BULL’S-EYE SHOT AT PRICEWISE: Cheeky Daqman lays the Pricewise bet in a big-field sprint at York (3.40) and names a 12.0 BETDAQ outsider to beat it and win 50 points. The current score is Daqman 28, Pricewise 14.
ASCOT COUNTDOWN FINAL FLING: Daqman starts with a final Fortune Cookie as he checks the stats for the fifth-day card at Royal Ascot next Saturday.
ROYAL ASCOT NEXT SATURDAY
⭕ 3.40 Royal Ascot, next Saturday (Jubilee Stakes, 6f)
AGE: Ten winners out of 12 aged four and five.
DRAW: Stalls 2, 3, 4, 6 won six of the last nine.
TRAINERS: Charlie Appleby 2, James Fanshawe 2, Aidan O’Brien 2, Wesley Ward 1
JOCKEYS: Ryan Moore 3
⭕ 4.20 Royal Ascot, Saturday (Hardwicke Stakes, 1m 4f)
AGE: 10 out of 11 won by four-year-olds.
DRAW: 4, 7, 8 six out of seven
TRAINERS: Sir Michael Stoute 11, Team Johnston 4, Aidan O’Brien 4, John Gosden 2
FORTUNE COOKIES: Emily Upjohn
⭕ 5.00 Royal Ascot, Saturday (Wokingham Handicap, 6f)
AGE: 5yo 12, 4yo 8 in 24 years.
WEIGHT: 10-11 off 9st 1lb or above.
DRAW: 22, 27, 21, 28, 1, 16, 10, 10, 10, 19.
FAVOURITE: 2-17; five this century.
TRAINERS: Two each in last 10 years for Kevin Ryan and David Evans (Evans is going for a hat-trick in the race)
DREAM START AT YORK TODAY
⭕ 2.00 York (Queen Mother’s Cup) Ian Williams and Alice Stevens have been plotting the double ever since they won this last year with a 33-1 chance. Back-to-back wins? They just have to Dream Harder! I took BETDAQ 7.0.
Kayleigh Stephens (this time with a ’ph’) has already won over the trip on firm ground with Charles Hills’ improver, Saratoga Gold: 11.5
⭕ 2.50 Sandown (Scurry Stakes) The grey Great State had a Royal Ascot target (Palace Of Holyroodhouse Stakes) but seems to have been reined back to the Scurry, despite progressing 30lb from three races since March.
Perdika has taken to Chantilly but, on French Oaks weekend, she gets all the allowances here, so that her rating takes her above Great State.
The rest of the field needs big leaps forward to get on terms with the front two. But at age three – one of them is only two! – all things are still possible.
Betdaq Betting Exchange 2.5 Great State, 5.7 Perdika
THORN IN THE SIDE OF ISRAR
⭕ 3.05 York (Grand Cup) Israr was third in the King George V Handicap at Royal Ascot at this time last year; has won on firm and heavy, out of the frame only once.
‘It was always going to be about this year,’ says my Gosden man of the four-year-old (BETDAQ 2.48), whose competition in this is all older horses barring Divine Jewel, who has never won on turf and has been absent 238 days.
Quickthorn (2.86 offers) has been second in the Ebor and winner of the Lonsdale on the Knavesmire. Though he is a 112, he gets 5lb from the 107-rated Roberto Escobarr, who carries a Group-3 penalty.
⭕ 3.20 Chester (Seaside Handicap, 3yo, 7.5f) There are a lot of negatives in this. Hugo Palmer (Supaspecialawesome) is currently 0-27; two were favourite, both finishing fourth.
Grant Tuer (Sophia’s Starlight) has never had a winner at Chester; he may win this, but you wouldn’t bet on it.
Marco Botti (Royal Dubai) has had just five turf winners this year and is currently 0-15, also missing strike with two beaten favourites among 22 losers in the last 17 days.
Charlie Johnston, who likes to see his horses up with the pace, has been unlucky with the draw for In These Shoes (11).
Saxon King made all for Charles Hills at Newmarket but also has a wide draw, coming out of gate 10, and connections say they would like some rain.
Tafreej, out of 8, likes to come from behind; has been placed among solid form horses and looks unexposed after five runs. BETDAQ 3.85.
12 RABAAH BIG BETDAQ VALUE
⭕ 3.40 York Low numbers had this sprint all their own way (7, 2, 1, 5, 3 in five seasons) until a couple of rear runners came through on the near-side rail and 19 won with 16 third last year.
But yesterday’s three sprints on the Knavesmire reverted to low with winning strikes for 3, 4 and 5.
It leaves me with a short-list here of Northcliff (Easterby), Garner, Rabaah, Spirit Of Applause (Easterby), Washington Heights and Zouky.
With Tim Easterby on 8-80, it is impossible to invest in his squad. Garner we like but only because he’s an inexperienced front-runner, and makes a low number winning it more likely.
Zouky is also inexperienced but is a late developer and could place at a huge price, with Tom Marquand booked.
Best of the ‘hidden horses’ could be Rabaah, given time to mature and to recover from a leg injury. Jim Crowley booked out of stall 7. BETDAQ 12.0
LAYS LOGIC: Washington Heights has been second four times and won only his maiden, always a bad sign. I’ll bet he’s second.
⭕ 4.15 York Richard Fahey, who has won this 2yo maiden three times in nine seasons, runs 200,000gn yearling, Silent Move, one of his best.
Fahey has had 10-39 (26% winners) with his juveniles this season; York is his highest-scoring Grade 1 track by far (£5.2m earned from 163 winners). BETDAQ 3.9.
DAQMAN’S BETS
2.00 York (win 20, win 12)
BET 2pts win SARATOGA GOLD
BET 2pts win DREAM HARDER
2.50 Sandown (win 12, win 10)
BET 8pts win GREAT STATE
BET 2pts win PERDIKA
3.05 York (win 10)
BET 7pts win ISRAR
BET (saver) 3.5pts win QUICKTHORN
3.20 Chester (win 12)
BET 4.25pts win TAFREEJ
3.40 York (win-50 bull’s-eye bet)
BET 4.5pts win RABAAH
4.15 York (win 12, nap)
BET 4pts win SILENT MOVE
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