Horse racing betting: Blue looks the perfect colour on Ladies’ Day June 15, 2016 There may only be a field of nine declared for Thursday's Tercentenary Stakes (3.05pm), but what it lacks in quantity it more than makes up for in quality. Aidan O’Brien, Sir Michael Stoute and John Gosden all run lightly-raced colts with plenty of potential, but I’m sticking with the form in the book and siding with [...]
Horse racing betting: Let’s hope Shraaoh and Harrison can make it the lucky last June 15, 2016 If you haven’t backed a winner come King George V Stakes (Thursday 5.35pm) time, it may be best to head for the exits and keep your powder dry. Many of the 18-strong field are stepping up to 12 furlongs for the first time and the majority have yet to race on ground this soft. Anyway, enough [...]
Horse racing betting: Beckett can land his first Royal Ascot winner with Chicadoro June 15, 2016 Some trainers just seem to have a knack with training fillies and Ralph Beckett is certainly one of them. He’s won the Oaks twice and also took last year’s St Leger with his filly Simple Verse, although he hasn’t had a Royal Ascot winner yet. I’m hoping that changes on Thursday afternoon. CHICADORO has her second [...]
Royal Ascot 2016: Frankie Dettori strikes Gold with Galileo in battle of the Guineas heroes June 14, 2016 Trainer Hugo Palmer hailed Galileo Gold as the best three-year-old colt in Europe after Frankie Dettori rode the 6/1 chance to glory in the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot on Tuesday. The 2000 Guineas winner prevailed by just over a length from even-money favourite and French Guineas hero The Gurkha, with Irish Guineas [...]
Horse racing betting: Usherette can show rivals the door in the Duke Of Cambridge June 14, 2016 Not since 1971 had the ground on the opening day of Royal Ascot been worse than good to soft, but on Tuesday conditions were soft all round. All the unseasonal rain that has fallen on Berkshire since last Friday means that a field of only six has been declared for Wednesday’s Prince Of Wales’s Stakes [...]
Horse racing betting: John Gosden’s second string looks Remarkable value in Jersey Stakes June 14, 2016 Finding the winner of the wide-open looking 21-runner Jersey Stakes (Wednesday 2.30pm) looks a pretty unenviable task on paper. The obvious starting point is Ribchester who was last seen in action finishing third to Galileo Gold in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket. With the drop back in trip to seven furlongs, as well as plenty [...]
Horse racing betting: Hunt Cup is a Breeze for Ivory while Glory Awaits June 14, 2016 Some love them; some hate them, but working out one of Royal Ascot’s fiendishly difficult handicap puzzles rewards punters like nothing else. The Royal Hunt Cup (Wednesday 5.00pm) is possibly the biggest lottery of them all, especially when the ground is soft and the effects of the draw unclear. Sir Michael Stoute and Ryan Moore team [...]
Horse racing betting: Awtaad to be crowned champion for King Kev at Ascot June 13, 2016 Races at Royal Ascot simply don’t get any better than this year’s Group One St James’s Palace Stakes (Tuesday 4.20pm). Although only eight horses are set to line up, among them are the winners of this year’s English, Irish and French 2000 Guineas. It’s a mouth-watering contest. Aidan O’Brien has won this race a record [...]
Horse racing betting: King’s Stand beckons for this speedy Angel June 13, 2016 Anyone got a sense of déjà vu? Regular readers of this column may recognise this exact headline from 12 months ago when I fancied MECCA’S ANGEL to land the King’s Stand (3.40pm) on the opening day at Royal Ascot. However, the five-year-old daughter of Dark Angel was never able to prove her quality that day [...]
Horse racing betting: Esoterique to strike a blow for the fairer sex in Royal Ascot opener June 13, 2016 There hasn't been a more open renewal of Tuesday afternoon's Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm) for many a year, with three horses from all over the world battling for favouritism. Last year's Breeders’ Cup Mile winner Tepin has travelled across the Atlantic for the first time for the biggest test of her career. The outstanding American [...]