he was beaten by a progressive horse.

“Andrew always hoped that as a four-year-old he could be very exciting and hopefully there are bigger things to come after this race.”

Dubai Warrior is one of two John Gosden-trained possibles along with Court House, second to Bangkok in the trial.

Century Dream could run for Simon Crisford. Now six, at his best he was third in the 2018 QEII Stakes at Ascot.

Dalgarno, Entangling, Master The World, Normal Norman and Pactolus complete the list.

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Lingfield Andrew Balding Winter Derby

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