Favourites for Juddmonte International

The 2024 York Ebor Festival begins on Wednesday, and here we take a look at some of the leading contenders to win the prestigious Juddmonte International.

All eyes will be on York Racecourse for the start of the 2024 York Ebor Festival on Wednesday, which is the first of four days of enthralling action that comes to a close on Saturday 24th August 2024.

There are some iconic races taking place over the course of the event, one of which is the Juddmonte International Stakes, which is set to be the fourth race that will be taking place on the opening day. It is run over one mile and 2 furlongs by horses aged 3 or older, and it is certainly a race that no one will want to miss.

The sensational prize money that it has on offer for the winner, no less than £1,250,000 gives you an idea of the level of prestige that it holds, with it being the richest race at the York Ebor Festival this year.

Mostahdaf, ridden by iconic jockey Frankie Dettori won the most recent edition of this race in 2023, beating competition from runner-up Nashwa, ridden by Hollie Doyle by a margin of no less than one length. Ryan Moore’s Paddington rounded off the top three, coming in third place in the end.

The 13 confirmed horses that will make up the field for this year’s race are as follows: City Of Troy, Calandagan, Ambiente Friendly, Bluestocking, Zarakem, Alflaila, Ghostwriter, Maljoom, Docklands, Durezza, Israr, Royal Rhyme, and Hans Andersen.

The most successful jockey of all time in this famous race is an honour held by Dettori himself – this was his record 6th win, breaking the previous record that was set by Lester Piggott. Dettori’s other five wins came with Halling (1996), Singspiel (1997), Sakhee (2001), Sulamani (2004), and Authorized (2007).

When it comes to horses, the record for most wins is held jointly by three horses, who have two each – Dahlia (1974 & 1975), Ezzoud (1993 & 1994), and the aforementioned Halling (1995 & 1996).

Talking of horses, all eyes will be on the field set to take part in the latest renewal of the Juddmonte International for 2024. Here, we look at some of the horses who are seen as leading contenders to emerge victorious.

City Of Troy

The first name on this list of favourites for this year’s Juddmonte International is that of City Of Troy, trained by the legendary Aidan O’Brien.

City Of Troy comes into this race off the back of some great form, with two wins from his last two races. The first came in the Betfred Derby at Epsom back on 1st June 2024, fending off stern competition from the likes of runner-up Ambiente Friendly and Los Angeles in third place. One of these two horses will of course be in the field for this year’s Juddmonte International with City Of Troy.

The victory came in his most recent race, the Coral Eclipse Stakes at Sandon on 6th July. He was the pre-race favourite, and he was able to live up to expectations, whilst also putting in a great performance, beating the likes of Dylan Browne’s Al Riffa and Richard Kingscote’s Ghostwriter.

Maljoom

We now move on to Maljoom, who is trained by William Haggas, and in the 2024 Juddmonte International, this horse will be being ridden by Tom Marquand. Haggas has won this race before, doing so with Baaeed back in 2022.

Maljoom put in a very creditable performance in his most recent race, the Qatar Sussex Stakes, where, wearing blinkers for the first time came in second place with only 2000 Guineas Winner Notable Speech finishing ahead of him in first place.

Calandagan

Finally, we move on to Calandagan, who is trained by Francis Henri Graffard, who is another horse seen as a leading contender to win this year’s edition of the highly prestigious Juddmonte International Stakes. He is going to be ridden by Jockey Stephane Pasquier for the 2024 renewal.

Calandagan put in an emphatic performance in his most recent race, which was the King George VII Stakes at this year’s Royal Ascot. It was an incredible performance that saw Pasquier ride him to a sensational victory with a margin of no less than six furlongs separating him from runner-up Space Legend (James Doyle). Oisin Murphy’s Royal Supremacy came in third, rounding off the top three.

Calandagan was also victorious in the Prix Noailles and the Prix Hocquart at Longchamp in France in April and May 2024 respectively.

Another enthralling chapter is set to be written in the incredible and illustrious history of the prestigious Juddmonte International, with the winner for 2024 set to be decided on Wednesday afternoon at the historic York Racecourse.

There is plenty of excitement and anticipation for the enthralling action to come across all four days at the historic York Racecourse for the 2024 York Ebor Festival, which is set to start on Wednesday 21st August before coming to a close on Saturday 24th August 2024.

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