Zebedee has opened up a 2-1 favourite to produce the most individual winners in Britain and Ireland for the 2014 among this year’s crop of first-season sires.

The British flat season starts at Doncaster on Saturday.  The Lincoln meeting commences with the Brocklesby Stakes (1000m), a traditional season-opener for two year-olds.

Last Sunday, the Kevin Prendergast trained filly Beach Belle (Invincible Spirit) kicked-off the Irish juvenile season with a two length victory in the Tally Ho Stud EBF Maiden (1000m) at the Curragh.

Zebedee has the credentials on paper to produce plenty of juvenile winners – he won six of his seven starts at two himself and is by Invincible Spirit, a leading source of two-year-olds.

Standing at Tally-Ho Stud, he has a crop of 114 two-year-olds to represent him.

Coolmore Stud sire Rip Van Winkle (Galileo) is next best in the market at 3-1.  Fellow Australian-NZ shuttlers Paco Boy (Waikato Stud) is at 6-1, Equiano (Swettenham Stud) has been well-supported at 7-1 while Makfi (Westbury Stud) is priced at 9-1.

“The sheer numbers that Zebedee has on the ground coupled with the fact that they are spread among trainers synonymous with two-year-old winners should ensure he gets off to a flyer,” said Joseph Burke, who compiled the odds for RaceBets.

“It’s a particularly competitive season this time with Group 1 winners such as Rip Van Winkle, Paco Boy, Equiano, Makfi and Arcano next in the betting, as well as dark horses like Fast Company, who never got to show his true colours as a three-year-old.”

RaceBets market:  2 Zebedee,  3 Rip Van Winkle, 6 Paco Boy,  7 Equiano,  9 Makfi,  12 Arcano,  12 Fast Company,  20 Approve,  20 Lord Shanakill,  25 Lope De Vega,  25 Showcasing,  40 Alfred Nobel,  50 bar.

ZEBEDEE