Check out the view from connections ahead of Thursday's feature action at Goodwood including the Group One Nassau Stakes.

Nashwa is a warm favourite to take a second Group One contest in the Qatar Nassau Stakes at Goodwood on Thursday, with co-trainer Thady Gosden confident she will be effective on the South Downs track.

The daughter of Frankel did not stay the mile and a half of the Oaks at Epsom, finishing three and a quarter lengths behind Tuesday.

However, she bounced back to give jockey Hollie Doyle her first Classic winner, landing last month’s Prix de Diane at Chantilly over half a furlong further than the mile and a quarter she faces at the West Sussex venue.

Gosden, who trains the filly in partnership with his, father John, said: “She ran a very good race in the Oaks at Epsom, she just didn’t quite see out the mile and a half. She’s a filly with plenty of speed. She’s come out of the race in France well and we’re looking forward to the Nassau.

“She’s pretty versatile when it comes to ground and at Goodwood they do a very good job, so I’m sure there will be a nice sound racing surface there.

“She’s a well-balanced filly, with excellent tactical speed. She switches off well, we think she’ll handle the track and she’s very versatile technically as well.”

Nashwa takes on eight rivals who include Lilac Road, winner of the Group Two Middleton Stakes at York in May.

She is having only her third run of the season in the Nassau and her trainer, William Haggas, explained: “The only reason she hasn’t run since is that there aren’t many races for fillies when they’ve won their Group Two. There’s only really the Pretty Polly, in which we ran two others. Also it was soft ground, which she doesn’t want.

“She’s fine and she’s working nicely. She’s fresh and well and she’s in good shape. She’ll run a good race, but whether she’s quite up to that class we’ll find out."

Easy ground at the Curragh saw Dreamloper’s bid to back up her Group One Prix d’Ispahan victory falter, as she finished sixth of nine to La Petite Coco.

Trainer Ed Walker feels the daughter of Lope De Vega, who is partnered by Kieran Shoemark, will be more effective on the likely faster surface.

“The ground was the problem at the Curragh last time, and also she got a bit crowded, which made her a bit keen. Keenness has always been a bit of a thing for her but she’s been quite good this year. On that ground, though, Kieran (Shoemark) said she was wheel-spinning. We can put a line through that.

He added: “The win in the Prix d’Ispahan was great. It was really quick ground there – I walked the track and there’s no way it was the good to soft that they were calling it – but she settled great that day. When she settles she has a deadly turn of foot, and the faster the ground the better.”

Aidan O’Brien has saddled four previous winners of the Nassau and relies on Concert Hall, who wears cheekpieces for the first time, having run with credit when fourth in the Belmont Oaks Invitational earlier this month.

O’Brien said: “She ran a good race in America and finished fourth. She’s also run in the Irish Guineas, the Oaks and the Pretty Polly and she always seems to run a good race.”

Sir Michael Stoute, who has won this race a record seven times, the last coming in 2004, saddles Ville De Grace, beaten a nose by Dreamloper on her seasonal bow in the Dahlia at Newmarket before held by Middleton one-two Lilac Road and the Richard Hannon-trained Aristia, who renew rivalry.

Rogue Millennium, winner of the Lingfield Oaks Trial before a fair seventh in the Epsom Classic, was back in trip when beaten a length by Poptronic in the Hoppings at Newcastle four weeks ago. Trainer Tom Clover says the daughter of Dubawi has been freshened up after a break, although she could do with a little ease in the ground.

“She ran lovely in the Oaks and probably didn’t quite stay. We dropped her back into Group Three company the next day and she travelled like the winner, but for whatever reason, didn’t quite see out her race. It might be that she had four quick runs. I was a little bit disappointed with that run.

“She has had eight days in the paddock after that and she seems very well in herself and hopefully she will give a good account of herself and run a big race.

“Perhaps there have been stronger Nassau’s although it is a Group One and they are hard to win, but I just hope they put a little water on, so it is not too quick. She doesn’t mind genuine spring or autumn good to firm ground, she just doesn’t want it quick. She seems in really good form.”

York Listed winner Fonteyn and Curragh Group Two third One For Bobby complete the line-up.

George Boughey is excited to see Derby runner-up Hoo Ya Mal makes his debut for the yard in the John Pearce Racing Gordon Stakes.

The three-year-old, formerly trained by Andrew Balding, was a widely unconsidered 150-1 shot for the premier Classic at Epsom last month, but ran a huge race to pip subsequent Irish Derby hero Westover to second behind the hugely impressive Desert Crown.

Hoo Ya Mal was subsequently sold for £1.2million to an Australian-based syndicate on the eve of Royal Ascot with a view to heading Down Under ahead of a likely tilt at Melbourne Cup.

But while the son of Territories remains set join top Australian trainer Gai Waterhouse later in the year, for the time being he is enjoying a temporary spell in Newmarket with Boughey, who is hoping the colt can establish himself as a genuine St Leger contender with a positive performance at Goodwood.

He said: “Hoo Ya Mal came to me in fantastic condition, having finished second in the Derby, and we’ve just been looking after him. His work is good, he’s the highest-rated horse in the race and he goes there with a good chance. It’s great to have a horse of his calibre in the yard.

“He was bought to go to Australia and that’s very much the plan. Gai has been in Europe for the summer and I think we’ll have more of a definitive plan after he runs.

“He’s in the Leger and while he’s not in at York (Great Voltigeur Stakes), he could go to York – the plan is pretty fluid at the moment, what he does over here.

“I’d like to see him in the Leger and I think that’s very much the plan for Gai and Adrian (Bott, Waterhouse’s training partner). They’d like to see him there and he’s certainly going the right way.”

Hoo Ya Mal will have a change of tack on Thursday, with the hood taken off and a tongue-tie applied.

Boughey added: “He’s been a very straightforward horse to train at home. He’ll probably wear a red hood to post, but he’s possibly a bit more relaxed at home.

“Andrew Balding was very good. When the horse came we had a long chat about him and he said he probably doesn’t need the hood any more. A lot of horses Down Under wear a tongue-tie. They don’t seem to worry so much about that and it can only be a help.”

Chief among Hoo Ya Mal’s rivals is New London, who has won three of his four starts for Charlie Appleby and steps up in class following a lucrative handicap victory at the July meeting.

The Dubawi colt holds an entry for the St Leger, but will be subjected to the test of running at Group level before loftier targets are pencilled in.

“We know the Gordon Stakes is a great pointer towards the Great Voltigeur, we’ll get the Gordon Stakes out of the way with him first and then we’ll see,” Appleby said.

“After that we will hopefully not be putting round pegs into square holes.”

Others in opposition include James Ferguson’s Deauville Legend and the Karl Burke-trained Al Qareem, who finished first and second in the Bahrain Trophy at Newmarket three weeks ago.

Al Qareem carries the colours of Nick Bradley Racing and Bradley is confident of a bold showing.

“He is in great form. He goes there with a massive chance and is definitely overpriced,” he said.

“In an ideal world we would be running over one-mile-six or one-mile-five rather than a mile and a half and any rain would help him, but I think he has a massive chance.”

Balding’s Masekela, the Charlie Fellowes-trained Grand Alliance and West Wind Blows from Simon and Ed Crisford’s yard also feature in the Group Three contest.

A field of nine juveniles have been declared for the Group Two Richmond Stakes, with Paul and Oliver Cole’s course and distance winner Royal Scotsman setting the standard on ratings after finishing third in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Oliver Cole said: “The horse is in really good form and we decided to skip the July Stakes at Newmarket because he’s a big horse and we wanted to give him a bit more time between races as he’s still growing.

“He goes there in great form and I think he’ll run a big, big race. He ran in the Coventry on pretty quick ground and I don’t think the ground worries him. We didn’t have enough cover in the Coventry, so arguably there’s improvement there.

“He’s done very well between the Coventry and the Richmond, so fingers crossed.”

Michael O’Callaghan’s Crispy Cat also brings Royal Ascot placed form to the table, having finished third in the Norfolk, but he has since disappointed in the Railway Stakes at the Curragh.

Other hopefuls include Balding’s dual winner Chateau, Tom Clover’s impressive Windsor scorer Al Karrar and the Nick Bradley Racing-owned Marshman, who won readily on his debut for Burk at Ayr.

Bradley added: “His work at home has been excellent. He’s been working with Lethal Levi, Holloway Boy and Cold Case which are some of Karl’s fastest colts.

“When he won he was a little green, he made a mess of the start and was again green at the finish, but he’s probably my best chance of the week on the figures.

“He could be anything. Karl hasn’t said he is going to win, but he’s definitely done nothing wrong at home – his work at home is really excellent.”

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