Tag: Ascot

Racing Preview Saturday 12th July

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I don’t know what is going on at the Race Planning Committee these days? We’ve had a couple of weekends recently where there has been very little racing to get excited about, then suddenly we get Newmarket, York and Ascot all on the same day? I did not even get time to give serious attention to the York and Ascot cards on Friday and it will be the same tomorrow.

The rain continued to hang over Newmarket’s July meeting on Friday, leaving the going soft and sweeping away my selections. Having said that, I think that Ryan Moore’s riding probably had more to do with it than the weather. He stole the Duchess Of Cambridge Stakes on Arabian Queen while Monsieur Guyon was holding up the odds-on favourite High Celebrity. Newmarket is a deceptively difficult course to peg back the leaders, only becoming clear when you realise the steep rise at the finish. Asking horses to make up ground on horses that are still quickening is a recipe for disaster.

I then felt like ripping up my ticket for Rizeena in the Falmouth Stakes after they had travelled a furlong. She wasn’t settled for Olivier Peslier and he gave up the ghost and sent her to the front before halfway. This, after I had written in detail about her tendency to idle in front. Needless to say, Ryan Moore was in the right place on Integral and picked her off in the closing stages.

The opening handicap at Newmarket on Saturday can go the way of You’re Fired who overcame trouble in running to win last time and is still nicely weighted. Unlike many of these, he handles a bit of cut and should give us a run for our money.

Abseil never settled in the Hunt Cup and should be suited by the faster pace in the Bunbury Cup. I am concerned about the draw, not least because jockeys never do what you expect them to! James Doyle should be looking to bring him down the middle on today’s evidence because horses drawn high were doomed if they tacked over to the far rail.

My old friends Aljamaaheer and Gregorian look out of place in the July Cup and conditions seem to favour Slade Power. The Spanish horse ran well in the Guineas but now looks short enough at around 5-1.

The feature race at York is the Magnet Cup and Her Majesty The Queen could lift this prize with Bold Sniper. The half furlong extra should suit him better than Ascot and Moore will have him handy enough. I thought that Farraaj was very impressive at Epsom but I’m worried by a 9lbs weights rise. He probably deserves it so each-way is the advice.

You’re Fired 2.05 Newmarket at 7-1 Paddy Power

Abseil 3.15 Newmarket at 8-1 Ladbrokes, Totesport

Slade Power 3.50 Newmarket at 5-2 Bet365

Farraaj 2.55 York at 12-1 Bet Victor (each-way)

Bold Sniper 2.55 York at 5-1 Betfair

Ascot Saturday Preview

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The race scheduling is baffling again this weekend with top quality racing at Ascot, Lingfield and Haydock. As an avid fan of the flat, I am going to pass over Haydock’s jumps card including the Swinton Hurdle. They could easily move it to one of the recent bank holidays when there was very mediocre stuff on offer on the level.

Handicaps dominate proceedings at Ascot and I have to admit that the course proved a bit of a bogey meeting last year (with the exception of Royal Ascot). Whereas seven furlong handicaps used to be specialist races they now seem to be a dime a dozen. The Victoria Cup is the feature event tomorrow with the usual suspects gathered for the extended sprint distance.

You could fancy a dozen horses here and still not find the winner so it’s definitely not a race to get heavily involved in. I was kicking myself for not supporting Glen Moss last time, especially as Ryan Moore rode one of his rare poor races on Sir Reginald. The bad news for David Brown is that Glen Moss picked up a 5lbs penalty which may just be enough to thwart him on a track he loves.

Heaven’s Guest won another one of these races here last October, beating Bertiewhittle, Loving Spirit and Redvers among others. Of those, Loving Spirit looked to be having something of a prep race at Kempton last time and could be worth a flutter.

You also have to respect the claims of Brownsea Brink who was in electric form last autumn when winning three on the bounce. He ran a cracker in the Spring Cup at Newbury and that is usually a good guide to this race. Richard Hughes does the steering and should give us a run for our money.

It could be a good day for Hughes as he partners Hamelin for Lady Cecil in the opener and Pether’s Moon for Hannon in the second race. Both have winning chances.

Hamelin won well at Kempton and then confirmed that he is more than an all-weather performer by winning at Leicester off a mark of 85. He is up 6lbs here but looks like a handicapper worth following. Pether’s Moon is in great form having won at Kempton and then chased home Gospel Choir at Newmarket. He finished in front of Irish Derby winner Trading Leather last time and a repeat of that performance would be good enough.

Hamelin 2.05 Ascot at 11-4 Bet365

Pether’s Moon 2.40 Ascot at 9-2 Ladbrokes

Loving Spirit 3.50 Ascot at 12-1 Paddy Power

Brownsea Brink 3.50 Ascot at 14-1 Ladbrokes

Ascot Saturday Preview

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As a mixture of rain, sleet and snow batter against the window it is hard to imagine that racing is going ahead at Ascot and Haydock this weekend. Amazingly, both courses report confidence that the meetings will go ahead.

We have reviewed the Grand National Trial at Haydock in some depth and pinned our hopes to Hawkes Point and Merry King. It will be fascinating to see how Mr McCoy gets along with Merry King but I am not expecting miracles. Although the jockey has seemingly ridden millions of winners, I seem to have a negative impact on his chances more often than not!

Both Hawkes Point and Our Father have entries at Ascot and Haydock and I am assuming that they will be heading north if both meetings survive. At the moment they are prominent in the betting at both courses so the market at Ascot is likely to change radically.

Course specialist Houblon Des Obeaux looks to have a difficult task with 11st 10lb while Teaforthree is using this as a stepping-stone to the Grand National. Chance Du Roy ran really poorly at Haydock last time after winning at Aintree. Highland Lodge and Night Alliance both pulled up last time so this is going to be a difficult to predict. With bookmakers likely to take a hefty deduction for the non-runners, the race is probably best left alone.

The two and a half mile handicap hurdle at 3.15 looks extremely competitive. David Pipe’s Heath Hunter is likely to be popular but it is difficult to get too excited about an easy Sedgefield winner, particularly as he emerged from a total fog that day. Like Minded ran extremely well last time out but is unlikely to be improving at the age of ten.

Kaylif Aramis was heavily backed for the Lanzarote Handicap Hurdle at Kempton but dropped away in the closing stages behind Saphir Du Rheu. He had previously finished sixth in the Ladbroke here and perhaps needs this trip to bring out his best.

Nicky Henderson’s Lough Kent is the dark horse here having his first race for the stable. He was a decent sort on the flat in France and won a Conditions chase in October. Bourne has run well here before but his victories are few and far between. It’s a really difficult race to be confident about but Kaylif Aramis makes each-way appeal at around 12-1.

Kaylif Aramis (each-way) at 12-1 William Hill

Racing Preview Saturday 18th January

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Ascot and Haydock provide the pick of the action this weekend. I have already previewed the Clarence House Chase and the Peter Marsh Chase but there are plenty of other tempting races to bet on.

A three-mile hurdle is going to take some getting tomorrow and I’m siding with Carole’s Spirit in the 1.50 at Ascot after seeing her battle back at Haydock. She looked beaten two out but just refused to give in and fought back to win well. She absolutely bolted up at Plumpton in similar ground and can upset the favourite Mickie.

I was very impressed with Ptit Zig’s effort when he carried 11st 12lb into second place in the Ladbroke Handicap Hurdle at Ascot. The form hasn’t really been put to the test yet but he should be too good for Melodic Rendezvous in the Haydock Champion Hurdle Trial on Saturday.

Paul Nicholls is eager to send him over a fence so he would have to win comfortably to be allowed to run in the Champion. Soft ground is also a pre-requisite and that is not guaranteed in March, even if it does sometimes feel like the rain is never going to stop! I think the 50-1 will be cut in half if he wins well tomorrow so I’ll risk a small each-way bet.

Over at Ascot, I’m going to take a chance on Citizenship in the handicap hurdle for Venetia Williams. The stable continues in fine form and this horse was a very smart hurdler a couple of years ago for the Harrington stable in Ireland. He picked up a £50,000 prize and then ran in the County Hurdle but was never sighted in a muddling race.

He lost his way subsequently but looked in rude health when winning at Exeter and has been diverted here from the Lanzarote Hurdle. I’m slightly concerned that the heavy ground was the reason for his withdrawal but he has a couple of furlongs less to travel here and is worth a bet at 9-1.

Williams and Treadwell could land a big race double as Renard has decent claims in the next. He won well at Chepstow in similar ground and will handle it better than most of these.

Ptit Zig 2.40 Haydock at Evens William Hill

Ptit Zig (Champion Hurdle) at 50-1 each-way Stan James

Carole’s Spirit 1.50 Ascot at 4-1 Bet365

Citizenship 2.25 Ascot at 9-1 Coral

Renard 3.00 Ascot at 5-1 Stan James

*Sire De Grugy 3.35 Ascot 6-4

*Merry King 3.15 Haydock 11-2

*Chance Du Roy 3.15 Haydock 10-1 (each-way)

*Ante-post

Clarence House Chase Preview

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The two-mile Clarence House Chase at Ascot on Saturday provides Sire De Grugy with a great opportunity to bag a second Grade 1 this season. Gary Moore’s chestnut won the Tingle Creek at Sandown in good style and has since followed up in the Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton.

His victory in the latter was overshadowed by the unfortunate end to the winning run of Sprinter Sacre who was pulled up with an irregular heartbeat. Fortunately the signs are encouraging that this was an isolated episode and Nicky Henderson’s stable star could well return to action in time for Cheltenham. Of course, should the Lambourn trainer have any concerns about his horse, he will not hesitate to give the festival a miss and start afresh next season.

The Queen Mother Champion Chase must surely be on the agenda for Sire De Grugy with doubts surrounding the odds-on favourite. He was beaten at Cheltenham by Kid Cassidy earlier this season but I’m convinced that his defeat was down to his erratic jumping that day. He ballooned a couple and virtually pulled himself to the front before tiring in the closing stages.

Gary Moore believes that the course does not suit him and that he is a better horse on a flat track. Ascot should not pose any problems on Saturday and his jumping has been much better in his last two races. He had four lengths to spare over Somersby in the Tingle Creek and ought to confirm the form on the same terms. Any ease in the going will be in his favour although Somersby did win here in 2012 and will keep battling to the line.

Oiseau De Nuit finished second at Kempton but was possibly flattered by his proximity with Sire De Grugy going on much earlier than intended. The winner jumped to his left over the last three fences and was probably idling in front. Jamie Moore will be looking to get a good lead into the race on Saturday and deliver his challenge between the final two fences.

Strictly on the ratings, the Irish raiding party of Hidden Cyclone, Days Hotel and Special Tiara have 10lbs and more to find with the favourite. Hidden Cyclone finished in front of some top notch two-milers at Leopardstown last time out but he was previously well beaten in a Cheltenham handicap and needs to improve.

Kid Cassidy ran no race at all in Ireland and seems to reserve his best for Cheltenham. The one horse that concerns me slightly is the novice Fox Appeal. He won very easily at this course last time out from Raya Star although it is possible that the runner-up did not give his true running. Alan King’s horses have been under the weather of late.

Fox Appeal is undoubtedly useful having been slightly unlucky to be caught by Wonderful Charm at Wincanton on his previous start. Trainer Emma Lavelle did us a big favour when pitching the novice Shotgun Paddy against more experienced rivals last weekend and this fellow is no slouch either. Whether he is quite ready to take on Sire De Grugy at levels I’m not sure.

Sire De Grugy at 13-8 888Sport (6-4 Bet365)

Ascot Saturday Preview

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Irving (tipped at 11-4) gave us a profit on the opening day of Ascot’s Ladbroke Hurdle meeting. He may have had a race on his hands had Prince Siegfried stayed on his feet but there is no doubt he is Cheltenham material. Coral are offering 16-1 about him for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in March so I’m taking some of that before it disappears!

It seems that nobody has a clear opinion on the Ladbroke itself with the bookies now offering 9-1 the field! We could even have 10-1 the field tomorrow until they move in to shorten up the favourites. I don’t see any reason to desert Dell Arca (10-1) whilst Flaxen Flare should also give us a run for our each-way money at 16-1.

The pick of the supporting card is the Ascot Silver Cup in which Triolo D’Alene reappears after his Hennessy triumph. Barry Geraghty triggered a few sniggers amongst the racing hacks when suggesting a rise of 3-4lbs would be fair after Newbury. The handicapper wasn’t fooled for a moment and has lumped on 11lbs tomorrow.

The French import was always travelling well that day and the result wasn’t in doubt from the moment they turned in. I fully expect him to run well tomorrow but I’m swayed towards Houblon Des Obeaux who is now 3lbs better off with a horse that he beat by nine lengths here last time. It’s a case of my head ruling my heart as Venetia Williams’s horse is also 13lbs better off with Triolo D’Alene for Newbury.

My concern is that Houblon Des Obeaux may have lost his form a little but the evidence suggests that he loves Ascot. He was also second to Rocky Creek here last season as a novice and looks good value at 4-1 with everything in his favour. Having backed Triolo D’Alene for the Grand National, I’ll be delighted if he jumps around in second or third before taking a break until the spring.

The Long Walk Hurdle has lost a lot of interest with Celestial Halo having to be withdrawn through injury. At Fishers Cross may have struggled to beat him here but has a much easier task now and it will be disappointing if he cannot pick up Reve De Sivola and Salubrious.

I cannot get excited about the Haydock card. The Tommy Whittle Chase used to be extremely competitive but this looks a poor renewal and is best left alone.

Houblon Des Obeaux 4-1 Bet365

Ante-Post – Irving 16-1 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle Coral