After a hectic weekend of top quality racing we are back to the bread and butter at Nottingham on Wednesday. As good as it was to see Treve go into the history books with her back-to-back Arc success, I have to say that I was less than impressed with the Japanese riders. You would have thought that they would know how to ride the race after many years of trying but they gave their mounts no chance by holding them up way out the back.
The more humble offerings at Nottingham get under way at 2.20 with a maiden race which should go the way of Luca Cumani and Andrea Atzeni. Spiriting ran a good race on his second start when second at Yarmouth behind Bartel. Firmament finished a fair way back in fourth that day and ran a good race on Monday to finish second to the useful Master Apprentice. A repeat of that form would make Spiriting very hard to beat here.
The second race is a very competitive nursery but there is no stopping David O’Meara at the moment. His Group 1 win in the Prix de L’Abbaye on Sunday with Move In Time was the icing on the cake for a memorable season. He runs Snow Cloud who showed enormous improvement after a lengthy absence to beat Compton River at Redcar. The jockey never had to resort to the whip that day so there should be plenty more to come. The main danger could be the top weight Ivors Rebel who has been keeping much better company.
The best bet on the card could be the progressive Black Granite in the nine furlong nursery at 4.25. Jeremy Noseda’s gelding looked very moderate earlier in the season but the application of a visor has transformed him. A game victory at Salisbury was followed by an emphatic success at Newmarket. Normally I would hesitate at a 9lbs rise in the weights but there aren’t that many two-year-olds that stay beyond a mile and he is certainly one of them.
The final three races look virtually impossible but I am going to have a small interest in Golden Spear in the 4.25. He is yet to race beyond a mile but his last couple of runs suggest that he is crying out for it. The danger is probably Tercel who is on a very fair mark for Sir Michael Stoute and looked set to win at Newbury last time. He didn’t look the easiest of rides that day and Ryan Moore will probably be looking to deliver him with a late rattle.
Spiriting 2.20 @Bet365
Snow Cloud 2.50 @5-1 Bet365
Black Granite 4.25 @11-4 Bet365
Golden Spear 5.25 @11-1 Coral
