Big Evs earned his place at Royal Ascot with a perfect comeback in the May 16 Westow Stakes, which left Mick Appleby excited that his popular star sprinter could hit even greater heights this year.
The son of Blue Point blitzed his rivals when winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1T) at Santa Anita Park last year, capping a fine 2-year-old campaign. Despite shouldering a 5-pound penalty on his return, he scored by a length and a half under Tom Marquand.
“He’s not grown much but he’s filled out a lot. He’s like a bull now and Tom said he’s as good as he was in California, if not better,” Appleby said. “He just missed the break a bit and fell out of the stalls, but Tom took his time on him.
“From 2 to 3 you just never know, but he was showing the signs at home that he’s still got it and he showed us that on the track too.”
Appleby added: “I think he’ll go for the King Charles III Stakes. He’s in at Haydock (Temple Stakes) but I think that comes too quick and we don’t need to run him again. It’s more than likely he’ll go straight to Ascot.”
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The five-furlong King Charles III Stakes (G1), formerly the King’s Stand, is a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series event. A win in the race would earn Big Evs a return trip to the World Championships with an automatic entry in the Nov. 2 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) at Del Mar.
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