BOOKMAKERS are split down the middle over who should be ante-post favourite for the Coral-Eclipse Stakes at Sandown on Saturday after 12 possibles were declared on Monday.
Most of the layers are at odds over whether it ought to be Phoenix Tower, second to Duke Of Marmalade at Royal Ascot, or Mount Nelson, fifth to Haradasun inthe Queen Anne Stakes.
Ladbrokes, Stan James, Bet Direct and Sky Bet all favour Phoenix Tower, at 7-2. Mount Nelson is market leader with Totesport, Boylesports, Betfred, Paddy Power and Coral while Bet365 and William Hill can not split the pair.
To muddy the water further, Blue Square and VCbet have three 4-1 co-favourites with Multidimensional, a stablemate of Phoenix Tower, joining the fray.
Mount Nelson, a juvenile Group 1 winner was beaten less than two lengths into fifth by stablemate Haradasun in the Queen Anne, but fellow layers Ladbrokes believe Henry Cecil's Phoenix Tower is the likelier winner.
Owned by Prince Khalid Abdullah, the latter acquitted himself well behind the O'Brien-trained Duke Of Marmalade in the Prince Of Wales's Stakes.
Coral spokesman Simon Clare is hailing the ?00,000 contest as the most open and competitive for 16 years.
"This year's Coral-Eclipse features a host of talented horses looking to burst on to the Group 1 stage, and as a result it is the most competitive renewal for many years," said Clare.
"The last time the Eclipse favourite started as big as 7-2 was Kooyonga back in 1992 and she won the race for Ireland - a feat Mount Nelson is looking to emulate.  
"But Henry Cecil is mounting a strong challenge with both Phoenix Tower and Multidimensional, while Godolphin have entered both Literato and Campanologist - the latter being the leading representative of the three-year-old division."
Explaining the decision to make Phoenix Tower their market leader, Ladbrokes' David Williams said: "Phoenix Tower proved at Royal Ascot that he gets ten furlongs and can be expected to be given a more aggressive ride accordingly at Sandown.
"His proven form looks stronger than Mount Nelson's at this stage but there's little in it."
In what is shaping into an intriguing clash of Royal Ascot formlines, the John Gosden-trained Pipedreamer has also been confirmed after getting within a short head of Phoenix Tower in the Prince Of Wales's.
The latter's stablemate Multidimensional was only a neck away from winning the Hardwicke Stakes and would be another interesting runner, while grand campaigner Maraahel is also in the mix.
Connections have not made a final decision regarding his participation but the evergreen seven-year-old has work to do to catch up with Multidimensional after taking third in the Hardwicke.
Angus Gold, racing manager to Maraahel's owner Hamdan Al Maktoum, said: "If Sir Michael Stoute has left him in I would imagine he is a possible, but I shall talk to him and to Sheikh Hamdan about it nearer the time.
"There's not much more I can say about him that everyone doesn't know by now but we were happy with him at Ascot."