Michael Dods will be targeting major prizes with Azure Blue next season, having seen the campaign of his improving sprinter come to a premature end.

The four-year-old – who found the scoresheet four times in 2022 – made a blistering start to the season, winning a Listed event at Newmarket before claiming the scalp of Highfield Princess in the 1895 Duke of York Clipper Stakes at York.

She was subsequently saved for Newmarket’s July Cup where she finished sixth but has not been since, having suffered a foot injury which has kept her on the sidelines and ruled her out of tilts at both the Nunthorpe and Haydock’s Betfair Sprint Cup.

Sights were turned to Qipco British Champions Day, but having lost the battle to fully prime the daughter of El Kabeir for Ascot action, Dods is now relishing the prospect of Azure Blue returning in 2024.

He said: “She’s fine, we just ran out of time to get her back for British Champions Day so we’ll leave her now and she will back.

“We’re looking forward to next season now.”

When asked if she will be campaigned as a Group One sprinter next season, Dods added: “That will be the plan, I would say so definitely.”

Michael Dods reports his star filly Azure Blue to be none the worse following her disappointing performance in the July Cup on Saturday.

Having rounded off last season with back-to-back wins at Newmarket, the four-year-old picked up where she left off with a Listed success on the Rowley Mile in early May.

She subsequently got the better of multiple Group One winner Highfield Princess to land the Duke of York Stakes and as a result was among the leading contenders for last weekend’s Group One feature, but could only finish sixth of eight runners.

“She was on the wing, probably racing a bit keenly, but she’s come home fine,” said Dods.

“On the day she probably didn’t run her race, but she’s been fine since she came home anyway.”

The Darlington-based trainer is keen to let the dust settle before committing to future plans. Azure Blue’s big-race entries include the Nunthorpe at York, the Sprint Cup at Haydock and the Flying Five Stakes in Ireland.

“We’ll give her this week and see where we go next – we haven’t made any plans,” he added.

“One of the owners has gone on holiday so we’ll wait until they get back next week, discuss it with them and go from there.”

Azure Blue is on course for the Darley July Cup at Newmarket, as long as the ground is suitable for Michael Dods’ new sprinting star.

The four-year-old is on a steep upward curve, winning four of her last five races, the most recent of which was in the Group Two 1895 Duke of York Stakes.

She beat Highfield Princess there, albeit in receipt of 5lb, and with John Quinn’s mare performing with extreme credit in both the King’s Stand and the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot, the form looks strong.

“Azure Blue is in the July Cup and that is the plan as long as the ground doesn’t firm up,” said Dods.

“She is in good form and obviously it will be a tough race, but the plan is to go to Newmarket with her. She seems to love it at both tracks at Newmarket (three wins on the Rowley Mile and one on the July course to date).

“She didn’t go to Ascot and part of the reason for that was that the entries closed too soon so we came up with the plan of going for the July Cup.

“Had she had a run before the entries closed at Ascot then we would have probably entered her, but then it went pretty quick so whether she would have run is questionable.

“I think at the moment the speediest horse we had was Mecca’s Angel, but at this stage of her career I would put her up there with the best of them like Mabs Cross and Mecca’s Angel.”

Commonwealth Cup one-two Shaquille and Little Big Bear, older horses such as Kinross and Art Power and the likes of Lezoo and Meditate, remain in the mix.

A total of 19 stood their ground, although the American-trained Big Invasion was subsequently scratched, leaving 18.