York Dante Festival Meeting Day One Preview 2024

Day One of the Dante Festival kicks off at York on Wednesday, featuring Group races and some competitive looking handicaps. We've gone through every race on the card and picked out a selection it may pay to follow.

A winner at this meeting last year when winning a 10 furlong handicap and only scored once more last season when returning to York for a an impressive win over this trip.

Unable to back that up off his revised mark at the end of the season, the handicapper could beginning to take a grip, however he goes well fresh and puts in his career best performances at this venue.

Only beaten by a head in this race in 2022 off a rating of 96, Makanah seemed to save his bests outings for this venue, also coming 5th in this race last year off a mark of 100.

His mark has slowly come down over the course of last season and he returned to action for this season with a decent effort to be 4th over 5 furlongs which is likely too sharp for him now.

A consistent and improving 3 year old last season, Washington Heights gained his well earned Black Type success in a listed event in Sweden at the end of the year.

Returning to action as a 4 year old at Newmarket for the Abernant Stakes, he travelled powerfully close to the pace and showed his grit and determination to grind out a victory from Mill Stream and Spycatcher.

A winner over a mile on the all-weather at Kempton back in December, Friendly Soul returned as a 3 year old in the Pretty Polly Stakes at Newmarket with an impressive performance.

She took up the running a mile from home and stretched her opposition into submission from the front. She found plenty for pressure to fend off the attentions of the short priced favourite Kalpana.

Broke his maiden at the third attempt on the all-weather at Kempton over 6 furlongs and has continued to improve since. Despite disappointing when a short priced favourite for a handicap at Lingfield, he’s since notched up an impressive brace.

Both of his recent wins at Kempton and Newcastle has produced subsequent winners since and the step up to 7 furlongs here should unlock yet more improvement.

Only seen once so far in his career, Station X made his debut at Musselburgh to be a close 2nd of five runners behind Barak.

The 3rd has since come out and won in impressive fashion since, giving the form some substance so Station X might just be above average.

Scored in a higher grade than this at Ayr last season off the same mark, narrowly getting the better of Euchen Glen.

Hasn’t managed to replicate that form since of his higher mark in higher grade of races but the handicapper has begun to drop his rating and he eases back to class 4 for this race.