Banbou looks another tasty treat in the Plate for Williams March 13, 2023 THERE aren’t many trainers I respect more than Venetia Williams when it comes to lining one up for the Cheltenham Festival. The Herefordshire-based handler had two winners and several placed horses at the meeting 12 months ago from just a handful of runners. She is set to saddle FRERO BANBOU in Thursday’s Magners Plate (4.10pm) [...]
Nico de value to topple Townend in top jockey market March 13, 2023 WILLIE Mullins has completely changed the face of National Hunt racing. After last year’s record-breaking haul of 10 winners at the Festival, the Master of Closutton sits atop the all-time list on 88 winners with 16 back to his nearest rival Nicky Henderson. He is only 7/2 with William Hill to bring up the century [...]
Constitution will be running up that Hill clear of his rivals March 13, 2023 SOME horses are just different. They don’t come along often, but they have that special something that others don’t. Think of Frankel and Flightline on the Flat; Kauto Star and Sprinter Sacre over fences. CONSTITUTION HILL is undoubtedly the most exciting hurdler we have seen in a long time. I know he hasn’t won a [...]
Henderson readying troops to take on Mullins battalion February 14, 2023 WITH exactly a month to go until this year’s Cheltenham Festival, Nicky Henderson is preparing his team for another assault on the best four day’s in the National Hunt calendar. The evergreen 72-year-old has already notched up 72 Festival winners and still holds the same level of enthusiasm in his pursuit of more. “It’s a [...]
Reaching for the Stars… December 13, 2022 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 October 14, 2022 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 October 14, 2022 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. [...]
