Yazin on Royal Ascot trial in Heron

Yazin faces a step up in grade to the highest level if he passes a Royal Ascot audition in Sandown’s Listed Star Sports Heron Stakes.

Joint-trainer John Gosden has used the Esher contest as a stepping stone to the St James’s Palace Stakes at the royal meeting in the past, with Without Parole completing the double in 2018.

And while Yazin has still to show he is at that level, winning at Redcar and Newmarket at two and landing an all-weather conditions race at Southwell last month, connections are hoping to head down the same path.

“Is he up to that sort of class? Well, that is what Sandown is going to tell us. But he has done nothing wrong so far in his life and he has overcome a few hiccups along the way,” said Angus Gold, racing manager for owners Shadwell.

“He is a very gutsy horse so it is an obvious progression and we will see whether he is a genuine Group One horse or whether we need to aim our sights a bit lower.”

Charlie Appleby won this race last year with Opera Ballo and provides the stiffest opposition on paper in the form of comfortable Newmarket winner Talk Of New York, one of four runners for the Moulton Paddocks handler and the owners Godolphin.

Appleby told www.godolphin.com: “Talk Of New York has enjoyed a little break after the Craven meeting, and we have been working back from here since. This race can produce a St James’s Palace Stakes contender, and we have always felt that he has the potential to run up to that level.

“Maximized will be in the field again to hopefully keep things straightforward.”

Appleby also saddles Nation’s Hope, the wide-margin winner of two all-weather juvenile contests last backend, as well as Horris Hill winner Time To Turn.

“Nation’s Hope is quite hard to place at the moment, so we need to get a run into him to see where we stand. Conditions should suit him but there will be improvement to come from whatever he does here and we want to establish whether to step him up in trip afterwards,” Appleby added.

“Time To Turn has a penalty from his Newbury win in the autumn. He goes into this in good form and we wanted to see where we are before weighing up any potential Royal Ascot races.

“It’s not ideal to have to run all four, but there aren’t that many options and we want to see how they stack up ahead of Royal Ascot.”

With Charlie Pike’s 2000 Guineas eighth Padraig Dawn a non-runner, Gosden second string Wise Prince, Joseph O’Brien’s Irish raider Andab and Ed Walker’s Newmarket novice winner Golden Knight complete the field.