TOUGHENED STEEL

All systems go for Varian's Cup hope

- DAVID YATES

THE "vital signs are good" for King Of Steel ahead of Saturday's Breeders' Cup Turf at Santa Anita.

Rodin, Roger Varian's colt will lock horns with Auguste Mostahdaf and home challenger Up To The Mark just two weeks after his battling victory under Frankie Dettori in the QIPCO Champion Stakes at Ascot.

But Varian (below) is adamant the towering grey is showing no signs of his Ascot exertions - and is already plotting a return to California for an ambitious tilt at the Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar in 2024.