Hannon has strong claims for another glorious Goodwood

Brilliant miler Canford Cliffs was one of nine winners for Hannon 12 months ago and while he is undoubtedly the stable's star heading into Wednesday's big clash with Frankel, it is the trainer's talented Strong Suit who can land the meeting's first big race - the £140,000 bet365 Lennox Stakes.

The three-year-old looked a star of the future when he romped home in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot last year but his subsequent displays in defeat at the Curragh and Newmarket left Hannon scratching his head.

When Strong Suit trailed in last in the Greenham Stakes at Newbury in April it seemed his future might be behind him. But Hannon and jockey Richard Hughes retained faith in the colt because he still worked like a top-class horse on the gallops.

Exhaustive veterinary tests then revealed that Strong Suit had a breathing problem. Surgery quickly followed and now the son of Rahy is finally fulfilling the promise of his early two-year-old campaign.

He returned to Royal Ascot in triumph last month with a narrow success in the fiercely-contested Jersey Stakes, then ran even better when just pipped by Mutual Trust and Zoffany in a tight finish to the Group One Prix Jean Prat at Chantilly. That performance definitely makes him the one to beat in the Group Two Lennox Stakes.

Hannon said: "In the Greenham Stakes the horse couldn't breathe. Richard said he was gasping for air there. So we put a head camera on him at home and could see the airwaves closing up. The wind operation which followed obviously did the trick.

"They did a great job and when we took him to Kempton for a workout with Canford Cliffs before Royal Ascot I didn't quite believe what I was seeing because the pair of them pulled well clear of a decent horse.

"They lose their confidence when they can't breathe properly but he was flowing at Ascot which encouraged us to step him up to a mile in France. But the seven furlongs of the Lennox Stakes looks ideal for him."

While it would be unrealistic to believe Hannon and Hughes can match or even better their feat at Goodwood last year, the stable's horses remain in sparkling form - and Hughes excels on this tricky, switchback course.

Hannon also fields Libranno, to be ridden by Ryan Moore, in the Lennox Stakes. He won the Richmond Stakes at Goodwood a year but Strong Suit looks nap material. A more significant danger may be Delegator, whose chance was surely compromised by a poor draw in the July Cup at Newmarket. He did well to finish fifth only three lengths behind Dream Ahead after racing on the unfavoured far-side rail for much of the way.

Delegator was galloping on strongly at the finish in a way which suggested he will be well suited by stepping back up to seven furlongs. A return to the form which saw him chase home the mighty champion Sea The Stars in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket two years ago would surely see him push Strong Suit to the limit.

Modun and Fiorente can also give Sir Michael Stoute a good start to the meeting. Modun looked one to follow when chasing home Green Destiny at York and has a decent draw in stall seven in the opening bet365.com Stakes. Fiorente should give Stoute his eighth success in the Gordon Stakes.