Sunday's Meetings Windsor Flat 6 Races 1-00-3:45p.m. Leicester Flat 7 Races 1:18-4:33p.m. Curragh Flat 8 Races 1:25-5:10p.m. Downpatrick N/H 7 Races 1:40-4:55p.m. Haydock Abandoned Racecards At The Races Sporting Life Racing Post Good Luck
The best meetings are at the Curragh and Deauville today. Group 1 contests in the form of the Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh for 2YOs over 6F and in France the older horses line up for the Prix Maurice De Gheest over half a furlong further. Starting in Ireland, Railway Stakes winner Go Bears Go takes on the second and fourth from the same race in a three rematch. Castle Star was runner up that day and looked a bit unlucky after being slowly away. He got rolling late and passed the rest of the field but Go Bears Go had gotten first run and was not for catching. Dr Zempf finished 4th that day on only his second start and while others from the Railway Stakes also re-appear here, I feel they have a lot to do to turn the tables and in my mind it is the three mentioned who are realistic prospects to land this race. Go Bears Go was runner up in the Norfolk at Royal Ascot in his only defeat thus far but he only went down by a head. He was pretty impressive in the Railway Stakes and the question is whether Castle Star was unlucky or whether perhaps he had levelled out in form on his fifth start? My first though that day was that Castle Star had an impossible task from where he came and then the effort he made in getting into a challenging position had drained his resources, allowing Go Bears Go to hold him off. Perhaps Go Bears Go has the scope to come forward again and he was quite resilient in front that day. I have seen Dr Zempf tipped with the logic being that it was only his second start last time and that he may reverse form but I am not sure he can bridge the gap and some of Ger Lyons youngsters don't seem to progress as much as one might expect. Ebro River tries 6F yet again. He has gone on a losing streak of three since being upped from 5F where he won twice. I said his last race was my final go with him and I expect he will have another defeat at 6F for his troubles after today as he has been weak in the closing stages the last three times. Seems the wrong race for him to me and they are running the guts out of the horse. His earlier wins have not been working out well either. Prettiest was disappointing last time when 4th but was reported by the vet to have been showing signs of being in season. She may do better but this looks a big ask taking on the colts. There isn't as much in the betting as I thought there might be between Go Bears Go and the other two. With the Stack stable out of the winners and Ger Lyons tailing down to 6% strike rate recently I felt 2/1 for Go Bears Go was the bet. Castle Star at 5/2 and Dr Zempf at 11/4 just didn't strike me as better value and Go Bears Go is unexposed at the 6F. 4.10 Curragh Go Bears Go 2/1 The Prix Maurice De Gheest sees July Cup winner Starman and Commonwealth Cup winner Campanelle lock horns. The older horse landed the July Cup in good style, while the filly got her trophy with the help of the Stewards after going down narrowly. Dragon Symbol was demoted at Ascot and he had finished further behind Starman in the July Cup, suggesting the older horse has the form edge. He was runner up to Suesa next time but beaten three lengths in the race that turned out to be Battaash's farewell. Kinross is dropping in trip and form lines suggest he has a bit to find with Starman. Prix Jean Prat winner Law Of Indices and runner up Thunder Moon also drop half a furlong and I prefer the 6F horses. Marianafoot is on a winning run but I think this is a good bit tougher and he is 6YO now. Glen Shiel and Brando are getting long in the tooth now and I am not sure this is Lope Y Fernandez's trip and the Aidan O'Brien team are on a crazy 1/37 and a 2.7% strike rate at the moment. That is real man the lifeboats material. Regrettably tipping a fav again but sometimes fav's can be the value and these two are a shade bigger than I would have them. 2.50 Deauville Starman 9/4 Two singles and a double. One winner covers the bet and two gives profit.
I backed both of these for their victories last time up and I'm back on Starman today. However I'm going against Go Bears Go with Dr Zempf today. Win singles and win double. Best of luck with yours.
It is a shame for the trainers and jockeys targeting the money on offer that the Haydock leg of the Sky Bet Sunday Series has been washed out. Backing horses to complete the July Cup / Prix Maurice de Gheest double is the fast track to the poor house but I suspect that is usually because the former is normally run on fast ground and won by a horse that does not like easy ground. However, this year’s July Cup winner STARMAN should be fine unless it becomes like glue, as when he was beaten in the Champion Sprint at Ascot. Almost all of the credible opposition comes from outside of France with the home team only mustering three runners, the best of which is clearly the six year old Marianafoot, on a long winning streak that will end today. Of the raiders, there seems no reason to believe that Glen Shiel, Brando or Rohaan should reverse July Cup running with the favourite over the extra half furlong, although Rohaan will surely run a better race than he did that day. So the main threats seem to come from Kinross, dropping half a furlong after winning the Lennox, and Wesley Ward’s filly Campanelle, awarded the Commonwealth Cup and a previous course winner in the Prix Morny. It is hard to make a case for the three Irish raiders as Lope Y Fernandez is not good enough on his previous form and whilst Laws Of Indices (winner) and Thunder Moon (second) fought out the finish to the Prix Jean Prat that did not look a great race and the drop in trip to take on the star sprinter does not look smart. If they both run to their form, this looks like a nailed on forecast STARMAN to beat Campanelle, but we know sprints rarely go that way.
Going to follow Grendel with STARMAN and GO BEARS GO and will add a further two from the Curragh. 1.25 COWBOY JUSTICE 5/2 3.05 LIGHT REFRAIN 13/8, backed this earlier at bigger odds but I see there are a few non runners and I’m not too convinced with the jockey. However Ryan did win for me at Goodwood.
The Prix Marettes at Deauville usually attracts well bred fillies from the top stables. It's a guessing game of course, as a race for unraced 2YOs but I liked the breeding of Taihah who is by Shalaa out of Qemah. The dam was talented and won the Coronation Stakes as a 3YO for Jean-Claude Rouget, who also trains Taihah. In the colts newcomers race Andre Fabre trains the warm favourite but Rouget saddles another Shalaa debutante Welwal and I stayed with the trainer for an interest. 12.58 Deauville Welwah 9/2 13.33 Deauville Taihah 10/3 Two singles and a double.
I see Skybet are offering 3/1 for GO BEARS GO as part of their Club offers. I’ll take some of that too.
14:15 Deauville - Pevensey Bay (Back in a handicap after winning Class-3 Stakes race at Saint-Cloud on July 4th over same trip of 1m, finishing strongly. Hollie Doyle very interesting booking by trainer Hiroo Shimizu. The mare has sound claims for a podium finish.)
Think I'll have a small interest in Castle Star in the Phoenix Stales (16:10). Should be a real corker, this event.
Whilst the winner of the Prix Maurice de Gheest was certainly backable, being on a long winning streak and only six or seven pounds behind the favourite on ratings, the runner up has been doing nothing for Andre Fabre over a variety of distances for ages. So I guess we will just have to say "that's horseracing"... Campanelle ran like a drain but I await the excuses for Starman. He only just pipped Brando for third.
Funny day's racing one winner and a stone last with the Rouget pair. The first one made up quite a lot of ground to score but the other one was never seen with a chance. The supposed second string, with a claimer on board went close but the Fav was always getting there. In Ireland it had to happen. The first time Ebro River ran unburdened by my money and he won at 12/1. Usually held up, he was out the front this time and managed to repel them all. No real excuses for anything and it panned out like a mediocre renewal with a stone cold 104 rated colt winning a Group 1 on his seventh start. Aidan's runners were awful and he's having a terrible spell. In France Starman didn't run his race. The Racing Post man is trying to make out that 150/1 shot Tropbeau ran to 111 today, after running 100, 95, 96 and 93 on her first four starts this season. I think that is bullshit. Campanelle was first beaten, running an absolute shocker. I was against her in the Commonwealth Cup because I was unsure she would train on but she went out and won it before looking today like a juvenile that had not trained on. She ran to 78 on Racing Post Ratings but I am disregarding the figures for that race. Managed to stay in front on a strange day.
Maybe letting Ebro River bowl along in front did the trick. Foley was impresses and thinks he'll get further.
