Cross Counter on track for Cup

Cross Counter remains on track for his third appearance in the Melbourne Cup after finishing a distant third in the £250,000 (A$450,000) Group 1 Ascot Gold Cup (4014m) on Thursday.

The John Gosden-trained Stradivarius conquered the Gold Cup for the third consecutive year, winning by ten lengths with total ease under Frankie Dettori.

2018 Melbourne Cup winner Cross Counter ($8) was among seven rivals left in the wake of a champion, finishing 18 lengths behind Stradivarius ($1.80 favourite) and another eight behind runner-up Nayef Road ($12) who attempted to lead throughout.

But Appleby saw enough from the five-year-old gelded son of Teofilo under James Doyle to be pleased with the performance.

"The plan was to ride him cold and let him float round the back there and passing horses," Appleby said.

“I think since Melbourne, we haven’t ridden him differently, but he has been ridden slightly more positively. I just thought today let him go past horses and see if the enthusiasm is still there.

“For me I was delighted to see him do what he did. He galloped out on (soft) ground he doesn’t really enjoy.

"James (Doyle) thought he would nick a bit of ground coming on the inside, but it was an encouraging run. The horse will have enjoyed that and come forward for it."

Appleby indicated that Cross Counter would have his next start in the Group 3 Henry II Stakes (3712m) at Sandown on Sunday, July 5. The race is usually held in May but has been rescheduled due to the COVID-19 outbreak which suspended British racing for over two months.

“He won’t have to carry a (weight) penalty and thankfully there will be no Stradivarius," Appleby said, with Stradivarius set to proceed to the Group 1 Goodwood Cup (3219m), a race he has won the past three years.

“The long-term target has always been the Melbourne Cup. He ran a very creditable race in it again last year (finishing eighth to Vow And Declare).

"I think more importantly, what we have seen today he is back to where he was in Melbourne. Just ride him chilly, as he sees it out well and has a good turn of foot.

“I was very encouraged to see what I saw today and hopefully there is a race or two left in him.”

Charlie Fellowes is keeping Prince Of Arran on track for a third Melbourne Cup run in spring despite admitting the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic continues to put his place in major doubt.

"If we can't come it would be devastating," Fellowes told RSN927 on Wednesday. "I have loved my trips down to Australia over the last few years and I would miss it very much.

"As far as we are concerned, until I am told that we can't come to Australia for the Spring Carnival, the plan is very much to prep him this year to come down to Australia for the Spring Carnival and have a couple of runs down there.

"As to what we do before that I don't know but we are planning to come down.

"I am very much hoping that we can come down again because it's been a great place for us. We've loved it and Prince Of Arran loves coming down there and I've got a couple of youngsters I'd like to take down there.

"The Melbourne Cup is a race I have become very fond of and the Australian Spring Carnival in general has been very good to me and it's a place I hope to come and bring horses for many years to come."