THREE NAPS IN DAQMAN CRYSTAL BALL: Daqman landed his third nap of the week yesterday when Pink Crystal gave him another profit on the day (6.50 points). His Saturday search for winners starts with the score in his value challenge: Daqman 40 winners, Pricewise 26.
⭐ WON 7-4 PINK CRYSTAL
⭐ WON 6-5 THE ANTARCTIC
⭐ WON 11-8 DUBAI JEMILA
RACING LEAGUES TWICE IN THREE DAYS: After Thursday’s Racing League at Doncaster, we have the Shergar Cup at Ascot with more league tables for races in which ‘jockeys you have never heard of ride horses they have never heard of’, says Daqman. ’Bookies love racing which turns punters into pinstickers and reduces their chances. Give us a break!’
* BETDAQ exchange offers at Ascot total as low as 104%. Stay with the value.
GIMMICK RACING: PUNTERS PAY
Who is the forgotten man? As crowds dwindle and runners are thinly spread across the racing landscape, PR power reigns with novelty events and, on ITV, the proud feature in the week was a daily chat over the wall between a long-forgotten ex-jockey and a racegoer who hasn’t even paid to go in.
Meanwhile, record prizemoney of £550,000 for the Shergar Cup at Ascot today can’t even raise the full complement of 10 horses per race. Who is the forgotten man in all this? The punter, as ever. What does he want; who cares?
If he isn’t already confused by a myriad of magic tricks among bookmaker offers, his wallet raided for entry fees to a hostile course atmosphere with expensive meals and lukewarm beer, he must now try to pick from eight races in which the jockeys play musical saddles.
In fact, jockeys you’ve never heard of are appointed to ride horses they have never heard of in the name of something new.
It’s all done in that great sporting tradition: team play. We’ve just seen what that means: 10 German women trying to kick the bejesus out of 10 English women with a goalkeeper each end as an occasional punchbag.
Or, on our own scene, Thursday’s Racing League, second edition, ‘livened’ – their word not mine – by ITV coverage, after the first year got ‘mixed reviews’ (a good idea to do it again then!)
And the great innovation (apart from Matt Chapman cuddling hat-trick winning jockey, Sean Levey): ‘The number of teams is trimmed down to seven and attached to regional areas instead of corporate brands.’ Wow! Makes a world of difference when you’re having a bet, don’t you think!
LAYS LOGIC: THE NUMBERS GAME
⭕ 1.35 Ascot This is called the Full Of Surprises Classified Stakes. It’s already lived up to its name, with only eight acceptors instead of the requisite 10.
It’s a headache for punters, because who can say – not even trainer David O’Meara – whether Orbaan will reproduce his winning Golden Mile form at Goodwood only eight days ago.
That was his first success in his last 21 starts, another indication that you’re betting blind. Oh, and he’s also up 8lb and carries 10st 3lb though, in a classified, he has to give only 5lb all round.
⭕ 2.10 Ascot Same again! Can Lampang, down the field in the Stewards Cup at Goodwood a week ago, improve on that for Christophe-Patrice Lemaire, or is his presence in this sprint another punting ‘mare?
Daniel Tudhope, who rode four winners at the royal meeting, partners Arecibo, not disgraced in four Group races this season so far.
Betdaq Betting Exchange 6.8 Arecibo
⭕ 2.45 Ascot No fewer than SIX horses reappear in this after just seven, eight or nine days’ break, which has a certain phrase ringing in my ears: ‘making up the numbers.’
And you will find that seven more on the rest of the card are all running seven or eight days after their last engagement.
So that’s a total of EIGHTEEN horses reappearing within seven to nine days. That’s the exact same as Newmarket, Redcar and Haydock.. But added together!
If any of these are tough enough to score off a short break it could be Make My Day, another Danny Tudhope, who ran well at Ascot and Goodwood in the Spring but stepped up to too far to 2m 4f at the big meetings at those venues.
BETDAQ value 11.5 Make My Day
GROCER JACK CLEAR TOP-RATED
⭕ 3.00 Haydock (Rose Of Lancaster Stakes) Real racing starts here, with low numbers (stalls 1 to 4 seven out of 10) having a distinct advantage in this Group 3.
It features the one-time French Derby fourth, Intellogent, who has gone so close for Jane Chapple–Hyam in the Royal Hunt Cup (half-a-length second) and the John Smith’s Cup (threequarters third to Anmaat and now 2lb better off).
He’s also been placed 10 times without winning since that day at Chantilly, and his greatest moment was when taking the 2018 Prix Jean Prat (Group 1).
Grocer Jack has a similar profile: won a Group 3 but placed five times in Group races in Germany, though he has scored easily in a Newbury Listed since moved to William Haggas, and is clear top-rated here off 118 (6lb in hand). No wonder he’s only slightly better than even money.
Intellogent and Passion and Glory (drawn 1), back to form at Sandown, are seven and six years of age; so, too, Certain Lad (stall 3) and Marie’s Diamond (2).
Passion and Glory had last year’s winner of this, Foxes Tales, well back in fourth at Sandown but Foxes has a better chance today on the easier Haydock surface, going for the repeat.
BETDAQ value 22.0 Foxes Tales
SUPER NOVA IN ODDS BOOST
⭕ 3.40 Newmarket (Sweet Solera Stakes) The 1, 2, 4, 5 in the Chesham Stakes have all been beaten since and I’ll take the third, Lakota Sioux, to prop up the price about 3.8 favourite, Novakai, who represents Karl Burke’s squad of 22 two-year-old winners.
BUY INTO BRADSELL ON FORM
⭕ 4.15 The Curragh (Keeneland Phoenix Stakes) See Daqman’s form preview yesterday.
While Hayley Turner is among the women jockeys playing team tag at Ascot today, Hollie Doyle, who had four winners from four starts on Thursday, has a serious ride on a serious racehorse in Bradsell.
The Coventry Stakes winner has not been seen since, unless Archie Watson has invited you to Lambourn, where – says he – Bradsell has worked with the Stewards Cup runner-up Tabdeed and another ace, Glen Shiel, and ‘galloped all over them.’
Bradsell (BETDAQ 2.4) has improved in the two-year-olds’ reckoning without having a race. Blackbeard, fourth in the Coventry, won the prestigious Robert Papin, after he and Shartash matched strides at the finish of the Railway Stakes here at the Curragh in June.
That followed Coventry runner-up Persian Force’s victory in the July Stakes, surely hiking Bradsell’s rating from the official 114, off which he races today.
DAQMAN’S BETS
2.10 Ascot (win 10)
BET 1.75pts win ARECIBO
2.45 Ascot (win 20)
BET 2pts win MAKE MY DAY
3.00 Haydock (win 12, win 20 and place to cover win bets)
BET 10pts win GROCER JACK
BET 1pt win and 3pt place FOXES TALES
3.20 Ascot (win 20)
BET 2pts win STATE OF BLISS
3.40 Newmarket (win 10)
BET 3.5pts win NOVAKAI
3.55 Ascot (win 20)
BET 2pts win JUNGLE COVE
4.15 The Curragh (win 12, nap)
BET 8.5pts win BRADSELL
5.05 Ascot (win 20, win 4 place)
BET 1pt win and place TOLSTOY
What are points? Points facilitate a staking plan, which is the secret to creating profit. One point is whatever you choose: a pound, a euro, or whatever ….
Start with a bank and decide how much you can afford to lose over a period of time, and determine the size of your bets accordingly. Daqman makes this variation every day.
Did you know? DAQMAN’s tips are posted each and every day so he’s always on hand to help with your horse racing betting.
