Ed Crisford plans Deauville return for star sprinter Vandeek

He has finished third on both starts this season after an unbeaten juvenile campaign.

A return to Deauville for the Prix Maurice de Gheest is next on the agenda for Vandeek, with Ed Crisford reporting his star sprinter to be “extremely well” in the aftermath of the July Cup.

The Havana Grey colt rounded off an unbeaten juvenile campaign with back-to-back Group One wins in Deauville’s Prix Morny and the Middle Park at Newmarket, but his three-year-old campaign has so far not gone according to plan.

After being beaten into third place by Inisherin on his return in a soft ground Sandy Lane Stakes at Haydock, Vandeek was ruled out of a rematch in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot due to below-par blood test results and therefore headed straight to the July Cup to take on his elders.

And while he again had to make do with the bronze medal on the July Course two weeks ago, connections took the positives out of the performance and are excited to see what the second half of the season has in store.

“He’s come out of the July Cup extremely well, we’re really pleased with him. It’s all systems go at the moment for the Prix Maurice de Gheest,” said Ed Crisford, who trains Vandeek in partnership with his father Simon.

“He wasn’t really right that first day on that heavy ground at Haydock, the July Cup was his first proper test and he ran with huge credit, but he’s only going to improve mentally and fitness-wise.”

Trainer Ed Crisford is looking forward to running Vandeek at Deauville
Trainer Ed Crisford is looking forward to running Vandeek at Deauville (John Walton/PA)

He added: “He just needed to get out and get racing really and get going for the second half of the season.

“Haydock didn’t really go to plan, then he missed Ascot and then he had to have a bit of time after those bad bloods, and then we had to bring him back.

“You’re going into a championship race in the July Cup and you’ve got to be 120 per cent. He was great going to the July Cup, but the more racing any athlete gets they’re going to improve from it.

“We’re going to kick on to France and see where we go from there. I expect it’ll be a very good field again, but he’s won at Deauville before and six-and-a-half (furlongs) shouldn’t be an issue for him.”

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