Solow heavy favorite in Sussex Mile

Solow will be a short-priced favorite to extend his winning streak to eight races in Wednesday’s $1.56 million Sussex Stakes at Goodwood Racecourse in England after a weekend of rain caused Gleneagles to be kept out of the entries by trainer Aidan O’Brien.

When post positions were drawn on Monday, Gleneagles, the winner of three Group 1 races for 3-year-old milers this year, was not part of the field of eight. The turf course at Goodwood is expected to good to soft; Gleneagles is better on firmer turf.

The Group 1 Sussex Stakes is the richest race of the five-day Glorious Goodwood meeting, which continues through Saturday.

Solow, unbeaten in seven starts in the last year, has won the last four times he has raced at a mile, including in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 16. A 5-year-old by Singspiel, Solow is capable of racing near the lead and will be ridden by Maxime Guyon. Freddy Head trains Solow for Alain and Gerard Wertheimer.

Solow has won four starts this year, including the Dubai Turf at 1 1/8 miles in March and the Group 1 Prix d’Ispahan at 1 3/16 miles at Longchamp in May.

The only other 2015 Group 1 winner in the field is Night of Thunder, who won the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury on May 16. Arod won the Group 2 Summer Mile at Ascot on July 1.

O’Brien will be represented in the Sussex by Cougar Mountain, who was third in the Queen Anne Stakes.

Pease set to retire

Leading European trainer Jonathan Pease, who saddled three Breeders’ Cup winners including last year’s Mile winner, Karakontie, has announced he will retire at the end of the racing season.

Among Pease’s major clients were the Niarchos family and American owner-breeder George Strawbridge. Pease saddled two Breeders’ Cup Mile winners for the Niarchos family’s Flaxman Holdings – Karakontie and 1997 winner Spinning World. For Strawbridge, Pease trained Tikkanen, who shipped in from Europe to win the 1994 Breeders’ Cup Turf over the top-class mare Hatoof and Paradise Creek, both of whom were named American grass champions that year.

Pease also trained Bago, the winner of the 2004 Arc, for the Niarchos family.