DAQMAN STRIKES AT 8.4 AND 6.0: Daqman solved the mystery of the Gosforth Park Cup with the help of Bergerac on the second day of the Northumberland Plate meeting at Newcastle. His Friday strikes were:
WON 5-1 BERGERAC (BETDAQ 8.4 taken) Prince Of Zenda 2nd 3-1
WON 7-2 TIFFANY (BETDAQ 6.0 taken) Darnation 2nd 9-1
FORTUNE COOKIE ON THE PLATE! More big races today on which to work BETDAQ value: the Northumberland Plate (Fortune Cookie) at Newcastle and Pretty Polly (nap) at the Curragh, in which Daqman has a major interest.
GAMBLE ON CITY HOUSE
⭕ 1.35 Newcastle A three-year-old was gambled on to win this last year, getting up to 22lb from the older horses.
James Fanshawe has spotted the same opening for City House, back to form under Billy Loughnane at Kempton the last day, and there’s been a similar flood of money. BETDAQ 4.4 as I write.
The flying Loughnane has switched to Cross The Tracks (Newcastle form 121) – literally across the track on the other side of the draw – up in the weights but also favoured by leniency to second-season animals; 10.5 offers.
FORTUNE COOKIE TEEJ A
⭕ 2.15 Newmarket Ralph Beckett has won this 2yo fillies’ Listed twice in the last four seasons with low-grade winners stepping up from Chepstow and Bath. Can he get away with it again, taking class-5 Kempton scorer Tales Of The Heart straight up five grades? BETDAQ 5.5.
He has to get past Karl Burke’s 6.3 offer Teej A, who put her own Chepstow winning to the test by taking the Woodcote at the Epsom Derby meeting,
I was impressed with her that day and made her a Fortune Cookie but the filly she beat – trained Ralph Beckett! – fluffed her lines at Carlisle next time. So I’ll need the Beckett saver.
HOT CHILLHI A COOL 13.5
⭕ 2.35 Newcastle (Northumberland Vase) The Plate consolation may go to Geordie trainer Brian Ellison, with Chillhi, left to chance at 13.5 offers.
Twice a winner at Newcastle over shorter and threatening here last summer (1m 4f+), beaten less than two lengths, finishing well off half a stone higher. This new trip could suit.
TROOPER FIGHTS THE ARMY
⭕ 3.10 Newcastle (Northumberland Plate, 2m+) Stats in DAQMAN Friday.
Trainer king of the Plate is Alan King. He’s had two winners and two placed, and I marked down his Spartan Army in my Fortune Cookies list.
The old master Sir Mark Prescott is back in the groove with Pledgeofallegiance winning the Ascot Stakes, and may be the biggest threat with two buried down the weights.
Sir Mark’s pair are ‘hidden’ off 8st 8lb and 8st 6lb or is that what they’re worth? A span of 8st 10lb to 9st 5lb is where the winners usually come from, which indicates handicappers exposed for strength.
But this year only Zoffee, Spartan Army and Yashin can reasonably be placed in the quality zone behind soft-ground Cesarewitch third, Tashkhan.
Zoffee won the Vase on this card in 2022. Hugo Palmer has him now but he looks booked for a place at best; it will be a rare feat to follow up his Chester Cup strike to win this at age eight.
I: SPARTAN ARMY Had landed a hat-trick, beating a quality marker for this – Prydwen – in the AW Marathon Trial before running third to the same horse in the Marathon Championship itself; he is better off at the weights now with the runner-up, Duke Of Oxford.
Showing the strength of this form, Prydwen then carried 22lb more than Pledgeofallegiance and beat him into third on their way to that one’s triumph at Ascot, where Prydwen attempted the Gold Cup!
2: GRAND PROVIDENCE David Probert, who has been riding Spartan Army, gives way to Billy Loughnane (no complaints from me on that score!), as he is wanted for Grand Providence.
She won the Cesarewitch Trial at Newmarket (good) last September, and had been thwarted by soft ground until the Chester Cup, where she missed a place by being bumped a furlong out after running second from halfway, whereas she’d been held up at Newmarket.
3: TROOPER BISDEE well drawn and looks best of Sir Mark Prescott’s pair. Has won six races out of eight, climbing in the manner of many a Prescott handicapper from a 56 rating in class 6 to success in last week’s Pontefract Cup which puts him on 90.
4: ONESMOOTHOPERATOR Trained by a Geordie Brian Ellison, had Pledgeofallegiance behind in third when runner-up early in the season. Laid out for this.
Betdaq Betting Exchange 5.6 Trooper Bisdee, 10 Grand Providence, 12.5 Spartan Army, 16.5 Onesmoothoperator
BLUE FLAG FOR STOCKING
⭕ 3.30 Curragh (Pretty Polly Stakes, 1m 2f) Have they printed this race from the Newmarket card by mistake?
A Group 1 fillies and mares worth €177k to the winner but the Irish are in the bar behind three Brits this morning, with their runners outnumbered 5-3, of which Aidan O’Brien has just the one.. curiouser and curiouser.
The likely first three favourites had their last success at Epsom, York and Newmarket, the strongest of them Bluestocking, though she’s 4lb behind Emily Upjohn (119) in the official ratings.
Ribblesdale third, Irish Oaks runner-up and British Champions Fillies and Mares runner-up in October, Bluestocking came back with a six-lengths strike at York in the Middleton.
She continues to excite and was 2.88 favourite on BETDAQ this morning, while Emily Upjohn has lost her edge, with four straight defeats since winning the 2023 Coronation Cup.
Joseph O’Brien has always thought Lumiere Rock, CD winner in the Blandford, would hold her own in Group 1 this year and Irish punters have a straight-eight each-way bet at BETDAQ 9.6 this morning.
SUNFALL COULD TAN MAC
⭕ 3.35 Chester William Haggas is on a hat-trick after landing two favourites out of two yesterday and, if he hasn’t already hit the treble, Sunfall and Silvestre De Sousa (at 3.55) should be able to hold off Jungle Mac, consistent but hard to win with. They are drawn 1 and 2 so expect a scrap.
There were excuses for Al Shabab Storm at Goodwood (didn’t like the right-handed track) but earlier he’d been beaten here at Chester going the other way round but also hanging left!
STOUTE STARS TO SHINE
⭕ 3.52 Windsor Saffie Osborne has a near-40% strike rate for Sir Michael Stoute and Believe In Stars can win first time, as last year, to set up a date at the July Meeting in two weeks’ time. BETDAQ 2.35
DAQMAN’S BETS
1.35 Newcastle (win 20)
BET 6pts win CITY HOUSE
BET 2pts win CROSS THE TRACKS
2.15 Newmarket
FORTUNE COOKIE (win 50)
BET 10pts win TEEJ A
BET 2pts win (stakes saver) TALES OF THE HEART
2.35 Newcastle (win 40)
BET 3.25pts win CHILLHI
3.10 Newcastle
FORTUNE COOKIE (win 100)
BET 8.5pts win SPARTAN ARMY
BET (to win 40) 8.5pts win TROOPER BISDEE
BET 2pts win (stakes saver) GRAND PROVIDENCE
3.30 Curragh (win 12 nap)
BET 6.25pts win BLUESTOCKING
3.35 Chester (win 12)
BET 3.25pts win SUNFALL
3.52 Windsor (win 10)
BET 7.5pts win BELIEVE IN STARS
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