Ten runners have been declared for the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes, the centrepiece of Newbury Racecourse’s Flat season, taking place on Saturday 16 May. Lining up among them to contest the straight mile and £400,000 prize fund will be Andrew Balding’s Jonquil.

Last year’s Group 3 Watership Down Stud Too Darn Hot Greenham Stakes winner and French 2000 Guineas runner up signed off last season by winning the Group 2 Celebration Mile Stakes at Goodwood before making the trip overseas for his winter campaign.

The four-year-old son of Lope De Vega reaffirmed his ability when making a winning return in the Listed Paradise Stakes at Ascot earlier this month. Having impressed that day under Colin Keane, who retains the ride on Saturday, Jonquil is worthy of his place in this hot renewal of the Lockinge Stakes. Balding commented: “He’s obviously started well winning at Ascot really quite impressively. He’s a horse we’ve always thought a lot of and one I’d hope he will prove very competitive in a Group 1 at some stage this year in England.

“Since Ascot we’ve been delighted with him - he’s eating well and seems in good spirits out of exercise. It’s quite a quick turnaround, just about two weeks but the feeling is that he’s recovered well from Ascot and, seems at his best form at home.”

Looking to make his mark in top-class company, Balding added: “The Lockinge is an important race in that it's the first sort of really big Group 1 mile race of the year in England for the older horses. So, I think if any horse were to perform well in the Lockinge, the rest of the season is exciting to look forward to.”

On what it would mean to win the race for the first time, the Kingsclere handler said: “We’ve had a couple of horses placed in the Lockinge before, so it’d be lovely as Newbury is our local track.

“It would be lovely to win it one day and my dad (the late Ian Balding) was lucky enough to win it a couple of times, so we will try and catch him up one day.”

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