Melbourne Cup winner in good nick

Despite winning a Melbourne Cup and a Hong Kong Vase on quick ground, connections of Dunaden are not worried by the conditions at Newmarket ahead of his reappearance in the Jockey Club Stakes on Saturday.

The six-year-old will be making his first start in Britain after his exploits around the world last season saw him catapulted into the limelight.

His trainer Mikel Delzangles is no stranger to these shores having won the 2000 Guineas with Makfi two years ago and David Redvers, racing manager to his owners Pearl Bloodstock Ltd, is interested to see how he copes first time out.

Redvers said: "He looks great and he's in great fettle, so we're looking forward to running him and seeing how he gets on.

"It's his first run of the year and he may need the run a little, but we're still hopeful he'll run a good race.

"I know he's won a Melbourne Cup and a Hong Kong Vase on fast ground, but I don't think he needs it that way.

"He's also won on bottomless ground in France, so I don't expect the ground at Newmarket to be any issue for him.

"It is a bit of a fact-finding mission with him on Saturday. It's going to be a fascinating race."

Last year's St Leger winner Masked Marvel has been declared by John Gosden but his participation is still up in the air.

After winning at Doncaster he then went on to the Arc at Longchamp but trailed home last.

"He's been declared but he's not a definite runner as yet," said Gosden.

"For horses like him there are very few options but I'd rather I didn't run him on soft ground.

"There was no problem with the ground for him in the Arc, that was just us getting carried away.

"He'd danced every dance really and the Arc was just one dance too many.

"I'll walk the course on the morning of the race and if I'm happy he'll run."

Roger Charlton's consistent Al Kazeem was due to run at Sandown two weeks ago but was taken out on account of the very soft ground.

He is another good ride in what could be a special 24 hours for jockey James Doyle, who rides Top Offer in the Guineas and then flies to Hong Kong for the ride on Cityscape.

"It looks a very competitive race with the Melbourne Cup winner (Dunaden) and a St Leger winner (Masked Marvel) and a few other nice horses in there. It looks a hot race," said Doyle.

"He was runner-up to Sea Moon last year in the Voltigeur and he's not a bad horse on his day."