It may seem a bit early to be thinking about Royal Ascot but the bookmakers have already started pricing up many of the races. The perils of ante-post betting were illustrated this week when the ground at Haydock was considered too fast for my two leading fancies in the Silver Bowl. From my vantage point in Scotland I must admit that I had never even considered the prospect of firm ground! Hopefully there will be no such concerns for the Royal meeting next month.
My first dabble in the ante-post market is on the Ascot Gold Cup. There does not appear to be an outstanding stayer about at the moment. So far this season we have seen an impressive win for the Queen’s Estimate and a shock winner of the Yorkshire Cup. But the one to catch my eye is Irish raider Simenon.
Last year, Simenon notched two victories at the Royal meeting and is now ready to step up from handicap class to the stayers’ championship. He took his chance under 9st 10lb in the Chester Cup and endured a nightmare run under Johnny Murtagh. Held up towards the rear, he bowled around on the inside but could not get out in time to catch the leaders. He made up plenty of ground in the straight and flew home in fourth. It takes a good horse to lump that sort of weight around in the Chester Cup and, if he arrives at Ascot in the same form as 12 months ago, 16-1 could be good value.
My second selection is Chapter Seven in the Royal Hunt Cup. These mile handicaps can take a lot of sorting out and the draw often comes along to scupper the best laid plans. However, Chapter Seven is available at 20-1 and is worth a punt at those odds. He has caught the eye by staying on at the end of all three starts this season, notably when an unlucky third in the Newbury Spring Cup. He had previously been sixth in the Lincoln and deserves to pick up one of the big prizes.
My third selection is for the Wokingham Handicap. Admittedly a sharp pin on the day of the race is sometimes as good a way as any to solve this particular puzzle but I’m prepared to take a chance with Jeremy Noseda’s Nocturn. He was just denied at York last time out when he was caught by a horse flashing home on his outside. I felt that he was a little unlucky there and could still be improving.
Royal Ascot
Simenon Gold Cup 16-1 Coral
Chapter Seven Hunt Cup 20-1 Totesport
Nocturn Wokingham 25-1 Coral
