Tag: Newmarket

Goodwood and Newmarket 24th August Preview

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Although most of the attention will be on the final day of the Ebor meeting at York, there are plenty of decent betting opportunities at Goodwood and Newmarket.

Anyone who saw Glen Moss cruise to success at Newbury to land a gamble last weekend will be happy to support him under a 6lb penalty in the Heritage Handicap tomorrow. I tipped him last week at 11-2 and was surprised as much by his SP of 5-2 as the ease of his victory. The confidence behind him was fully justified and I cannot let him go unbacked at around 6-1 this week.

Frankie Dettori gets the ride with the jockeys spread far and wide and he should be able to follow the pace from his draw in midfield. I am always wary of the Johnston horses in these handicap races and Galician gave Glen Moss a beating at Ascot and meets him on identical terms. The grey filly has run twice since and I’m hoping she doesn’t turn up to spoil the party.

Equally as impressive as Glen Moss was the performance of Afsare at Salisbury last time. Everyone knows that Afsare is a character having refused to enter the stalls previously and also finished second in the Arlington Million 12 months ago. If he’s on song tomorrow they won’t know which way he’s gone.

My old friends John Gosden and William Buick have a busy day lined up at Newmarket tomorrow. Fledged has already been backed off the boards before I could get my copy “to press” so there won’t be any 6-1 left by the time you read this. He looks progressive and is obviously expected to complete his hat-trick on Saturday.

Willow Beck has a similar profile and won at the course easily recently. Taayel is probably facing the toughest task of the three but is open to improvement and holds Valbchek on his last outing. The trio are worth doing in a nice patent.

Glen Moss 7-1 Bet Victor

Afsare 11-4 Bet365

Fledged 4-1 Coral

Willow Beck 2-1 Paddy Power

Taayel 4-1 Paddy Power

Newmarket Saturday August 17th Preview

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Saturday’s card gets under way with a fascinating nursery where the weights are headed by Charlie Appleby’s Autumn Lily. She won well on her debut at Haydock but then ran disappointingly in the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot. She was a different proposition last time out when she absolutely bolted up at the same course over this trip.

There is no doubt that she deserves to be carrying top weight and she may prove to be a group class filly. I expect her to win but, if for any reason she doesn’t perform, I’m going to have an each-way saver on Richard Fahey’s Shot In The Sun. She was tucked in behind the leaders at Goodwood in the Nursery won by Art Official and didn’t get a clear run until the winner had gone beyond recall. She’s only small but seems to have the heart of a lion and I’d be disappointed if she’s not in the frame.

The Grey Horse Handicap may be a photographer’s dream but it isn’t usually a great race for punters. However, I was really taken with the easy victory of Majesty at Warwick last time over seven furlongs and I think he could have been let in lightly here. He’s up against a bunch of seasoned handicappers but he looks to have plenty of size and scope. The drop back to six shouldn’t be a problem as he was always to the fore at Warwick.

Hannon and Levey team up again in the third with Ninjago. I was disappointed when this one was beaten at Newbury in May but he’s being pitched in at the deep end since then. Seven furlongs proved too far for him in the Jersey Stakes and he has since run honourable races both here and in the Stewards’ Cup.

The Newmarket handicap won by Heaven’s Guest from Moviesta was one of the hottest three-year-old sprints of the season and there was no disgrace in finishing fourth there. You could have forgiven him for struggling in the Stewards’ Cup but he stuck to his guns well enough to finish fifth. This is no easy task but he could still be on a winning weight at a fair price.

Autumn Lily 7-2 Coral

Shot In The Sun 10-1 William Hill

Majesty 9-2 Coral

Ninjago 11-2 Bet Victor

Newmarket Preview 20th July

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Johnston’s duo

Supporters of Es Que Love must be tearing their hair out after the past fortnight. First of all he looked set to lift the Coral Challenge under a superb front-running ride from Olivier Peslier only to be reeled in by Prince Of Johanne. Last week, dropped back to seven furlongs for the Bunbury Cup, he looked certain to collect until Field Of Dream kicked in the turbo and collared him on the line.

The old warrior is turned out yet again tomorrow in the opener at Newmarket with Ryan Moore in the saddle. To make matters worse, the handicapper has shoved him up 5lbs and he going back up to a mile. Lurking at the foot of the handicap is his stable companion Shebebi, winner of the valuable Silver Bowl at Haydock earlier in the season.

Shebebi looked likely to win in a decent race at Haydock last time when sent on two furlongs from home but was cut down by the useful Ashaadd. He received a bump at the start and possibly did a little too much too soon that day. I think he can take advantage of the huge weight concession he is receiving from his stablemate.

Ribblesdale form

My nap on this card is Sir Michael Stoute’s Waila in the Newsells Park Stud Stakes. She beat Riposte on her second start and was then sent to Royal Ascot for the Ribblesdale Stakes. Kieren Fallon failed to settle her in the early stages and she was seen fly jumping at one point.

Her run reminded me of a similar performance by stable companion Hillstar when he made his seasonal debut at Newbury. He came out and won the King Edward VII Stakes after that so no wonder there were some long faces after he was beaten in a handicap!

The Warwick Oaks form supplies the main opposition but that looked a muddling race to me and, providing Ryan Moore can get Waila settled, the Ribblesdale form looks far superior.

Improving filly

My third selection for Newmarket is Midnight Flower in the 3.40. She is trained by David Simcock and comes here on the back of a shock 25-1 course victory. She won comfortably from Nardin who ran respectably in a competitive fillies race at the July meeting. 100-30 seems a fair price for this improving filly in a similar event tomorrow.

Shebebi 4-1 William Hill
Waila (NAP) 9-4 Coral
Midnight Flower 100-30 BetVictor

Horse Racing Preview – Saturday 13th July

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On Friday we suffered a bad case of Seconditis. The “Big Two” didn’t really fire after their victories at Royal Ascot. Rizeena seemed to hang fire and lug to her left when Doyle asked her to quicken. Perhaps the ground was too fast for her.

I’m not quite sure what to make of the Falmouth Stakes. As I mentioned in my preview, it is simply amazing how much trouble a jockey can find in a small field in the wide open spaces of Newmarket. There is no doubt that Elusive Kate would have been disqualified a few years ago for carrying Sky Lantern across the track. Apart from it being impossible to overtake something travelling diagonally in your path, the whip-cracking across the horse’s face just about put the tin hat on it!

You don’t realise how often this goes on until you see the head on footage. A classic case in point was the closing race of the Royal meeting when Shahwardi was swiped across the head by an exaggerated whipping action from Jimmy Fortune on the eventual winner. Apparently it is an accepted part of race riding. Because the jockey is facing forward, they are deemed to be unaware that they are smacking a rival over the face.

Anyway, not content with two seconds we finished off with Moviesta looking certain to win the sprint handicap and yet somehow failing to do so. Whether Mulrennan was over-confident I’m not sure but I suppose you have to hand it to Fahey’s filly, Heaven’s Guest. She has been on the go all season and just gives everything she’s got.

Our Saturday ante-post bets are on Shea Shea at 9-2 in the July Cup and Niceofyoutotellme at 12-1 in the Magnet Cup. I think the race planners have gone in for overkill this weekend as there is top quality racing at Newmarket, York and Ascot. The Magnet Cup is playing second fiddle to Newmarket which means Ascot’s Summer Mile gets third billing.

Aljamaaheer has been a good friend of mine, remarkable considering that he has still only won two races. I’ve backed him at big prices in the Lockinge and Queen Anne and collected handsomely on the each-way bet. Tomorrow he’s got to go and win a race and, on past experience, he will come second!

Godolphin’s two-year-olds are starting to get into overdrive and I think Outstrip could be one of the better ones. The horse he beat here last time bolted up on Friday and he should follow suit on Saturday.

I could write a book about the runners in the Bunbury Cup! There’s Brae Hill who seemingly likes to be alone in his races (as when winning last year), Dance And Dance trying to make up for being balloted out of the Hunt Cup and Excellent Guest who pops up when you least expect it. But I’m siding with the Irish raider Burn The Boats. He landed a gamble at the Curragh, stays a mile and could be less exposed than some of these.

Ascot also stages a £100,000 sprint handicap to open the card and last year’s 1,2,3 are back for more. I’m torn between Barnet Fair and Taajub as both ran eye-catching prep races last time out. I’m just going to go with Barnet Fair because he seems to finish his races better than Taajub.

Channel 4 are covering 10 races tomorrow. Apart from the fact that we get more racing, we also get less waffle!

Ante-Post
Niceofyoutotellme 12-1
Shea Shea 9-2

Aljamaaheer 5-2 William Hill
Outstrip 3-1 Coral
Burn The Boats 10-1 William Hill
Barnet Fair 10-1 Coral

Newmarket July Meeting Day 2 July 12th

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We got off to a great start on the opening day with Feel Like Dancing (100-30) and what a good ride by William Buick. He never allowed the leader to get too far ahead and his mount kept answering the call despite coming under pressure a long way from home. Even so, I seriously doubt whether it is St Leger form.

We were out of luck in the handicap where Buick’s mount Space Ship was outpaced before staying on again in the closing stages. He may have had enough racing for the time being whilst Goodwood Mirage may want a bit of give in the ground. Thankfully our banker bet on Montiridge (5-6) was never in danger so we’re still in their fighting going into day 2.

The standout bet tomorrow has to be a double on the flying fillies Sky Lantern and Rizeena. The grey was the most impressive winner at the Royal meeting when winning the Coronation Stakes by four lengths from a poor draw. The four-runner field raises question marks over race tactics but I’d think Sky Lantern is the quickest of these off any pace. I would have thought it impossible to get into difficulty with only four runners on Newmarket’s wide expanse but I only need to recall the recent win for Lost In The Moment to realise that is not the case!

Rizeena produced a terrific burst of speed to win the Queen Mary Stakes and I cannot see the extra furlong making any difference to the result here. Fig Roll and Bye Bye Birdie may be useful fillies but Rizeena looked to have a touch of class and I’m happy to put her in a double with Sky Lantern.

William Hill and Coral are both going 10-11 and 11-8 respectively at the time of writing. They may be offering enhanced terms for the double so good luck if you’re prepared to shop around.

The opening race looks tricky and Sir Michael Stoute’s Dream Wild is a bit of a mystery at the bottom of the weights. She put in a very laboured performance when beaten at odds-on at Salisbury and I’m not aware of any excuses. If she bolts up tomorrow we will no doubt find out! I prefer to side with the proven form of Jubilante. She is very closely weighted with Nardin but the booking of Ryan Moore just swings the vote in her favour.

The main betting race of the day is the handicap at 3.15 and I have to keep faith with Moviesta after his gallant effort at York. He was actually fly jumping in the early stages and I was surprised that he still managed to finish second. If he settles better he should win.

Double
Rizeena 11-8 Coral
Sky Lantern 10-11 Coral

Jubilante 6-1 William Hill
Moviesta 8-1 Ladbrokes

Tipsy Tipsters Thursday Horse Racing Tips

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Today sees the start of some rather juicy graded racing at Newmarket. With 2 group 2 races on we are in for a treat of top quality racing (hopefully).

There are 3 horses i like today, these are:

Feel Like Dancing 7/2 Bet365 Newmarket 1:40

John Gosden has won the last 2 runnings of this race and is looking to make it a hat-trick for his yard with Feel Like Dancing. After beating Boite (who re-opposes today) on his debut, he went to take on the big boys in the Chester Cup and ultimately strugged. The step up to 2m last time at Royal Ascot saw him in a much better light, finishing 2nd to Leading Light by just over a length. Today he steps down slightly to 1m 5f but shapes as if he won’t mind that. The danger is definately Dare To Achieve who finished behind Royal Ascot winner Remote two starts back.

Figure Of Speech 9/2 Bet365 Newmarket 2:10

Godolphin are on fire at the moment, literally. I was at Sandown last week when Emirates Flyer was backed in from 12-1 into 9-2 and absolutely hosed up. Yes, i was on him, he looked a picture in the paddock.

Figure Of Speech may of only won a maiden, but he did it in impressive enough fashion by 4 lengths. His maiden was over the course and distance, which is a plus and Barzalona is booked to ride, which is always a positive. Sir John hawkins went off as 6/1 2nd favourite in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot last time, only to be beaten by the unfancied War Command by 7 lengths. That was seen as a miniature fluke by the 3rd string of the Ballydoyle camp, so he could well be a very serious threat to my selection today, so small stakes here.