Moon Ballad to be tested in Sussex

Moon Ballad will represent Godolphin at Goodwood on Wednesday in the Sussex Stakes, the first of four weight-for-age Group 1 miles that traditionally determine the European challenge in the Breeders' Cup Mile.

Not that Moon Ballad, the handy five-length winner of the Dubai World Cup, is headed to the Mile. Plans still call for him to run in the Classic, but after his ninth-place finish in the 1 1/4-mile Prince of Wales's Stakes, Godolphin has decided to try something different.

Moon Ballad faces a tall order in the Sussex, won last year by Rock of Gibraltar. Zafeen and Kalaman, the first two finishers in the St. James's Palace Stakes, are improving 3-year-olds who should be battling it out at the finish. Where or When, winner of last September's Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, has looked dull in two starts this year, but Trade Fair, the four-length winner of the seven-furlong Group 3 Criterion Stakes, has upset possibilities.