All Systems Go For Champions´ Day Tremendous five-day entries have been received for Champions´ Day, Newmarket´s richest day of the year this Saturday (October 15) which boasts the highest class race programme in the British racing calendar. With four supplementary entries (Chic, Echo Of Light, Pinson, Rob Roy) in the Emirates Airline Champion Stakes, boosting its value to over £430,000, total prize money for the day, which features two Group 1 races, two Group 2s, two Group 3s plus one of the biggest handicaps of the year in the totesport Cesarewitch, will be well over £1 million. Oratorio, the 10-furlong king of Europe this year with victories in the Coral-Eclipse and the Irish Champion Stakes under his belt, will fly the flag for Aidan O´Brien in the Champion, but powerful opposition is likely with the likes of Alexander Goldrun, Alkaased and Rakti, all Group 1 winners, confirmed for the race together with strong representatives from Sir Michael Stoute´s stable in Chic, Rob Roy and Maraahel. With Stoute and O´Brien locked in battle for the trainer´s championship, this race could be pivotal in determining the final result. The French challenge must be one of the strongest ever for a race in which the country has an outstanding record. There have been 19 French-trained winners since the war, though none since Dernier Empereur in 1994, the longest period that France has endured without a winner. Prospect Park, Pride, Pinson and Touch of Land will be looking to get the French back on the roll of honour. In the Darley Dewhurst Stakes, the day´s other Group 1 event, the 17 confirmations include George Washington and Horatio Nelson, first and second favourites for the Stan James 2000 Guineas, along with six other Aidan O´Brien-trained juveniles, while one of the best two-year-olds seen out in Britain so far this season, Sir Percy, is set to lay his unbeaten record on the line. With the likes of Palace Episode, Red Clubs, Killybegs, Primary and Close To You also confirmed, the race looks certain to live up to its billing as the premier two-year-old contest in Europe. A total of 46 have stood their ground for the totesport Cesarewitch, the day´s big handicap, including ante-post favourite Afrad, while Peeress, heroine of the Kingdom of Bahrain Sun Chariot Stakes 10 days ago, is one of 24 left in the Victor Chandler Challenge Stakes (Group 2). The Jockey Club Stakes (Group 3) has received 16 entries headed by Millenary, the Owen Brown Rockfel Stakes (Group 2) has 26 entries including Chris Wall´s Watership Down Stud Sales Race winner, Expensive, while the 33 in the Darley Stakes (Group 3) include the smart Godolphin colt, Layman. 'We could not have hoped for anything better at the five day stage and, with the unveiling of the Persian Punch statue taking place as well, there is so much for racegoers to look forward to here on Saturday,' said Lisa Hancock, Newmarket´s Managing Director.
