12-1 BIG-RACE WINNER FOR DAQMAN: Daqman gave the Silver Trophy layers the old one-two with first and second at Ripon yesterday, El Viento (WON 12-1) and Prodigality (2nd 5-2), in the Great St Wilfrid Consolation race.
SEVEN DAYS IN A ROW IN PROFIT: The day was, overall, a narrow downturn, coming after seven consecutive days in profit for a week-long tally of 140 points.
FIVE CONSECUTIVE WINNING NAPS: In that time Daqman had five consecutive winning naps at superb prices: SPs of 5-1, 4-1, 100-30, 11-4 and 5-2 (and a good deal better on BETDAQ).
The Morny has seen many a false dawn. Last year’s winner, Dabirsim has flopped in his second season; and the much vaunted Ballydoyle 1999 winner Fasliyev was never seen again. England’s Dream Ahead (2010) was something of an exception, though a July Cup winner not a Classic colt.
And Auguste de Morny, the founder of Deauville racecourse, would have to admit as he looks down from his racing heaven that the event’s Group-1 status has not stood the test of time since Newmarket Guineas winner Zafonic took it in 1992.
England and Ireland have won 14 of the last 18 Mornys, with Aidan O’Brien highest scorer with three. Andre Fabre hasn’t won it since Zafonic, and the prize hasn’t stayed at home for long since the monopoly days of Francois Boutin (four-timer from 1988 to 1991).
1.30 Deauville (Prix Morny): Clive Cox’s Reckless Abandon has already won in France, so seemingly no travel problems with this unbeaten colt, who counted Sir Prancelot, Snowday and Penny’s Picnic among his victims in the Prix Robert Papin.
Sir Prancealot, paying tribute to Dawn Approach, who beat him further in the Coventry, didn’t have the best of runs in that Maisons test, and the third (ran wide) and fourth were staying on.
But, despite an extra half-furlong or so today, it’s hard to bet that any of them will turn around the placings, though Richard Hannon has booked a home rider, Stephane Pasquier, to try to improve Sir Prancealot’s performance, with Ryan Moore switching to one of the Ballydoyle runners, George Vancouver.
‘George’, who couldn’t handle the heavy turf in Ireland and broke his maiden on the Polytrack at Dundalk, must have been showing plenty at home before then, as he’s always started a hot favourite.
He beat a filly into second at Dundalk and she went on to be a length or so further behind the first two in last week’s Phoenix Stakes (Group 1 at the Curragh) but another Ballydoyle colt won it, and the evidence of the form is again tainted by a very soft surface (race run slow by more than eight seconds).
Aidan O’Brien also saddles Parliament Square, fifth when Alhebayeb was runner-up in the Windsor Castle, another Royal Ascot race brought to book in today’s test.
On his fast time when a CD winner, Freddy Head’s Mazameer catches the eye at a price (9.0 on BETDAQ as I write). He could roll back the years to that Boutin four-timer, when Freddy rode the last two of those winners. George Vancouver (7.6) is the dark horse, despite three runs.
2.40 Deauville (Prix Jean Romanet): There has been considerable doubt as to the Group-1 standing of this race, with none of its winners taking anything in Europe since, ironically, Satwa Queen bagged the Group-1 Opera at the Arc meeting after taking this race when it was only Group 2.
But today’s renewal is a cracker. Galikova, Giofra, Izzi Top, Snow Fairy and Timepiece have all won at Group-1 level, with the score since the race’s inception: 4yo 6, 5yo 2.
Izzi Top was the unlucky filly in the Nassau at Goodwood when Timepiece tried to make all and Izzi’s stablemate The Fugue swept by at the finish. She had slammed Timepiece and Sea Of Heartbreak at York in May, though Spring form can be misleading with horses starting out for the season.
It would be nice to see last year’s Arc third, Snow Fairy, back on song, and Giofra represents top-class form (though is speedy and may be best at a mile) on a line through Elusive Kate.
But Vermeille winner, Galikova, trained for this – and then the Vermeille again and the Arc –looks hard to beat for that man Freddy Head.
Albeit trapped for room at one stage in a typically rough race for last year’s Arc, Galikova could finish only ninth, while the filly she’d beaten twice, Shareta, ran second to Danedream.
But Freddy ‘had a look see’ when Galikova ran third (Shareta second) ahead of Danedream in the Grand Prix De Saint-Cloud in June, with Danedream winning either side of that, including our King George afterwards.
3.45 Pontefract (Flying Fillies’ Stakes): Mince was magic for me in the Shergar Sprint; one of five winners for this column that day, when she broke the Ascot track record.
But this is not a handicap, nor a musical-saddles race for jockeys who don’t know much about the course. It’s a tough Listed, includes three CD winners, has a stalls bias to low numbers (Mince is in 11), and never (that’s a big word but I can’t find one) goes to a three-year-old.
The biggest obstacle to winner-finding may be the weather: it’s good-to-firm forecast ground, but has been watered and rain threatens in thunderstorms. Makes a mess of the Good Book.
Four-year-olds are on a five-timer and, if the rain stays away, Group-3 winner Perfect Tribute could bounce back on this big day for Clive ‘Reckless Abandon’ Cox. A massive 12.5 on BETDAQ.
But I’ll have to have a pound on Sioux Rising, who is also Group class, and won’t mind any rain. She, too, is badly drawn but is ‘preggers.’ Mares can be galvanized by being in foal and all stops are out: it’s her last race.
Sioux Rising (offered at 10.0) was in front of Artistic Jewel on soft gorund in the Spring but, along with Haamaat and Mince, was behind that one on firm at Haydock.
Ultrasonic, a Stoute three-year-old, saw the back of Sioux Riding when La Forunata won at Newmarket in July but didn’t get the best of runs that day and has scored since, albeit in a class-3 handicap. Should improve but has to.
Pepper Lane romped home in the Great St Wilfrid but will the hood work again if the mare turns out for this, only 24 hours and 15 minutes later?
Another enigma is Miss Work of Art. She was Group class as a two-year-old and not ground dependent, but we haven’t seen her since she ran fourth in the Cheveley Park.
NAP VERDICT: Pontefract’s never been my lucky track but ‘he who dares’. In the belief that George Moore will have got Petella (3.15) right for a repeat win, I’ll try the 9.8 offers this morning. Boldness be my friend!
DAQMAN’S BETS
BET 3pts win GEORGE VANCOUVER and 2.5pts win MAZAMEER plus 3.5pts win (stakes saver) RECKLESS ABANDON (1.30 Deauville)
BET 7.5pts win GALIKOVA (2.40 Deauville)
BET 2.5pts win (nap) PETELLA (3.15 Pontefract)
BET 2.2pts win SIOUX RISING and 1.7pts win PERFECT TRIBUTE (3.45 Pontefract)
* Daqman’s selections are backed to win 20 points (unless otherwise stated in jackpot bets) so, if you divide 20 by his stake, you know the Betdaq offer taken at the time of writing.
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