Overview
- Bacio produced an emphatic all-the-way win in the Coolmore City Of Troy Nunthorpe at York, beating Starlust by a length and a quarter and taking his record to five wins from six starts.
- The colt’s York performance followed a decisive Palace of Holyroodhouse success at Royal Ascot, where Racing Post data noted a Topspeed figure of 111 that underlined his raw speed advantage.
- Trainer Wesley Ward watched from the US and said Bacio was in peak form and could handle cut ground, while connections immediately named the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint as the likely next target.
- Bookmakers reacted to the Nunthorpe result by shortening markets, with Coral cutting Bacio’s Breeders’ Cup odds to around 2-1, reflecting a rapid change in commercial expectation.
- The win has renewed pressure on the BHA after trainers including Ralph Beckett argued that a low handicap mark allowed a lightly raced US horse to run in a Royal Ascot handicap before stepping up to Group 1 level, and officials have been asked to review how American form is assessed.