THE Group Two Hungerford Stakes is the big race of the weekend if you are looking forward to black-type races. But if, like me, handicaps are your thing, then the Great St Wilfrid Handicap (3.45) at Ripon will be your focus along with other valuable handicaps at Newbury and Newmarket.

The garden track of Yorkshire has 20 runners in both the feature event and the consolation (due off at 3.10). The two races are worth dissecting on a standalone basis, as it is more about where the pace comes from in each race rather than the first race mirroring the second, as far as favouring one side of the track over the other goes.

Both races have a maximum of 20 runners and, with the ground drying out all the time, the old boy Mr Lupton could run well. Connor Murtagh has taken a valuable three pounds off his back, putting him to within 2lbs of the rating he ran off when he came a close-up third to Staxton in the 2020 renewal.