Chesspiece looks the right move in competitive Vase June 20, 2023 WHILE it occupies a later position on today’s card than in the last few seasons, the Group Two Queen’s Vase (5:35pm) looks a contest well worth waiting for. A field of 14 lightly-raced individuals are set to go to post for a race that often comes down to staying potential, as has been proved in [...]
Intellogent play won’t leave you feeling Blue in Hunt Cup June 20, 2023 FOR MANY, the Royal Hunt Cup (5:00pm) is one of the highlights of the week at Royal Ascot. It’s a contest where established handicappers meet improving youngsters on the straight mile course at Ascot. A full field of 30 will be sent on their way at 5:00pm today and it could be profitable to stick [...]
Yer the one that I want in the Kensington Palace Stakes June 20, 2023 A FULL field of 20 are set to go to post for the Kensington Palace Fillies’ Handicap (3.05pm) and it looks a wide-open contest. Tamarama, ridden by Frankie Dettori, is bound to be popular after her good win at Kempton last time, though this looks a deeper race and she’s gone up five pounds in [...]
Haynes looks set to make a real Impact with Maximum June 20, 2023 A NEAR full-size field for the Listed Windsor Castle Stakes (6.10pm) over five furlongs will make for intriguing watching. Over half of the 26 two-year-olds come here with a win on their CV already, and the likes of Charlie Johnston’s Barnwell Boy and Aidan O’Brien’s Johannes Brahms make appeal, both having won their debuts and [...]
Buckaroo to play Games with his Wolferton rivals June 19, 2023 AS HAS become the norm at Royal Ascot, the five-day meeting gets underway with the Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm) and this year’s renewal, on paper at least, looks a cracker. The market is finding it hard to split Inspiral and MODERN GAMES, but while I respect the former hugely, I’m firmly in the latter’s camp. [...]
Time to get aboard Royal Scotsman in St James’s Palace June 19, 2023 TODAY’S third and final Group One, the St James’s Palace Stakes (4.20pm) pits the winner of the English and Irish 2000 Guineas against each other as CHALDEAN takes on Paddington. Some have crabbed the form of Chaldean’s 2000 Guineas win, but I thought he was much the best at Newmarket and bar unseating Frankie Dettori [...]
Bring on the Ascot Stakes for Mullins’ unexposed Night June 19, 2023 THERE was a sense of disappointment for favourite backers in last year’s Ascot Stakes (5.00pm) when BRING ON THE NIGHT couldn’t get past Coltrane having been produced perfectly inside the final furlong. Looking back on that performance now, it can be seriously upgraded considering Coltrane is rated nearly 20lbs higher and is favourite for Thursday’s [...]
There is a Point in taking on Vauban with Chillingham June 19, 2023 EVERY year there are always a few horses that punters latch onto in the ante-post markets in the build-up to Royal Ascot and this season one of those is most definitely Vauban in the Copper Horse Handicap (6.10pm). Last year’s Triumph Hurdle winner and this season’s Champion Hurdle fourth was originally recruited from the flat [...]
All systems go for Royal Ascot as Wellington trials well at Sha Tin June 13, 2023 HONG Kong-based trainer Richard Gibson has declared “it’s all systems go” for Wellington to embark on a Royal Ascot tilt next week after Hong Kong’s reigning Champion Sprinter cruised through a five-furlong turf trial at Sha Tin this morning. Preparing for the G1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes on 24 June, Wellington finished half a [...]
Take four outsiders to cause Derby shock June 2, 2023 WE ALL know that one man usually dominates the headlines in Flat racing, but if Frankie Dettori wins today’s Derby (1.30pm), then it really will be a story that not only takes over the back pages of tomorrow’s newspapers, but likely the front ones too. The Italian has pretty much won everything there is to [...]
