Well yesterday went so so...some decent priced placed runners but nothing amazing and come out even on the day so no damage done and if you have a bad day and come out evens i will take that as a win.
Well what does day 2 have in store for us ? well firstly Fahey is still in very good form with all his runners performing with credit ( winners at Newcastle yesterday ) and O'Meara ...well what can we say but York is fast becoming his own back yard with everything he sends out winning or looking like it can and the Conditionals he uses seem very good as well so anything out of his on day 2 must be respected.
The DANTE is todays big race and this will be a thriller for me as i have very high hopes for ELM PARK and will be ..well not far off distraught if this fails to shine as i had this earmarked for big things since the middle of last season the ground may not be 100% right and he may not be 100% fit but none the less im still expecting a run that he can work from.
YORK on THURSDAY
RACE 1 :
We start the day off with a crazy looking 17 runner 5f Sprint Hcap and if you combine all those letters together it spells " NIGHTMARE "....OH MY DAYS...Ricky , Paula ...ERIC...i need help with this one lol..its a ball buster.
OUT DO has to go on the short list as its a lto winner from the prolific D O'Meara yard however in 25 runs its only ever attempted 5f once and it got burnt alive finishing 9/20 so has a big question mark to answer and although i cant discount it i cant back it either.
JUDGE N JURY has loads of ability and win when he wants the problem is you just never know when he wants it ;-/// , so a bet on this is a solid shout but its a case of hit n hope.
SEE THE SUN is another with ability a plenty but an attitude of disgust and cant be trusted so im gonna take a look at PERFECT PASTURE from Mick Easterby's yard as i find it v interesting that he has Moore booked for the ride so something decent must be expected but this is speculation and its a speculative choice in a race with so many variables and disappointing types its not entirely inconceivable that Tangerine Trees could roll back the years its just one of those races.
RACE 2 :
Next up its the 1m2f Middleton Stakes and this for me will be used solely as a stepping stone into true group class for the very classy BRAGGING a horse very much on the up and the way it won the Dahlia Stakes lto shows us that this is a beast full of class and is one that stays and has a huge heart, In the aforementioned Dahlia Stakes if watched you could have been nothing but impressed in what wasnt a flashy race until the final strides as this was a 9f race run at full throttle with the first 5f covered in a very quick 1m flat ( 1m00s ) a time that many an actual sprinter would be proud of and yet they still carried on although 2f out the field were at it pulling n pushing and it was only ever going to be a case of guts and staying power and keeping that momentum up and Kleo surged from the front but was quickly picked up by Bragging as they come into the final 1f with 4 or 5 in a bunch but within 50 yards it was just Bragging in the lead and Kleo with the rest now faltering and within the final 50 yards Bragging finally started to assert and was actually pulling clear as they crossed the line with Bragging around 2L to the good so in the context of this race it can only be marked up and this is a horse going to the top.
That said she will have to be pin sharp to fend off the likes of Ribbons who is also a horse on the improve and has been racing of late at the top table and has a few more medals to show and is in a form context the one to beat.
Belle D'or is held and the remainder bar two are just not good enough and the two left are Secret Gesture ( one time Oaks Fav ) and Madam Chiang and both of these could be getting better with age and both will play there part in what should be a thrilling race.
RACE 3 :
The DANTE Stakes..The days big race and with 8 runners all with some quality this promises to be a doozy.
This has been won by some great horses in the past and every year sees plenty of future winners hit so whatever happens the runners in this need watching for potential wins.
The first one i must mention is a fav of mine ELM PARK ( Win ) who if as good as i believe will be winning this years Derby as he very much reminds me of another past Derby winner called REFERENCE POINT as both have almost identical racing styles and look similar and have the same build and tempo so if he is nearly as good as the Point then its game on.
I cant however leave out the Barry Hills trained NAFAQA ( EW ) as i have been told by a very good source that the yard thinks this is going to win today and as it entered into the Derby , the King George and the Eclipse they must have high hopes for this and im not surprised by a lack of early race pace in its defeats to date as most progeny by Sir Percy take a while to get the motor warmed up and most are all stayers through n through and at 18/1 im going to have a big dutch ( level stakes ) on these two.
RACE 4 :
Next race is a cooler....an 18 runner 1m Handicap....my o my..good luck with this one!!!
I can only presume that Fort Bastion is the Fav based on the riding/training credentials as York specialists Tudders/O'Meara are involved but from a form perspective ..no way.
3 i like are HOMAGE , MERRY ME & YOUR FIRED in what looks to be a very competitive field.
My own horse runs in this ( 25% share ) Balducci but i have been told a few things that would leave me to think it needs more than luck to win today but could run into a place and with top 4 or even 5 ( Betfair among others ) and at around 8/1 fap i think i may just have a few squids on this and cross my fingers ( shame i cant make York today ).
From the Sniper :
Just one joint favourite has won this in nine years though the winner is generally well supported. Homage and Alfred Hutchinson are the only course and distance winners in the line-up and the former makes his comeback after winning a tough handicap from 5lb lower here in October. Off Art ran a fine race in the Thirsk Hunt Cup, his first start since the same race last year, so he has to be considered along with Abseil, who lost his way a little after looking potentially useful at this time a year ago. Gabrial had stablemate Loving Spirit behind at Leicester in October but the latter made an encouraging comeback in the Spring Cup at Newbury and could turn the tables. There are plenty of others with chances but the vote goes to the veteran PRINCE OF JOHANNE, who hasn't won for almost two years but ran well last season and has now dropped to his lowest mark since landing the 2011 Cambridgeshire.
RACE 5 :
Now we have the WESTOW Stakes a race over 5f for 3 yr olds and with just the 10 runners this could prove to be a good race for a bet being an optimum size.
ZUHOOR BAYNOONA is from the list of runners i am following from the Fahey yard and this has already won this term when it won fto @ 7/1 so we are nicely in front with this one already however neither myself nor Fahey think this is it as we both expect much better things from this very fast Filly.
Big Powerful and with a long stride and gait this is easily upto Group Class and an easy win in a fast time at quirky Bath would support this and at 11/1 i am all over this EW as i think its a cracking bet in fact im making it my EW NAP.
Tendu , Blue Aegean and Strath Burn promise to make this a very interesting a quickly run race.
RACE 6 :
Maiden time and a typically well contested one for York that is packed with blue blood.
I like ANOTHER TOUCH which was a reasonably expensive purchase for the Fahey stable at £80k and is well forward in his work, i also like ZEBADIAH who is related to a raft of winning sprinters and is sure to know his job and finally BLUE HUMOUR from a yard that likes to ready a good winner at York.
RACE 7 :
Finally we round the day off with a 15 runner 2m Handicap which in truth is not a bad way to round a card off.
COUSIN KHEE will get some action from me because i always back Crowley in the final race of the day ..win or lose..up or down..he always gets some.
But from a more professional stand point i like the look of MAWAQEET from the stable that won this last year a horse that looks to have been trained with this as his sole target for the year and has been carefully laid out and at a fantastic 40/1 i simply have to have a nibble or two EW of course lol.
Moscato is easily the form choice and arrives on the back of an easy win over this 2m trip but at Ascot lto for which there is no Penalty carried as that was an Apprentice race..so an easy winner with no penalty over 2m and trained by master campaigner Prescott...Hmmm well i suppose i should have enough cover on it to hold my stakes in place.
Good Luck everyone on what looks a tough days racing.
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