Gary Moore has confirmed that his stable star Goshen will more than likely not run in the Sky Bet Ebor.
The hugely talented four-year-old was being aimed at a flat campaign initially this season after his heartbreak defeat at the Cheltenham Festival in March.
He cruised to the front and was going to win by a wide margin in the JCB Triumph Hurdle but he unseated rider at the final hurdle to the dismay of viewers and connections alike.
Goshen was a six-time winner, three of which came on the Flat and three wins over hurdles so it was no surprise when Gary said he was aiming this horse at the Ebor.
That was before the coronavirus pandemic set in though and plans must have changed in the meantime.
The pandemic meant that Moore had to give Goshen a break and he only returned to training three weeks ago so he probably wouldn’t be fit enough in time.
Moore said: “I don’t know where we’re going to go with him, to be honest – it will be ground dependent, anyway. I would have loved to have got him ready for Royal Ascot last week if I’d known the ground would end up the way it did.”
Moore on being told Goshen is the Ebor favourite: “I’ve no idea why – he’s only rated 88, so he wouldn’t get in for a start.
“You wouldn’t want to go there without a run anyway, and I can’t see him being ready in time because he only came back to me on June 1 – I definitely wouldn’t want to rush him.
“I think we’d like to give him two or three runs on the Flat and then go back over hurdles. He won’t be having many runs over hurdles anyway, because there aren’t that many races for him, whereas at least he’s still well enough handicapped on the Flat.”