17-2 AND 15-2 HITS ON THE DAQMAN WINNERS HIGHWAY: Daqman landed five more winning bets at Royal Ascot yesterday, including yet another increased-stakes jackpot on Princess Highway (WON 17-2). He also named Energizer (WON 15-2 from 10.0 on BETDAQ) and edged in front on his lays through Fame And Glory (unplaced 4-5 favourite).
53 POINTS PROFIT ON DAY-3 AT ASCOT: This followed 20-1 and 11-1 winners on Wednesday and he’s had a 50% strike with his horses-to-follow list (June 5) through Most Improved (WON 9-1) and Colour Vision (WON 6-1) in the Gold Cup. If you backed every tip yesterday, you would have finished in front (53 points) for the second day running.
NOW IT’S 29 JACKPOT BETS UP THIS YEAR: Princess Highway was win number 29 for his jackpot bets in 2012, with profits now around the 120-points mark. Here are his winners in time order this week:
MOST IMPROVED (WON 9-1), Tuesday (Ten To Follow)
ISHVAN (WON 20-1), Wednesday (win-20 bet)
JOVIALITY (WON 11-1 from 16.5), Wednesday (win-30 jackpot bet)
DUNTLE (WON 4-1), Wednesday (jackpot saver)
PRINCESS HIGHWAY (WON 17-2), Thursday (win-30 jackpot bet)
COLOUR VISION (WON 6-1), Thursday (Ten To Follow)
FAME AND GLORY (LAY) (unplaced 4-5 favourite), Thursday.
ENERGIZER (WON 15-2), Thursday (win-20 each-way bet)
Soft-ground shock for Day-4. After some very fast times on the second and third days, the fluctuating going has returned to the opening-day soft surface at Royal Ascot, so expect some shocks this afternoon.
2.30 ROYAL ASCOT (Albany Stakes): Not much in the way of form to help a punter here, so you need to analyse draw, trainer form and breeding (for both speed and stamina, and for likely going preference).
Low numbers in the draw dominated on the straight course yesterday but any such bias is extra effective in a handicap and the more credit to Reckless Abandon from stall 12 for pipping my each-way bet Gale Force Ten (2nd 8-1) in the Norfolk.
Tom Dascombe and Richard Hannon have figured strongly in the two-year-old races, with Hannon’s Tassel low drawn (5) in this one but Dascombe’s Premier Steps clearly not out of it in 10.
I’d be looking for stamina as well as speed on today’s soft surface: Amazonas, Becky Lou, Kosika, Light Up My Life, Marys Daughter, Newfangled, Premier Steps, Run Fat Lass Run, Shafaani and The Gold Cheongsam are more stoutly bred.
There is a particularly striking mix of speed and stamina in ‘Cheongsam’ – 10.0 on BETDAQ – and I won a lot of money in his racing days from her sire, Red Clubs.
Only Amazonas, Kosika and Newfangled have had the valuation – some of the others were very cheap buys – of top throughbred fillies, with Newfangled leading that list for three reasons: he’s won on soft and he’s a New Approach (hope you backed Dawn Approach earlier in the week).
Thirdly, the form of Amazonas and Kosika has not worked out well. The ‘winners race’ was Sandreamer’s. So my final three are Newfangled, The Gold Cheongsam and Sandreamer.
I’ve left out Premier Steps, because she has drifted like a dog on a raft this morning and is beyond the betting weir at 34.0. Sandreamer is ‘wrong’ at 16.0 but, though Newfangled is too short for me to punt properly in a race like this, she will be hard to beat.
3.05 ROYAL ASCOT (King Edward V11 Stakes): Black mark against Astrology: Epsom Derby placed horses haven’t won this in 30 years. Like the Ribblesdale (the ‘Ascot Oaks’), this Derby alternative goes to an improver over the established form horse.
However, will the going change to soft wash out the stats stain on Astrology? His third to Camelot in the Epsom Derby was on firm ground, and he’d made all at Chester on the soft.
Derby fourth, Thought Worthy – six lengths behind Astrology at Epsom – had also previously scored on soft. But, then, so have Shantaram and the handicapper Thomas Chippendale (stablemate Noble Mission surely has a better chance).
There’s not much to choose between Astrology and Shantaram on a line through Derby runner-up Main Sequence, and we are to suppose, because William Buick rides, that Shantaram is the John Gosden first string.
Everywhere but Ladbrokes, Astrology is better than evens (13-10 on BETDAQ over my cornflakes) and they are ‘giving away’ Shantaram at 9-1, with Gosden saying he’s a better horse on good ground.
It’s hard to see Thought Worthy making up six lengths on Astrology, so this leaves Noble Mission (bypassed the Derby) as the improver, shortest with Corals at 7-2 but a backable 5.6 on BETDAQ. A saver on Astrology is essential, since the indications are that the Ballydoyle clan’s big bucks are down.
3.45 ROYAL ASCOT (Coronation Stakes): This is the time of year we should be running the Guineas, some argue. Well, here it is: the Guineas of them all, with the Curragh (Samitar) and Newmarket (Homecoming Queen) 1,000 winners meeting head on, with both appreciating the soft ground.
The improver of the race was seemingly Laugh Out Loud but conditions seem to have gone against her, and her form was let down badly on Wednesday by Electrelane.
Ladbrokes, the meanest but the shrewdest, are massively shorter Starscope than anyone else. The Gosden filly – by the soft-ground sire Selkirk – is only 6-1 with them, as I write. BETDAQ to the rescue: I grabbed 10.0.
I could also back Samitar at 5.7 (form boosted by Jersey Stakes win of Ishvana) and save on Homecoming Queen. Time to step up the stakes.
4.25 ROYAL ASCOT (Wolferton Handicap): High-drawn horses having to swing wide round the bend, which suggests going for a low number, one that can tuck in on the rail but not too far off the pace. Eight of the last 10 winners were from stall 6 or lower.
The trouble with Beachfire (stall 1) is that he gets so far behind; but he snaked his way through to win when posted 15 last year and his 28.0 on BETDAQ this morning is probably because William Buick seemingly prefers Gatewood (only 4.4 and drawn 8).
Gatewood is improving but what he’s beaten hasn’t beaten much! They are Ottoman Empire (AW winner only); Black Spirit (not scored for two years); Sirvino (7-yo and one win in three years); and Kirthill (prep race, slow away). Qaraaba is probably more progressive and likes it soft.
The major firms, and BETDAQ layers, are giving away Danadana (stall 5), whose success has come on firm ground.
Mijhaar (stall 2) was fourth to King George winner Nathaniel in the King Edward on this card last season and has been laid out for today.
The other one I like is French Navy, dropping down from a series of Group-race efforts, a winner first time in both of the last two seasons, and a soft-ground lover: the 16.5 is ‘wrong’.
5.00 ROYAL ASCOT (Queen’s Vase): Sir Michael Stoute schemed Estimate for a jubilee win for Her Majesty but he’s aiming high here, pitting a filly against the colts: only two have been placed from 10 who tried in the last decade.
Perennial (9.8 on BETDAQ) appeals for this grueling two-miler, Group placed last year (Astrology third). Minimise Risk (worry about the ground) and Athens (worry about the trip) are also Group horses.
There’s money for Yazdi, though he has a mountain to climb from a class-5 maiden to a Group 3. I prefer Perennial.
5.30 ROYAL ASCOT (Buckingham Palace Stakes): Taking another cue from Ladbrokes and betting with BETDAQ (I like it, don’t you), you can get 26.0 this morning, where the bookies show 16-1 about the quirky Castles In The Air, laid out for the race but with connections wanting no more rain.
That’s the identical situation for Jamesie – 19.5 on the Daq – whose trainer has schemed English handicaps before, and has booked Johnny Murtagh
But the one I like is, is Decent Fella, who has to be caught fresh and was fourth in the race last year, after having already run and won; his 20.0 is tempting. That’s three on the high side of the draw, so I need one in the low numbers.
I can’t see Chester specialist Imperial Djay winning in these wide open spaces, so I will go with Belgian Bill (24.0), who badly needed the run in Wednesday’s Royal Hunt Cup.
DAQMAN’S BETS
BET 2.2pts win THE GOLD CHEONGSAM, 1.3pts win and place SANDREAMER and 2pts win (stakes saver) NEWFANGLED (2.30 Royal Ascot)
BET 4.3pts win NOBLE MISSION and 3.2pts (stakes saver) ASTROLOGY (3.05 Royal Ascot)
WIN-30 JACKPOT: 6.3pts win SAMITAR, 3pts win STARSCOPE and 2.8pts win (stakes saver) HOMECOMING QUEEN (3.45 Royal Ascot)
BET 5pts win MIJHAAR, and 1.2pts win and place FRENCH NAVY (4.25 Royal Ascot).
BET 2.2pts win (nap) PERENNIAL (5.00 Royal Ascot)
WIN-40 JACKPOT: BET 2.1pts win DECENT FELLA, and WIN-30 JACKPOT: BET 1.6pts win JAMESIE, 1.3pts win BELGIAN BILL, 1.2pts win CASTLES IN THE AIR (5.35 Royal Ascot)
* Daqman’s selections are backed to win 20 points so, if you divide 20 by his stake, you know the Betdaq offer taken at the time of writing.
* Points are what you make them: if you bet in tenners, then 4pts win is £40; 3.2pts win is £32 (in fivers, those stakes would be £20 and £16). Daqman bets to a level return so that you can easily assess his tipping ability.
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