Teal, who famously trained Oxted to win the 2020 July Cup, is upbeat about Hucklesbrook’s prospects in this weekend’s £125,000 feature race on the Knavesmire.

The three-year-old has had two starts this season, finishing fifth of 16 in a competitive contest at Ascot and then scoring by a length on May 26 at Leicester.

Saturday’s six-furlong assignment represents a step up in class with a list of relatively unexposed horses in a maximum field of 22.

Lambourn-based Teal said: “I think he needed the race at Ascot but he ran a solid race. He came forward for that at Leicester – he did very well, won nicely. Hopefully, if he brings that form to the table, then you’d put him in the mix. I don’t think he’s really ground dependent – he’s pretty versatile. He’s got a nice draw in the middle there, I think, so we’re hoping for a big run from him.”

Teal also noted that three-year-old sprints with six-figure prize funds don’t come around every week and this one has been boosted by £25,000 this year.

He said: “They are very few and far between, so it’s nice we can have a crack at bringing home a nice pot if we can. But it’s going to be a very competitive race, so it’s not going to be easy.”

Double Rush is among those expected to play a major part in proceedings after early-spring wins at Wolverhampton and Newmarket.

Yorkshireman William Haggas will send two likely types from his powerful Newmarket stable. On the form book, Maelstrom looks the most likely of the Haggas-trained pair after peeling off three straight wins. His other runner is Showering, who scored at Yarmouth towards the end of May.

The £70,000 Sky Bet Grand Cup (Race To The Ebor) has attracted a select field. Staged over a mile and six furlongs, the top-rated Al Qareem has previous winning form at York, while Absurde landed the Sky Bet Ebor over track and trip in 2023.

Saturday’s seven-race card is preceded at 12.30pm by the Macmillan ‘Ride of Their Lives’ in which nine horses will go to post. They will be ridden by committed amateurs from all walks of life with the end goal to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support. This year’s renewal of the well-established race has already secured more than £100,000 in donations. https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/rideoftheirlives2025.