Reaching for the Stars… THEY say that racehorse ownership is a mug’s game. Well, I’m the mug then, as I agreed just over two years ago to back trainer Mick Appleby at the Sales in Newmarket and buy a four-year-old called King Of Stars. He’d failed to win any of his eight races for Joseph O’Brien in Ireland, but [...]
Baaeed to bow out in style on his final racecourse start RACEGOERS at Ascot on Saturday will get a chance to say goodbye to the remarkable BAAEED as he has his final race in the Champion Stakes (4.00pm). The world’s highest-rated horse on turf is the headline act ready to light up the 12th edition of QIPCO British Champions Day. William Haggas’ unbeaten Sea The Stars colt is [...]
Creative a real Force to be reckoned with in the Sprint LAST year’s winner CREATIVE FORCE is bidding to make it back-to-back victories in the Champions Sprint (2.00pm). He has been lightly raced this season, running only twice, when going down by a neck at Royal Ascot and then when finishing fourth in the July Cup the following month. On both those occasions he finished in front of [...]
Royal Aclaim the one to catch but Raasel may do the chasing August 18, 2022 IT’S NOT that often you get a horse that’s yet to run in Group company go off favourite for a Group One, but that’s the case with ROYAL ACLAIM in the Nunthorpe Stakes (3.35pm). Her trainer James Tate has never masked the esteem he holds his three-year-old filly in and given she’s unbeaten in her three career [...]
Courageous Coltrane to defy Stradivarius in Lonsdale Cup August 18, 2022 ONLY three horses have won six times at York and after Copper Knight and Dakota Gold were beaten on Wednesday, STRADIVARIUS has a chance to surpass them as the winning-most horse on the Knavesmire. His shot at glory comes in the Lonsdale Cup (2.25pm) and while I’ll be including him in my World Pool Quinella, he’s not [...]
Alpinista to strike for older generation in Yorkshire Oaks August 17, 2022 ONLY six runners go to post for the highlight of day two, the Darley Yorkshire Oaks (3.35pm), but it looks a smashing contest nonetheless. We have four-time Group One winner Alpinista, Irish Oaks winner Magical Lagoon, Pretty Polly victor La Petite Coco and of course Epsom Oaks heroine Tuesday all set to take their chance. [...]
Stage set for exciting Dramatised to star in Lowther August 17, 2022 KARL Burke and Danny Tudhope combined to win the Lowther in 2019 with a relative outsider in Living In The Past but it will be far less of a surprise if they are in the winners’ enclosure after the first race today (1.50pm). That’s because DRAMATISED looks to hold outstanding claims of taking her career record to [...]
Frankenstella on a frightening mark in Stayers Handicap August 16, 2022 THERE are plenty of trappy looking handicaps at York over the next four days, but the best bet on the opening day could be in the Sky Bet Stayers Handicap (4.10pm). Recent Goodwood winner Master Milliner and in-form Soapy Stevens will be popular at the top of the market but I’m not sure the first [...]
Mishriff likely to push Baaeed all the way in International August 16, 2022 AFTER one of the driest summers on record, there are thunderstorms forecast in the build-up to York’s four-day Ebor meeting which could have a huge impact on the ground. At the time of writing, the course is bathed in sunshine and the going is described as good-to-firm, but that could easily change if the Knavesmire [...]
You can Chil out at Goodwood but no need to leave from Bague D’or July 28, 2022 THERE are cavalry charges and then there is the Stewards’ Cup (3.20pm), a famous 28-runner handicap down Goodwood’s straight six-furlong track. Some classy horses have won this over the years, perhaps most notably Lochsong in 1992 for Ian Balding who went on to land a number of Group One contests. She was a very fast [...]
