KEEPING THE WOLF FROM THE DOOR: Two winners in four races for Daqman yesterday, with a profit on the day of 12 points from hits at Huntingdon and Southwell, one of them 7-2:
WON 7-2 THE WOLF
WON 13-8 QAZAQ
SATURDAY’S BIG CHASE: Today Daqman previews the big chase over the Cheltenham Trials weekend. He tries to find the strands of form that bring them together.
LISTED WEDNESDAY: Daqman previews both Listed races at Lingfield forecasting a good afternoon in Surrey for William Haggas.
NICHOLLS’ DESTINY AGAIN?
⭕ 2.20 Cheltenham (New), Saturday (November Gold Cup) The favourite won for Paul Nicholls last year, his first success in the race since 2014, with seven of the eight winners in between starting between 5-1 and 14-1.
GINNYS DESTINY (Paul Nicholls) All his best form, a hurdles win and three over fences, is novices but second in both the big two chases for that category, the Turners at Cheltenham and the Manifesto at Aintree.
The winners, Grey Dawning and Il Etait Temps, are now rated 157 and 160, respectively.
Grey Dawning is due to run in the big chase at Haydock on Saturday; Il Etait Temps in the John Durkan at Punchestown on Sunday week.
GA LAW (Jamie Snowden) Ginnys Destiny is on 155, par with Ga Law who won a similar race on the Old Course in January, with Il Ridoto third.
Ga Law, Ginnys Destiny, Grey Dawning and Il Etait Temps are all four possibles for the King George at Kempton on Boxing Day.
IL RIDOTO (Paul Nicholls, claimed off 3lb). Second in the December Gold Cup, beaten a short-head by Fugitif before his third to Ga Law in January.
LET’S GO CHAMP (Henry De Bromhead) Winner over a slightly longer trip and on this ground at the Punchestown Festival.
PROTEKTORAT (Dan Skelton) won the big Haydock race on this day in 2022 and took the Ryanair at Cheltenham in March, both on soft ground. Rated well clear of Saturday’s card off 167 but has to carry 12st.
IMAGINE (Harry Derham, 10st 6lb) and IN EXCELSIS DEO (Harry Fry, 10st 4lb) are the youngsters down the handicap, Imagine yet to score beyond 2m but In Excelsis Deo winner of the Silver Cup here (good) in April.
ALL AT SEA
⭕ 2.07 Lingfield (River Eden Stakes Listed) A bumper nine race card at Lingfield this afternoon (* EDITOR CORRECTION ‘morning’!) featuring two Listed races for fillies starting with this 1m 5f contest.
The combination of the all-weather and distance will be a new test for most of these in what looks a wide open market on the Betdaq Betting Exchange.
Irish entries from Ger Lyons (Madam Celeste) and Jessica Harrington (Scarlett O’Hara) add further interest but the prize might stay at home as Sea Theme could well prove a different class to these.
She bids to continue the excellent recent strike-rate of both William Haggas (won this same race in 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2023) and Billy Loughnane and is rated the best here on official ratings.
The quandary is that she tackles the surface for the first time in her career but should again account for Scarlett O’Hara who she comprehensively dismissed when the pair were first and second in a Listed contest at Clairefontaine in July.
Since then Sea Theme has run a cracker in a Group 1 at Longchamp – sixth but beaten only two lengths but struggled on Champions Day at Ascot when only 7th in the Fillies & Mares.
Her sights are lowered for this and she should prove hard to beat.
NO GLOOM FROM DOOM
⭕ 2.40 (Fleur De Lys Stakes Listed) Back to a mile trip for this race and William Haggas will have strong hopes of completing a double (hopefully the double will be on!) with Doom who is another class dropper.
She’s actually got quite a similar profile to her stablemate Sea Theme – winning in France when last seen at Listed level and coming into this on the back of a solid enough run at Group 3 level at Doncaster. She handled the all-weather well on her only previous try which came at Newcastle back in 2022.
It’s hard to know what to expect from Charlie Johnston’s Sacred Angel who is having her first start since finishing down the field in the 1,000 Guineas nearly 200 days ago.
I’m including Ornellaia whose Ascot run (and first start for Ralph Beckett) is best ignored as she lost many lengths when getting fractious at the start. Her form last year makes her a major player, providing of course there’s no repetition of the temperament issues.
PRIMO PRIMED FOR FIRST
⭕ 6.00 Southwell The 4lb rise prompts me to take on hat-trick seeking Prometeo who is also up in class.
Primo Lara is 1-1 on the all-weather and DOWN in class after his run at Doncaster where he might well have needed the run after a break. After a similar break earlier in the year he bounced back with back to back wins.
DAQMAN’S BETS
2.07 Lingfield (win 10)
BET 4.0pts win SEA THEME
2.40 Lingfield (both win 10)
BET 3.3pts win DOOM
BET 2.0pts win ORNELLAIA
6.00 Southwell (win 10, nap)
BET 7.7pts win PRIMO LARA
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