Rarely has a British sprint race come up as strong as the Group 1, $374,000 Nunthorpe Stakes at York on Friday. In Starspangledbanner and Equiano, the five-furlong dash will feature the two best sprinters in Europe, and in Borderlescott they will be facing the two-time defending Nunthorpe titleholder.

Sariska and Midday renew their one-sided rivalry at York on Thursday in the Group 1, $485,000 Yorkshire Oaks, in which they will be joined by English and Irish Oaks winner Snow Fairy.

Rip Van Winkle woke up just in time to catch the Juddmonte pair of Twice Over and Byword in the shadow of the line to land a thrilling renewal of the $1 million Juddmonte International Stakes at York on Tuesday. In winning for the first time in nearly 11 months, the Aidan O’Brien-trained son of Galileo proved he could win beyond a mile as defeated two of the best 10-furlong horses in training.

Temple Meads is the horse to beat in the Group 2, $219,000, Gimcrack Stakes at York on Wednesday, day two of the four-day Ebor Meeting. A modestly bred son of Avonbridge, Temple Meads won the 24-runner Weatherbys Super Sprint at Newbury a month ago off an 11-week layoff to go to 2 for 2 lifetime and should improve for that strong effort in this six-furlong juvenile contest.

Jimmy Fortune will ride Temple Meads, a colt trained by Ed McMahon who does most of his running late. Serious challenges could emerge from a pair of well-bred rivals coming off recent maiden victories.

Overdose trounced eight outclassed rivals at Kincsem Park in Budapest on Sunday with an easy score in the Bestens-Pannonia Eletbiztosito Dij, a five-furlong Hungarian listed race worth $18,300. Now undefeated after 14 starts, the Budapest Bullet led throughout to win by 10 lengths over Spinning Crystal, the same horse he had beaten by eight lengths the last time he ran in Budapest in a similar race in April 2009.

Makfi handed Goldikova a shocking defeat at Deauville on Sunday as he beat the two-time Breeders’ Cup Mile winner by 2 1/2 lengths in the Group 1, $769,000 Prix Jacques Le Marois.

Goldikova led approaching the three-sixteenths pole in the straight mile but couldn’t resist the late charge of Makfi. Paco Boy led briefly at the eighth-pole, but Goldikova got back up for second by a neck. The winning time was 1:39.40, compared to the 1:33.50 recorded by Goldikova when winning last year’s renewal by sixlengths on good ground.

Rip Van Winkle will attempt to rouse himself from a nine-month slumber when he starts the likely favorite in a highly competitive renewal of the $1  million Juddmonte International Stakes at York on Tuesday, the first day of the prestigious four-day Ebor Meeting.

A dull 10th in Zenyatta’s Breeders’ Cup Classic, the Aidan O’Brien-trained son of Galileo has improved in two starts this year, finishing sixth to Goldikova in the Queen Anne Stakes and just getting caught near the line by Canford Cliffs when second in the Sussex Stakes.

Vision d’Etat made a successful return to the races at Deauville on Saturday, scoring a rather handy one-length victory in the Group 3, $103,000 Prix Gontaut-Biron, a race that lost some of its luster when Argentine champion Interaction was a late scratch.

A four-time Group 1 winner in France, England, and Hong Kong, Vision d’Etat received a ground-saving ride from Olivier Peslier in the 10-furlong contest which was the 5-year-old son of Chichicastenango’s first start since finishing 12th in the Dubai World Cup.

Goldikova goes in search of what would be a modern European record of 11 Group or Grade 1 triumphs on Sunday, when she renews rivalry with Paco Boy in the $769,000 Prix Jacques Le Marois going a mile at Deauville. Victory would be her 11th at the highest level and would break the mark she currently shares with Miesque, who, like Goldikova, is a two-time winner of the Breeders’ Cup Mile.

The Jacques Le Marois is a Win and You’re In race, giving the winner a berth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile.

The undefeated Hungarian sprinter Overdose bids farewell to Budapest’s Kincsem Park on Sunday when he faces eight rivals in the Eletbiztosito Dij, a five-furlong Hungarian listed race worth $18,300. The Budapest Bullet, as he is affectionately known, Overdose is using this minor event as a springboard to bigger things in Germany and France in an attempt to prove that he is the best sprinter in Europe.