1,000 GUINEAS SECOND AT 15.0 BUT O’BRIEN DOUBLE IS PAY-BACK: Aidan O’Brien smashed into the English big-race arena with a game to love in the 1,000 Guineas yesterday. After putting Love top of the Thursday stats guide, Daqman switched to a bull’s-eye bet yesterday to try to follow up his 2,000 Guineas win with Kameko at 10-1. He went win and place on Cloak of Spirits (2ND 12-1 from 15.0 on BETDAQ), and named the first three in his top four for the race. Now Daqman tips an O’Brien pay packet today as Naas restores racing to Ireland. Headlines:
🔹 NAAS SPRINT DOUBLE FOR O’BRIEN
🔹 PROKOFIEV TUNED FOR FIRST TIME
🔹 IT’S JUST THE TICKET FOR HUBERT!
NAAS SPRINT DOUBLE FOR O’BRIEN
Failte! Ireland is back in the race today as Naas starts a week of hot action which has the Derrinstown Derby Trial tomorrow at Leopardstown and a huge weekend at the Curragh.
FRIDAY: Irish 2,000 Guineas, Irish Lincolnshire
SATURDAY: Irish 1,00 Guineas, Gladness Stakes
The golden years of the Derrinstown were 2000-6. In that time, winners included Sinndar, Galileo, High Chaparral, Yeats and Dylan Thomas, an unbelievable roll of honour.
As was planned for the resumption in England, Naas today has huge fields of maidens and handicappers but there are two Listed contests which could provide a bet or two.
⭕ 3.30 Naas I think Aidan O’Brien can show off in front of a home ‘crowd’ today, individually sitting at their computers playing BETDAQ.
The nearest we can get to ‘normal’ is if the Ballydoyle hot-pot, Lipizzaner, is beaten, and if the strike goes to one of the same stable’s superbly-bred outsiders, Battleground (21.0 offers), first foal of Found, or Baton Rouge (18.0), Galileo out of a Mozart mare.
⭕ 5.05 Naas A sprint for three-year-olds, not a race in which to indulge too heavily. As we’ve seen, progressive late-season juveniles have been overtaking established form. Or not.
Of the more exposed, Summer Sands is top rated off 109 with Alligator Alley 104, Wheels On Fire 104, Pistoletto 103; then 101-plus Nurse Barbara, 100-plus Celtic Beauty, the ‘plus’ for fillies with the advantage of a 5lb allowance which could take them right into the mix.
Summer Sands (stall 13), third in the Middle Park when trained Richard Fahey, and won well in the autumn mud at Redcar, joins Joseph O’Brien, who also saddles Alligator Alley (stall 1).
The blessing of having two potential aces in the pack of 17 is that they are drawn on opposite flanks. The high draw is usually helpful on the stiff uphill track, Summer Sands separated from Aidan O’Brien’s Southern Hills (15) by just a couple of stalls.
Southern Hills and Nurse Barbara (5) would be the ones you’d say are lightly raced potential improvers and, since both have 101 ratings already, seem sure to be strong players this evening.
On just his third start, Southern Hills (BETDAQ 8.8 today) won the Windsor Castle at Royal Ascot, despite the rain (Summer Sand sixth, finished well) and is preferred to stablemate Pistoletto, who has run seven times including sixth in the Gimcrack, second in the Cornwallis.
PROKOFIEV TUNED FOR FIRST TIME
⭕ 5.35 Naas Another sprint, this one for older horses. Sceptical is top rated but has won his three out of four on the all weather at Dundalk.
He travelled swiftly and sweetly for 7lb-claimer Joey Sheridan on the last day, and the boy is retained, though he cannot claim in a Listed and will have any amount of overweight here; 9st 7lb is 21lb above his lowest riding weight.
Sergei Prokofiev won a similar race at Navan on his reappearance last season but Chessman, beaten only a head, was giving him 7lb. Neither horse has done much since, albeit plying their trade in the Pattern.
Of the two, you’d be looking to the four-year-old of O’Brien’s to find some improvement. Connections – and punters – never lost faith in him; he was favourite for the Palace House and for the Coral Charge later on. First time is when to catch him. BETDAQ 6.8 is how to back him.
The obvious danger on form is Forever In Dreams, second in the Commonwealth Cup and third in the British Champions Sprint, but Aidan Fogarty’s stable won’t be saddling the grey filly with any confidence: they haven’t had a winner, Flat or Jumps, since December 6.
IT’S JUST THE TICKET FOR HUBERT!
⭕ 2.15 Haydock Ralph Beckett struck form here with a double yesterday and hopes five-in-a-row Moon King can return to the winner’s enclosure first time, as he did last year.
But he was beaten twice late season, both times when he tried this grade, climbing from success in class 5, class 4 and then class 3, before two disappointing class-2 defeats.
Themaxwecan also scored first time in 2019 and, as winner of the Brown Jack Stakes and then a similar two-miler at Goodwood, ought to be a strong favourite here, with the Mark Johnston team in hot form.
But his turf successes have all come on firm ground, and his form with ‘soft’ in the going return is 000. At Haydock, one run, fifth of seven. Charlie D also has no form with cut in the ground.
The Maxwecan’s stablemate Rochester House has scored only in class 4, so needs to improve. Maybe a bet on Just Hubert will pay.
Hubert, who is still Hubert (just!) after being gelded, won three out of four last summer and, earlier on, didn’t mind some cut in the ground.
Trainer William Muir had a winner on the opening day of the Guineas meeting, and also had four seconds and two thirds in three days. I took 6.2 on BETDAQ Just Hubert.
DAQMAN’S BETS
2.15 Haydock (win 10)
2pts win JUST HUBERT
3.30 Naas (win 20)
BET 1.2pts win BATON ROUGE
BET 1pt win BATTLEGROUND
5.05 Naas (win 50)
BULL’S-EYE BET: 6.5pts win SOUTHERN HILLS
5.35 Naas (nap to win 30)
BET 4.5pts win SERGEI PROKOFIEV
DAQ MULTIPLES
1pt win double
5.05 Naas SOUTHERN HILLS
5.35 Naas SERGEI PROKOFIEV
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