Ebor King of Stats: Suitably-titled winner expected at York
Published:
The namesake of York’s Ebor meeting, a valuable 1m6f handicap open to three-year-olds and over, has attracted a wide range of trainers to the Knavesmire, as National Hunt shrewdies Tony Martin and Alan King prepare to mix it with the likes of Flat experts Andrew Balding and Ralph Beckett.
We’ve had a word with the King of Stats ahead of the Ebor, who helped break it down into the little pieces featured below:
13 of the past 14 winners were aged six or younger
Plenty remaining after this sweeping stat, with only Oriental Fox, Seismos and Quick Jack deemed too long in the tooth to take this, although the exception came last year in the form of Johnny Murtagh’s seven-year-old Litigant.
11 of the past 14 won from a double-figure stall
This dumps almost half the remaining runners from the 18-strong cadre, as we say goodbye to Elidor, Tawdeea, Oceanographer, Fun Mac, Ballynanty, She Is No Lady, Top Tug and likely favourite Antiquarium.
11 of the past 14 winners were aged either four or five
Being more specific in terms of age whittles the group down further, leading Heartbreak City, Shrewd, Havana Beat and Ivan Grozny, a possible non-runner for crack Irish Jumps trainer Willie Mullins, to the exit door.
Eight of the past 14 winners had three or more runs already that season
Having only made his 2016 debut last time out at Sandown, we say goodbye to Vent De Force at this juncture, leaving just five still standing, namely Battersea, Kinema, The Twisler, Seamour and Sir Chauvelin.
Of that quintet, only the latter fits the key trend of carrying 9-4 or less in weight, with each of the past 14 Ebor winners lugging as little to victory around York.
Indeed, 10 of those triumphant animals carried more than 9-1, but only one runner in this year’s renewal, bottom weight Havana Beat, gets in at such a feather-light mark.
With 9-2 on his back, and likely to attract a price close to the 23/1 average for Ebor winners since 2001, Sir Chauvelin receives royal recognition.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
