Thursday, 11th of July, sees the latest sizzling flat fixture go under starters orders as Newmarket stages the 2024 edition of the excellent July Festival. Spread over three days, the action from HQ encompasses 21 high-quality events, with the Group 1 double act of the Falmouth Stakes and July Cup serving as the headline acts from a class perspective.
The fillies are up in the first top-tier event, as the Classic generation tackles their elders over a mile in the £275,000 Falmouth Stakes on Friday. Invariably attracting the best of the British and Irish runners, the latest renewal is no exception, with a pair of winners from the Royal Ascot meeting set to lock horns for the first time. Here, we look at the main contenders ahead of what promises to be a fascinating contest.
Porta Fortuna – 13/8
Leading the charge for the Classic generation is this Donnacha O’Brien-trained daughter of Caravaggio. A Group 1 winner of the 2023 Cheveley Park Stakes, she has taken the step up to a mile in her stride this season – going down by just a neck in the 1000 Guineas and posting a career-best effort to land the Coronation Stakes at Ascot last time out.
Running Lion – 10/3
John Gosden has claimed this prize four times – most recently when saddling Nashwa to an impressive 5l rout in the 2023 edition. Running Lion flies the flag for the Gosden operation in 2024, with the four-year-old looking the strongest of the older contenders. Unlike Porta Fortuna, the four-year-old is yet to score in Group 1 company, but she looked worth another crack at the top level when storming to a 2l success in the Group 2 Duke Of Cambridge Stakes at the Royal meeting.
A Lilac Rolla – 4/1
Also making the trip over from the Emerald Isle is this lightly raced three-year-old from the yard of Paddy Twomey. Boasting strong juvenile form – including a verdict over subsequent Group 1 winner Opera Singer – A Lilac Rolla kicked off her season with a tenacious success in a Group 3 at Leopardstown. Last time out, she paid the price for allowing Fallen Angel an easy lead in the Irish 1000 Guineas but finished best of the rest and could prove dangerous granted a truly run race.
Rogue Millennium – 15/2
No five-year-old has landed this prize since Soviet Song picked up her second win in 2005. Hoping to end that sequence of defeats for the older mares is the Joseph O’Brien-trained Rogue Millennium. Zero from six in Group 1 company, she has work to do on the formbook and 4½l to find with Running Lion on their clash last time out. Having splashed out a whopping 1,650,000 Guineas to purchase the mare in December, Scott C Heider will hope to recoup some of that outlay by at least grabbing a share of the prize money.
