ARC ALONE BECKONS FOR £10MILLION MARE ENABLE: She did it! And we are still recovering! But what about Enable; can she recover, can she take any more? Will we see her in England again? Maybe not; she could be rested now until the Arc, which would take her earnings past the £10m mark. Will we see her like again? Daqman checks out fillies and mares of racing history and makes her their equal. Or puts her firmly on top. It’s impossible to say, except that she has done the impossible. Again.
LOOK OUT NEXT WEEK FOR GEE-GEES DOUBLE HEADER: It’s the GGs, Galway and Glorious Goodwood, next week – with a Heads Up tomorrow – and Daqman kept his bank more or less intact yesterday with Flashcard (WON 3-1) and the saver on Enable (WON 8-15), following a similar outcome on Friday from Themaxwecan (WON 2-1), staking plan to the rescue.
Daqman 52 Pricewise 25 (Daqman 385 points clear to 10pt stakes)
Bull’s-eye naps (6-12) 264 points up to recommended stakes
Supernaps (16-22) 118 points up to 20pt stakes
ENABLE RANKS WITH THE BEST OF ALL TIME
It was all about her tremendous will. Enable staved off the only challenger, Crystal Ocean, in a King George which finally sank the current Classic crop to oblivion, or at least to a near-20-lengths-behind back seat.
It’s hard to see now what can challenge Enable in the Arc. The only threat seems to be nerves. I lost mine. And I feared for an unusually jittery jockey, Frankie Dettori, and admittedly tense trainer John Gosden. Only Enable remained calm.
Trainer and jockey kept control as best they could, Gosden when he played the ticket to have Enable last into her gate, Dettori when he refused to be phased as they pushed her out wide and shuffled her back from her bad draw.
Crystal Ocean found more as conjurer Sir Michael Stoute drew the rabbit from the hat once again, only to find that Enable’s magic was still superior, her courage undiminished.
I had had nine consecutive wins from her in this column and, as Dettori said, I was ‘emotionally exhausted’ by her, could not keep taking odds, thinking her totally exposed now. But to what?
She’s put the last two generations back into the box. So it had to be Norway and Anthony Van Dyck, representing the Derby. Result: they were not in the same league, never at the races with a chance.
The King George has gone to older horses two years running and the Arc awaits the same fate if Enable can capture the hat-trick and set herself apart forever in the annals of racing.
John Gosden now has another nail-biting decision: to let her down and rest her before bringing her back for the Arc or to keep her ticking over and give her another race in between.
Both are fraught with consequences, but can we ever doubt now that she is the equal or the better of Winx and Treve, Allez France and Oujia Board, Pretty Polly and Mumtaz Mahal, Sun Chariot, Sceptre, Blink Bonny and Bosra Sham.
At least, she is for courage and heart, and keeps on doing the impossible. Right now, it feels like she’s all those fillies and mares. In one.
POPPING ALONG TO PONTEFRACT
Washed out. Today’s meeting at Uttoxeter has been called off at 11am this morning.
The course reported 35mm of rain in the last 24 hours, with a further 10-15mm forecast late on Sunday morning.
After eight meetings yesterday we are down to just one today. DAQMAN again makes the plea for a more equal division of sport over the weekend period and that’s taking into account the events ahead of us this week at Glorious Goodwood and Galway.
Pontefract goes ahead on GOOD ground with the Yorkshire track escaping the heavy rain of the last 48 hours.
2.20 Pontefract Pop Dancer did enough when second over course and distance last week to suggest he can go one better here over the shorter trip.
He ran green but still showed enough to finish second to the favourite Tomfre who had previously won at Newmarket and I think the form is above average.
Pop Dancer’s trainer Richard Fahey sent out just one winner from a mammoth 25 runners yesterday but had several that knocked on the door and on a day of few opportunities is a WIN 10 NAP for me.
2.50 Pontefract Hat-trick seeking King And Queen will be hard to beat for the juggernaut yard of Mark Johnston but there might be a spot of value in the BETDAQ place market with the three places up for grabs in the ‘dead eight’ runner field.
Low Profile ran well here two starts ago under today’s pilot Daniel Tudhope and the soft ground may have gone against him last time out at Beverley. Hopefully he can run into a place here – the Rebecca Bastiman stable are going along quite nicely with four winners from their last 22 days.
MAKE A MOVE ON BETDAQ FOR SWIFTLY
2.50 Deauville (Prix Rothschild) The Coronation Stakes and the Duke Of Cambridge at Royal Ascot have been top guides to this.
Not only did Move Swiftly win the Duke Of Cambridge but she did so on soft ground which she is likely to encounter today. Laurens has won on good to soft but nothing like the ‘very soft’ forecast for Deauville.
With You, who was short-headed by Laurens in the Saint-Alary last year, went on to win the 2018 Rothschild but was off the track after her fourth in the Opera in October until the end of May, and now wears blinkers for the stable famous for Goldikova’s four-timer in this race.
It’s last-chance saloon for Newmarket 1,000 Guineas third, Qabala, blinkered first time and with no form on a softer surface. Pure Zen is the improver but the daughter of Frankel (out of a half-sister to Dansili) may need more time and more racing to reach this level.
The ratings have Laurens on 116, With You 115, Beshaayir and Move Swiftly on 112, Qabala 109 and East 107.
TIGER ROAR IN FINALE
5.40 Pontefract Young Tiger is running into some kind of form and is a speculative bet for the competitive five furlong finale.
The six-year-old has yet to win on turf which is a concern but there was plenty to like about his effort at Doncaster last time out when a close up fourth to Celsius.
He met trouble in running too that day and I think he will be suited by this tougher five furlongs and remains dangerous off an official mark of just 51.
DAQMAN’S BETS
2.20 Pontefract (win 10)
BET 6.25pts win (nap) POP DANCER
2.50 Deauville (win 20)
BET 7pts win MOVE SWIFTLY
2.50 Pontefract (win 10, place market bet)
BET 3.3pts place LOW PROFILE
5.40 Pontefract (win 20)
BET 4.6pts win YOUNG TIGER
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