You couldn’t Make It Up if Capel Path wins Britannia June 17, 2015 THE Britannia Handicap (5.00pm) is always one of the toughest battles of the entire week and the bookies have had the better of the argument recently. Fast Or Free was a winning favourite for William Haggas and Ryan Moore in 2012, but there have been four winners priced 20/1 or bigger in the past eight [...]
Royal Ascot 2015: Anyone else fancy a Trip To Paris? June 17, 2015 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS THE GOLD CUP AND TERCENTENARY STAKES Trainer Dermot Weld will walk the course this morning to decide whether the ground is safe enough to allow favourite Forgotten Rules to take his chance in this afternoon’s Gold Cup (4.20pm). The lightly-raced five-year-old son of Nayef has had well-documented problems with his [...]
Keep the winnings ticking over with Time Test June 17, 2015 HER Majesty The Queen fields Peacock in this afternoon’s Tercentenary Stakes (3.05pm) and it would be lovely to see a royal winner at Ascot this year. The son of 2009 Queen Anne Stakes victor Paco Boy finished only 1½ lengths behind Investec Derby hero Golden Horn in Newmarket’s Feilden Stakes. He then followed that up [...]
Royal Ascot 2015: Free Eagle to land another major prize for Dermot Weld June 16, 2015 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS THE PRINCE OF WALES’S AND QUEEN MARY STAKES There are plenty of good trainers in the UK and Ireland, but only a handful have managed to stay at the top of their game for a long period. Dermot Weld is one of them. The first European to win a race in [...]
Go loco when Acapulco scoots away from her rivals June 16, 2015 IF it is Dermot Weld who has changed the travelling habits of European trainers, then Wesley Ward holds the honour of chief U.S. ambassador to Royal Ascot. It was back in 2009 when he took this meeting by storm, becoming the first Stateside trainer to win at this historic event. He took the Windsor Castle [...]
Classy Ivawood to take the Jersey June 16, 2015 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS THE JERSEY AND DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE STAKES LAST week I had the pleasure of visiting Richard Hannon’s stable in Wiltshire and the one horse on virtually everyone’s lips was IVAWOOD who lines up in this afternoon’s Jersey Stakes (2.30pm). The son of Zebedee has yet to visit the winner’s enclosure in three [...]
Integral hard to beat but get on Rizeena each-way June 16, 2015 When Sir Michael Stoute’s Integral waltzed away with last year’s renewal of the Duke Of Cambridge Stakes (3.40pm), she did so in the style of a filly who looked more than able to mix it up with the very best of the boys over a mile. And one year on, the Cheveley Park Stud-owned mare [...]
Royal Ascot 2015: Solow can get the ball rolling in Queen Anne Stakes June 15, 2015 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS THE OPENING DAY OF ROYAL ASCOT 2015 Royal Ascot has got underway with a bang in recent times – and this year’s meeting should be no exception. The Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm) normally features the best milers that Europe has to offer. On this occasion they will be joined by [...]
Bolger to knockout rivals in Round Two June 15, 2015 IT really is bizarre that this afternoon’s Coventry Stakes (3.05pm) is still only a Group Two. You only have to look at the roll of honour over the past decade to see why it should be awarded the highest status. Henrythenavigator, Canford Cliffs, Strong Suit, Dawn Approach and The Wow Signal all proved themselves to [...]
Top Tips from Paddy Power June 15, 2015 If you were looking for an unbiased view of the King’s Stand today, you’re in the wrong place! I am of course talking about my mum’s horse Sole Power who is trying to become the first horse ever to win the King’s Stand three years on the trot. All I can tell you is he’s [...]