Luca Cumani is hoping to land a second successive Tote Ebor next month after watching Boreas overcome a 654-day absence to win the Cuisine De France Rated Stakes at York today.
It was a splendid piece of training by the Newmarket-based handler to have Boreas fit and ready to win a competitive-looking event after such a long spell on the sidelines.
The bay gelding led over a furlong out and stayed on really well for Jamie Spencer to beat Ligne Gagnante by three lengths.
A delighted Cumani, who sent out Vicious Circle to win the Ebor in 1999, said with a smile: 'Boreas will come back for a little race here in August which begins with 'E' and ends in 'R'. I can't quite remember the name!
'He had quite a serious leg injury as a three-year-old and came back in about three or four months ago.
'I was confident I had him straight enough to win and as he is fit it is not necessary for him to have another run before the Ebor.'
Hot Tin Roof chalked up her third Listed race success of the campaign in the Stanley Racing Summer Stakes.
The filly was also the middle leg of a near 379-1 treble for jockey Kevin Darley.
And she is now likely to be Tim Easterby's first runner in France who explained: 'She will run in a Group One race (the Prix Maurice de Gheest on April 6) over six and a half furlongs at Deauville.
'She is a good filly and is getting better, she loves a bit of cut in the ground and likes plenty of cover in her races - we told Kevin to get plenty of cover and that if he came too late it would be our fault.'
Darley has never been beaten in four rides on Eastern Trumpeter, the winner of the opening Mr Kipling Exceedingly Good Stakes.
The four-year-old was gaining his ninth success since in-form trainer Milton Bradley snapped him up at the sales for only 1,200 guineas two years ago.
Bradley said: 'Kevin gets on well with the horse and I told him when he came back in, 'Kevin you are a friend for life to a small stable'.'
Darley completed his treble aboard Saratov in the Ramesys Maiden Stakes.
Mark Johnston was confident Saratov would come on for his debut run at Haydock and he did, battling on gamely under Darley's driving to get back up and beat Hurricane Floyd by half a length.
The Middleham trainer said: 'We said to Kevin that we did not know how good the horse was but that he could do a lot better than he did at Haydock
'They were saying that there were horses with Group One entries in today's race, and Saratov's owner (David Abell) said he hadn't got any, but I replied that we could soon make some for him.'
Apprentice Dean Mernagh was in trouble on Thursday when picking up a 12-day suspension for riding a finish a circuit too soon at Wolverhampton.
But he made the news in happier circumstances when winning the John West Tuna Rated Stakes on the Denys Smith-trained Duraid, who beat the Pat Eddery-ridden Swan Knight by a head.
Smith explained: 'They rang up yesterday for Pat to ride Duraid but I said that I had already booked Dean so I stuck by him - a lot wouldn't.'
And Mernagh added: 'I have said sorry to the owners, trainer and to the punters who backed State Approval and I just want to get on with my career now.
'It is great to be back in the winners enclosure at York and I want to have a bash at the apprentices' championship now.'
