Muscutt’s Ebor Festival Gr2 Strike

Deauville Legend brought home a three-pointer for trainer James Ferguson in the Gr2 Sky Bet Great Voltigeur Stakes in York on Wednesday.

The winner was ridden by Newmarket-based rider Daniel Muscutt, who recently became Hollywoodbet’s first Northern Hemisphere sponsored jockey and brand ambassador. Zimbabwe-born Muscutt’s father, Peter is a coach at Summerveld.

It was stablemate and eventual third El Bodegon who would likely take the spoils, beating the front two furlongs at the hands of Hollie Doyle, but Daniel Muscutt was well on his way and it was just a matter of when, not if for the talented gelding.

The highly consistent son of Sea The Stars has progressed rapidly through the ranks this season and after silver medals at Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood he added this Group Two prize to the Bahrain Trophy which he won at the July Festival earlier in the campaign had won at Newmarket.

Unable to walk in the St Leger because he is a gelding, a trip to Australia for the Melbourne Cup could be an option for the winner as Paddy Power introduces him 14-1.

El Bodegon will also travel to Australia where he has a Cox Plate entry.

Ferguson said: “One moment I was focused on El Bodegon when I thought Dan was in trouble and the next moment I saw him with a double handful. He gave it a nice ride and didn’t panic.

“Thanks to both horses, they both did fantastic races and I am happy for both owners. They should both have successful careers Down Under.

“Right now, El Bodegon is in the Cox Plate and Deauville Legend is in the Melbourne Cup, but that’s not all set in stone. The quarantine is about two weeks. Hopefully they will be in Australia in early October.

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“Deauville Legend has improved with every race and has come out of every race so well, the team has done a great job with him, he gets better with age.”

Ferguson announced a change to its lineup on Wednesday, switching yards at Newmarket.

He added: “I’m moving into Hugo Palmer’s Kremlin Cottage and I look forward to continuing the good work he started there. There are 96 boxes, almost double what I have now.”

Ferguson said: “One moment I was focused on El Bodegon when I thought Dan was in trouble and the next moment I saw him with a double handful. He gave it a nice ride and didn’t panic.

“Thanks to both horses, they both did fantastic races and I am happy for both owners. They should both have successful careers Down Under.

“Right now, El Bodegon is in the Cox Plate and Deauville Legend is in the Melbourne Cup, but that’s not all set in stone. The quarantine is about two weeks. Hopefully they will be in Australia in early October.

“Deauville Legend has improved with every race and has come out of every race so well, the team has done a great job with him, he gets better with age.”

Ferguson announced a change to its lineup on Wednesday, switching yards at Newmarket.

He added: “I’m moving into Hugo Palmer’s Kremlin Cottage and I look forward to continuing the good work he started there. There are 96 boxes, almost double what I have now.”

Charlie Appleby hasn’t ruled out a run by St. Leger for Secret State, who defeated Deauville Legend in the King George V Stakes at Ascot.

He said: “It was another solid run and the winner is improving, there’s no doubt about that.

“We’re improving, but the winner is improving at a rate of knots. He traveled particularly well and had a nice pitch.

“We’ll see (about the St. Leger). We’ll see how this all plays out over the coming weeks.”

The winning jockey Muscutt comes from a family heavily involved in horse racing. In addition to his father’s credentials as one of South Africa’s most internationally experienced conditioners, his grandfather was a jockey and trainer and his late uncle also rode professionally.

Raised in West Wales, Daniel fulfilled his childhood dream by serving as an apprentice jockey to Andrew Balding at Kingsclere.

• RacingTV – additional reporting by the SP editorial team