Tag: William Buick

Newmarket Day 1 Preview

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Grandeur (tipped at 5-2) outclassed his rivals at Goodwood yesterday to take our level stakes profit over the past 21 selections to 18 points (85%). Long may it continue! Doncaster was an extremely profitable meeting with winners on all four days and the Town Moor form is likely to dictate whether or not we make a profit at Newmarket this week.

The Cambridgeshire meeting is a curious mixture of exciting two-year-old races and tricky handicaps featuring horses that are just possibly going over the edge after a long summer. With that in mind, I’m planning to stick to horses with recent form and not with too many miles on the clock.

The selection for Day 1 has to be John Gosden’s rapidly improving filly Phiz in the 3.10 race. This filly was having only the fourth start of her career when beaten by The Lark in the Park Hill Stakes at Doncaster two weeks ago. My regular readers will know that I am a great fan of The Lark having supported her in the Oaks and it is not surprising that she had too many guns for Phiz in the closing stages.

You may recall that it was the race where Hayley Turner suffered a terrible fall after her horse clipped heels. Fortunately both horse and rider were relatively unscathed but another feature of the race was the performance of the runner-up. Phiz is still learning her trade so she was a bit on and off the bridle but William Buick must have felt confident approaching the furlong pole. He turned his head to see where the dangers were and got the shock of his life to see Jamie Spencer breathing down his neck on The Lark!

Michael Bell’s filly ran out a good winner but Phiz responded well to pressure and the pair were four lengths clear of the third. There are some decent fillies in opposition tomorrow and Lady Cecil’s Court Pastoral could pose a threat along with Sir Michael Stoute’s Astonishing. Some lucky punters have snaffled up 9-2 about Phiz before I could get this posted but 7-2 still looks good value.

I’ll be interested to see how Nezar gets on in the Somerville Tattersall Stakes (3.40) as he impressed me at York and again at Chester. Repeater (4.15) also went into my notebook with a promising run in the Doncaster Cup. If you like well-bred two-year-olds, how about these two newcomers in the first on Thursday; King’s Land (New Approach – Kazzia) and Touch The Sky (Sea The Stars – Love Divine). They don’t get much better than that!

Phiz 3.10 Newmarket 7-2 Coral

Racing Preview Friday 30th August

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Although there isn’t much in the way of Group race action this weekend, there are still plenty of decent races taking place across the UK. Friday’s cards at Chester, Sandown and Salisbury are all worth a second look.

Last week I backed Nezar in the big sales race at York and he ran well enough to suggest that the nursery at Chester (4.05) is his for the taking. He was slowly away but made up ground steadily in the closing stages to be a never-nearer third at the line. Frankie Dettori takes over from Johnny Murtagh on Friday and even a draw in the outside stall shouldn’t prevent him from winning here.

Over at Sandown, William Buick teams up with John Gosden’s Breden in the 3.55. This horse had to be driven right out to win at Newmarket last time but holds some big entries including the Cambridgeshire. The handicapper has put him up only 4lbs for that victory and I’m hoping that there is more improvement to come. He delivered his challenge on the far side that day and very few horses won from there at the meeting.

Buick may not be in the best mood after the news that James Doyle will step into his shoes for the Prince Khaled Abdulla horses in future, starting on Saturday with 2000 Guineas favourite Kingman. With the likes of Remote and Excess Knowledge also now likely to be ridden by Doyle, Buick may feel that he has a point to prove in the coming weeks.

Salisbury provides the main evening entertainment with the feature race being the Listed Stonehenge Stakes. This looks booked for Washaar for Richard Hannon and Paul Hanagan. He may not be one of the stable starts but he was never going to be beaten at Ascot last time and I think he can see off his rivals here.

Hannon can strike again at his local track when Go For Broke runs in the maiden race at 5.45. I think you can best describe his first outing as “educational” after he was nursed into fourth place at Windsor. Roger Varian’s newcomer High Accolade is an unknown quantity but hopefully Go For Broke won’t live up his name!

Luca Cumani’s Don Padeja hacked up at Leicester last week and turns out quickly with a 6lb penalty. He won with any amount in hand and should be able to follow up in the 7.45.

Nezar 4-6 Bet365

Don Pedija 6-4 Bet365

Washaar 4-5 Ladbrokes

Go For Broke

Breden 7-2 Bet365

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

St Leger Ante-Post Preview

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With the Epsom Derby form having been torn to shreds and the Irish Derby winner soundly beaten at Ascot, the market for the season’s final classic is looking wide open. Galileo Rock has retained his position at the head of the market by virtue of the fact that he ran on doggedly at the end of both classics to finish in the frame. He may well be the obvious form choice but he does seem a bit one-paced and must be vulnerable to something with a bit of toe.

Aidan O’Brien has not even left Ruler Of The World in the race with his belief being that the horse will be better suited by a drop back to a mile and a quarter after his dire performance at the Curragh. According to the market, Queen’s Vase winner Leading Light is now exactly that for Ballydoyle. He certainly has the stamina for the race but he had to work pretty hard to shake off John Gosden’s Feel Like Dancing. The quality of the race is also open to question, although the runner-up has managed to win at Newmarket since.

Gosden may have a stronger contender in Excess Knowledge who should have won the Gordon Stakes at Glorious Goodwood last time out. He made a belated seasonal debut at Sandown over an inadequate mile and a quarter and ran on after coming under pressure a long way from home to take third. That was against some decent older opposition in Mandour and Afsare.

Quite why jockey William Buick elected to hold him up towards the rear at Goodwood is a mystery to me. He managed to get himself boxed in when needing to get a run and it eventually cost him the race, finishing strongly in second behind Cap O’Rushes. The winner is no slouch having finished fourth in the Irish Derby, albeit as a pacemaker for Libertarian, but most observers agreed that the best horse finished second.

I was initially disappointed by the race but not half as much as the Gosden team as Buick returned in near silence. To be fair, Buick is one of the better riders and this was more of an aberration than a regular occurrence. He showed his true colours when riding a four-timer at Newmarket last weekend. I remember watching Conduit run a similar race a few years ago and he improved leaps and bounds by the time of the Leger.

The Great Voltigeur Stakes at York next week could tell us a great deal more about the leading protagonists. I am not aware of any firm declarations for the race at this stage but Gosden could run one of his Leger hopefuls, O’Brien has ten entries and Libertarian could make his reappearance. Excess Knowledge looks to be the one with most scope and can continue Gosden’s terrific record in the race.

Excess Knowledge 7-1 Ladbrokes