Champagne Prince and Eydon meet for a second time this season in the 11-furlong BetUK Winter Derby Trial (7pm) at Southwell on Friday, January 31.
The duo clashed in the Listed Wild Flower Stakes at Kempton Park last month, with the Jane Chapple-Hyam-trained Champagne Prince coming out on top by three quarters of a length.
Champagne Prince has won four of his five starts on the all-weather, with his haul including novice races at Chelmsford and Newcastle as well as a 12-furlong Southwell handicap.
Eydon is a Listed winner in his own right, having captured Newmarket’s Feilden Stakes in 2022 prior to finishing fourth in the G1 2,000 Guineas.
The six-year-old has been restricted to four appearances since joining Andrew Balding in early 2023, including making the frame in Listed contests at Ayr and Newmarket last year.
Chapple-Hyam also saddles Claymore, winner of the G3 Hampton Court Stakes in 2022 who is looking to bounce back after below-par efforts at Wolverhampton and Newcastle.
The trainer said: “Champagne Prince had a little break after his Listed win and has trained well coming into this race, which will hopefully be a stepping stone to the Winter Derby itself.
“I liked his performance at Kempton, stepping up in class. He kicked two furlongs out to beat a nice horse in Eydon, who he is obviously taking on again.
“I think it will be an interesting race again between the two of them. Eydon has Group One form going back to the Guineas and Andrew Balding is very good in these sort of races.
“In truth, I think Champagne Prince is a 12-furlong-plus horse but, because he has such good stats on the all-weather, we wanted to give him the opportunity in these races. He has not done much wrong on the turf either and, in time, could be an Ebor horse.
“With Claymore, horses can have an off-day and he certainly did at Newcastle a couple of weeks ago. I think he can bounce back from that because he has trained well since then.”
Dual all-weather victor Intinso completes the field for Craig Lidster, having finished third behind Paradias on his yard debut at Wolverhampton on Boxing Day. Godolphin’s By The Book was declared but is a non-runner due to lameness.
The BetUK Winter Derby Trial serves as a prelude to the G3 BetUK Winter Derby back at Southwell on February 22, part of a lucrative card that also features the Listed BetUK Hever Sprint.
Southwell’s Friday programme also includes the Boost Your Acca At BetMGM Handicap (8.30pm) over seven furlongs, in which Tiger Crusade bids to follow up a recent Wolverhampton success for David Simcock.
