Racing Chat -Saturday 10th July

[The Brigadier]

A bumper day’s racing with 11 terrestrial TV races to salivate over. To be honest I like many others feel there’s too much racing on this particular Saturday and it seemed to work better last year when the meetings were split over two days. Anyway here’s my thought on the days fare :-

 

York 145

Yet another big field handicap, this one over a mile and the ground at York is likely to be on the slow side with the odd shower forecast. Only two three year olds take on their elders here and at this time of year they receive a healthy 9lb allowance which may swing the favour of Tim Easterby’s Wobwobwob who will appreciate the cut in the ground and looks good each way value. A ready winner here over 7F in May here he was a tad disappointing on very bad ground in the Silver Bowl handicap at Haydock in May when attempting to make all and maybe failing to get home in those conditions. He’s relatively lightly raced against some pretty exposed handicappers and can run well at an each way price. 

WOBWOBWOB 1 point each way @ 12/1 William Hill 1/5^th 12345

 

Newmarket 205

A valuable 3 year old 7F handicap can go the the proven handicap form horse of Sir Michael Stoute’s in Samoot. She ran a screamer at Royal Ascot when chasing him the easy Irish winner Create Belief in the Sandringham Handicap and despite a 3lb rise in the weights looks sure to go close here with William Buick taking over from Jim Crowley who’s at York to ride Hukum for his retained owners. Chris Wall’s Kingmania is on a hat trick of victories and maybe the biggest danger to the daughter of Dubawi. 

SAMOOT 2 points win @ 3/1 Bet365

 

York 220

The Group 3 John Smith’s Silver Cup Stakes is run over the Ebor distance of just short of 1m 6F. Best in at today’s weights is the Roger Varian trained Ebor winner Fujaira Prince but we haven’t seen him this season and preference is for the Owen Burrows trained Hukum who is stepping up to this distance for the first time since last season’s St Leger when he finished 5th to Galileo Chrome. He followed a listed Goodwood win with a decent 3rd beaten 3L by Wonderful Tonight in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot and sports a first time tongue tie today. Jim Crowley had options to ride at three meetings today and it looks highly significant that he travels to Yorkshire to ride Burrows’ flagship horse. Ilaraab was 4 3/4L behind Hukum at Ascot and needs to find some improvement to trouble the selection. Quickthorn is an interesting runner who’s stepping out of top quality handicaps into pattern company and also stepping up in distance. He’s worth a small each way saver. 

HUKUM 2 points win @ 5/2 Bet365

QUICKTHORN ½ point each way @ 12/1 1/5^th 123 

 

Newmarket 240

Charlie Appleby’s lightly raced Dubawi colt Royal Fleet looks a potential group horse in a handicap here and can make his initial mark of 93 laughable by winning this. A winner at Kempton on the polytrack and at Yarmouth when heavily backed on fast ground he should be hard to beat with William Buick in the saddle. Latest Generation is respected following his second place at Sandown last time with Kaheall who’s chasing a four timer worth an honourable mention but fir me this is all about Royal Fleet. 

ROYAL FLEET 3 points win @ 13/8 BetVictor

 

 

Ascot 300

The Group 2 Summer Mile will be run on officially soft (good to soft in places) ground as at time of writing with the odd shower forecast. The race has an open look about it with only officially 9lb between the whole field. I think the key piece of form for this race comes from the Listed Midsummer Stakes at Windsor a fortnight ago when Century Dream beat Top Rank by 1 1/2L with the latter now 5lb better off which should bring them closer together. Sir Busker has his ground here and ran well at the Royal meeting to place behind Palace Pier. He looks sure to run well. Softish ground maybe against Haqeeqy and Tilsit but the vote goes to Charlie Appleby’s Al Suhail who hasn’t been seen since flopping in the Dubai Turf at Meydan last March. Gelded since the reports are that he’s working very well and his trainer also sounded fairly bullish when asked about him on RacingTV on Friday afternoon. 

AL SUHAIL 2 points each way @ 8/1 Bet365 1/5^th 123

 

Newmarket 315

The Group 2 Superlative Stakes is run over 7F and is for 2 year olds only. John And Thady Gosden saddle the likely favourite in Dhabab who brings the best form to the race with his slightly unlucky 6th in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot. He’ll appreciate the step up to 7F here and looks the one to beat even though the Coventry form was hardly enhanced by the 2nd and 5th being beaten on Day one of the July meeting all be it not disgraced. As a form man I would normally take substance over promise but sometimes you see a horse win and want to back him or her wherever they run next and Native Trail is very much the case here. Trained by Charlie Appleby he was backed off the boards when winning a Sandown maiden on his debut by 4L (3rd and 4th beaten since) and although this is a big step up this Oasis Dream colt could be anything and I’ll take my chance with him and William Buick. 

NATIVE TRAIL 2 points win @ 7/2 BetVictor  

 

Ascot 335

A very competitive 5F handicap to be run over the straight course on good to soft ground where if the Royal meeting was to be believed there maybe an advantage to be drawn on this near side (high numbers). I do like one of the 5  three year old’s in the field in the shape of Tim Easterby’s Showalong who needs to get his toe in so any further showers would be appreciated but he is drawn on the far side in 4 so will keep stakes small on him. I’ll take one on this side as well with the in form Boundless Power trained by Mick Appleby who comes here having won two of his four starts this season since joining from John James Feane in Ireland on soft ground and is berthed in stall 18 which could be a good draw (especially with the stalls placed on the stands side here). Significantly is the likely favourite having won the 5F 3 year old only handicap at the Royal meeting and looks a threat to all for the Karl Burke team. 

BOUNDLESS POWER 1 point each way @ 12/1 1William Hill 1/5^th 12345

 

Newmarket 350

A maximum field of 20 go to post for this year’s renewal of the Banbury Cup run over the straight 7F of the July course and as always it looks wide open. William Haggas’s Ametist is a horse who just seems to do enough and just got up last time but a 6lb penalty for that win means he’s 3lb wrong at today’s weights and he’s overlooked for that reason alone. Perotto on the other hand is 5lb well in here carrying just a 5lb penalty for winning the Britannia Handicap at the Royal meeting and despite dropping back a furlong is on my shortlist. Also on that list is the John and Thady Gosden  trained Fundamental who is even better in here than Perotto being 6lb well in. There are plenty of others with chances including last year’s winner Motakhayyel who’s back to defend his title off of a 4lb higher mark but I’ll be splitting my bets between Perotto and Fundamental, the only two three years in the field who surprisingly haven’t won this valuable handicap since 1998 (though not a lot have tried). 

FUNDAMENTAL 1 point each way @ 17/2 Paddy Power 1/5^th 12345
PEROTTO 1 point each way @ 5/1 BetVictor 1/5^th 12345

 

York 405

The John Smiths Cup looks as competitive as ever being run over just over 10F with a maximum field of 22 going to post. Favourite is Sir Michael Stoute’s Astro King who ran a stormer when winning his side at Ascot in the Royal Hunt Cup finishing 2nd overall to Real World. I’m not entirely sure a step up to 10F is what he needs and at the prices is opposable. Joseph Tuite’s Surrey Pride is a horse I have a lot of time for and is the selection despite his draw of 24 which is not ideal but has been overcome in the past. Best in a today’s weights is Dawaam although he may have been flattered by his 8th last time in the listed Wolferton Stakes at Ascot. Saeed Bin Suroor’s Bright Start is 2lb well in and is a horse who could go well here. But it’s a small each way bet on Surrey Pride for me with enhanced place terms. 

SURREY PRIDE 1 point each way @ 8/1 William Hill 1/5^th 12345

 

Newmarket 425

This year’s July Cup run over 6F of the July course is a cracker with 19 quality sprinters going to post. Last year’s victor Oxted is back to defend his title that hasn’t been won back to back since Lester Piggott on Right Boy back in 1958/59. He was behind Ed Walker’s Starman first time out at York who’s  my main selection here. He literally could be anything having won 4 of his 5 starts with his only defeat coming on very soft ground at Ascot last Champions Day. Fast ground is important to him and he can show his class here today under Tom Marquand having missed Ascot because of the soft ground. Three year olds have a good record in the race winning 4 of the last 6 renewals and tieing 38 a piece with their elders since 1945 and are well represented here by the likes of the supplemented Rohaan, Dragon Symbol and Creative Force (who apparently did a very good piece of work in the week shooting 6L clear of decent workhorse On The Warpath). All three have claims and at a bigger price so does Clive Cox’s Supremacy who had an excuse when bombing out at Ascot in April on his re-appearance (came back with some bad blood results) and his trainer speaks in the same breath of him as his two previous winners Harry Angel and Lethal Attack. So it’s Starman for me with a small each way saver at a big price on Supremacy. 

STARMAN 2 points win @ 9/2 William Hill

SUPREMACY ½ point each way @ 18/1 1/5^th 12345

 

 

York 440

Winter Power

The listed 5F John Smith’s City Walls Stakes completes the day’s action and has a warm favourite in the Tim Easterby trained  Winter Power who is best in here at these weights and was very impressive when taking the field apart over course and distance in May in the Weston Listed Stakes storming home 3L clear of his field headed by subsequent Sandown Listed winner Atalis Bay. He raced a bit too freely when only 9th in the Group 1 Kings Stand Stakes at the Royal Meeting and has a major chance today. Que Amoro’s form figures here read 21132 including a runner up in the Nunthorpe last August. On Fast ground she would be a big player but easy ground may not suit and with showers forecast I’ve got to stick with Winter Power. 

WINTER POWER 3 points win @ 15/8 William Hill

 

 

 

 

 

 

[calva decoy]

With the biblical amounts of rain we're currently having in East Anglia I'll be keeping my powder dry until tomorrow & hopefully my carpets , kind of worrying ?