Guild one to note

It was a good day for John Gosden at York with Roaring Lion outclassing his rivals in the Dante Stakes and setting up a tilt at either the Epsom or French Derby. The former champion trainer also captured the Group 2 Middleton Stakes for a second time with Coronet. The grey filly, who won the Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot last summer before failing to stay in the St Leger, appears to have gained more speed over the winter comfortably seeing off her six opponents in the ten furlongs event. She looks set for a profitable summer. The disappointment of the race was undoubtedly Mori who failed to perform for the second time on the Knavesmire. Sir Michael Stoute's beautifully bred filly ran a shocker in the Listed Galtres Stakes last August and her effort yesterday wasn't much better. For some reason, she cannot produce her best at York. Her next start will be interesting because her homework with Ascot runner-up Mirage Dancer beforehand had reportedly been very good. Plus, she had undergone surgery on her wind since last year.

Stablemate Sun Maiden hails from the same family and she looked a filly of immense talent when winning the first division of the ten furlongs fillies' novice stakes at Salisbury by a dozen lengths. The daughter of Frankel had finished fourth on her sole start at two but left that performance behind with a striking display at the Wiltshire venue in a race her trainer has done well in over the years. Cut for the Epsom Oaks, it will be signficant if she is fast tracked to the fillies' Classic at the start of next month. Stoute ran Ulysses in the Derby on the back of a wide margin maiden win at Newbury a couple of years ago and he may do likewise with his relation of Midday, who finished a close second in the Oaks nine years ago.

The Roger Charlton trained Guild is also by Frankel and owned by Prince Khalid Abdulla. He made his racecourse debut in the ten furlongs maiden at Newmarket last night and shaped with plenty of promise for the future. Out of a dam who won the Bahrain Trophy in 2001, he stayed on well to fill fifth position, three lengths behind the more experienced Burgonet. His trainer has yet to hit top form and he will benefit from a step up to at least a mile and a half next time. He is one to bear in mind in a similar event with that experience under his belt.