Nineteen remaining for English Two Thousand Guineas

Jessica Harrington is poised to unleash the unbeaten Pathfork and leading contender Laughing

Lashes in the first two

classics of the season at Newmarket, the £350,000 Group 1 English Two Thousand Guineas

on April 30 and the £350,000 Group 1 English One Thousand Guineas on

May 1. The one-mile classics are the feature events at the two-day Guineas

Festival.

Pathfork is one of 19 colts remaining for the Two Thousand Guineas following

Wednesday's scratchings deadline, while Laughing Lashes is among 30 fillies

going forward for the One Thousand Guineas. Pathfork is unbeaten in three

starts, including a head victory over subsequent Group 1 Racing Post Trophy winner Casamento in the

Group 1 National at the Curragh on September 11.

The colt is set to make his three-year-old debut in the Guineas.

Laughing Lashes will also be making her seasonal bow in the One Thousand

Guineas. She defeated the Aidan O'Brien-trained Misty for Me in

the Group 2 Debutante at the Curragh before finding that rival a length

superior when runner-up in the Group 1 Moyglare Stud at the same course on

August 29 to close out her juvenile campaign.

"As of this moment Pathfork and Laughing Lashes are both running and I'm

happy with their progress," Harrington said from her County Kildare yard. "So

far, touching all wood, it's so good. Both of them had very good form last year.

They did everything that was asked of them so I couldn't ask for any more. I

would like rain on the Saturday night for Laughing Lashes in the following

afternoon's One Thousand Guineas."

Frankel remains a hot favorite for the Two Thousand Guineas

following his impressive four-length victory in the Group 3 Greenham at

Newbury on Saturday, and is on course to give Henry Cecil his first runner in

the race since 2000 as the trainer seeks a third triumph in the classic (Bolkonski

[1975], Wollow [1976]).

The Khalid Abdulla-owned colt was jointly crowned champion European

two-year-old last season after his Group 1 Dewhurst win, equal with the

David Simcock-trained Dream Ahead, who romped by nine lengths in the

Group 1 Middle Park, also on the Rowley Mile course, before running below

par in the Dewhurst.

In addition to Laughing Lashes and Misty for Me, the 30 fillies going forward

for the One Thousand Guineas include last year's champion juvenile filly Hooray. Sir Mark Prescott's charge stormed to a 4 1/2-length

victory in the Group 1 Cheveley Park at Newmarket in October.

Among the remaining fillies are a French-trained quintet, headed by Moonlight

Cloud from the Freddy Head yard. The filly impressed when

winning the Group 3 Prix Imprudence on April 7 and her only career defeat came

against colts when fourth to Wootton Bassett in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at Longchamp in October.