Hi °C | Lo °C Connections of Bated Breath will be waiting with just that ahead of the King's Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot today.
Conditions need to dry out for the five-year-old to be seen at his best as he showed when breaking the track record in the Temple Stakes at Haydock.
That gave him his first Group Two success and he now seeks a victory at the top level after going close three times.
With a favourable forecast, trainer Roger Charlton expects Bated Breath to take his chance.
“At the moment he's an intended runner. I hope the ground will be good,” he said. “It had got to good yesterday afternoon and unfortunately they had another six millimetres of rain, but I imagine by tomorrow afternoon it will probably be good.”
His rider James Doyle would love Bated Breath to have the ground in his favour.
“It was very quick ground when he won the Temple Stakes at Haydock and he seems to relish those conditions. Ideally that would be his ground,” he said.
“He has shown form with cut in the ground, but he broke the track record at Haydock so he prefers it quick.
“Obviously it's a very competitive race, but on his form at Haydock he's the one they've got to beat.
“Mr Charlton and I will probably have a walk on the track before racing. It's a stiff five there and they went so fast in the Temple Stakes but he found it so easy they almost weren't going quick enough for him.”
Stone Of Folca broke the five-furlong record at Epsom last time out and John Best's four-year-old is expected to improve on his unplaced run in this race 12 months ago.
“He was a good two-year-old, second in the Molecomb, and as a lot of sprinters do he lost his way at three,” said jockey Luke Morris.
“I rode him in the King's Stand last year and he wasn't good enough. It was his first run since being gelded the last day. Hopefully that has improved him, he has strengthened up, and I wouldn't be surprised if he ran a big race.”
Bapak Chinta took the Norfolk Stakes at the 2011 meeting but was well-beaten on his return behind Bated Breath.
“If he's in the same sort of form you wouldn't know what he could do. With a few keeping away from Black Caviar it looks a strong race,” said his jockey Phillip Makin. “They had some rain last year when he won and he handled it, so it's not too big a deal.”
Last year's winner Prohibit heads Newmarket trainer Robert Cowell's trio.
Prohibit has been disappointing this season, both in Meydan and last time in Chantilly when well behind Wizz Kid.
He will be joined by Spirit Quartz, recently purchased by Qatar Racing, and Al Quoz Sprint fourth Monsieur Joe.
