11-4 NAP WINS MORE DAQMAN GOLD: Cannock Chase (WON 11-4) ‘to win and go on to better things’. That was Daqman’s verdict on the London Gold Cup yesterday, and the bet became winning nap number 21 in his current series, among six successes in the last two days.
60 POINTS PROFIT IN TWO DAYS: The Friday-Saturday haul totted up pennies short of 60 points profit but his lead in the challenge to Pricewise (32-9 on the Flat and 71-21 overall) was static because his Lockinge winner was a saver and Daqman insists that break-even does not count.
WON 5-1 PATIENCE ALEXANDER
WON 7-2 GOSPEL CHOIR
WON 11-4 VAN PERCY
WON 11-4 CANNOCK CHASE
WON 13-8 ARAB SPRING
WON 11-8 OLYMPIC GLORY
INTERNATIONAL DAY: There’s racing on Singapore, in Paris, and at Navan and Cologne today, with Daqman’s nap over hurdles at Auteuil.
BARKA MAD IF YOU MISS OUT ON DIAKALI
12.50 Kranji (International Sprint) Last year’s winner, Lucky Nine, ran a good prep – second at Sha Tin – and has the right draw in stall 2, while his main rival, Sterling City, is forced to race wide from 10 but, as an Aussie ace, will threaten if he can get going in time.
English raider, Medicean Man, has never won a Group race, and Ireland’s Balmont Mast is also Listed level only thus far, though he did run second in the 2013 Golden Shaheen, won this time around by Sterling City.
1.40 Kranji (Singapore International Cup) On offer are two English globetrotters: Side Glance, group-1 winner in Australia, third in the Arlington Million and fourth in the Dubai World Cup; and Mull Of Killough, fifth in this last year.
Dan Excel, second to Military Attack last year, has become a bit of a bridesmaid and seems to need a drop back in trip to get the main bouquet but he has the rail this time while the cup holder is out wide in stall 10.
3.30 Auteuil (Grand Steeplechase De Paris) Can you remember (best pretend you can’t: it’s so long ago) when Mandarin won this for England in 1962, trainer Fulke Walwyn and jockey Fred Winter?
The nearest the Irish came to victory in this former French Grand National was with the 1974 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, Captain Christy (second in 1975).
Now Cheltenham glory is laid on the line by Long Run, but (officially) he’s a stone-and-half a lesser horse than he was the day he beat Denman for the Gold Cup, and has won only a minor race since the 2012 King George.
Though he’s French bred from an American stallion, Shannon Rock catches Irish eyes (and mine). He was last year’s runner-up, so they could be right.
Whenever the pace is strong, his stamina kicks in, and he’s in first-time blinkers and ridden by David Cottin, French jumping’s century-maker.
4.05 Navan (Vintage Crop Stakes) Aidan O’Brien has been quiet again on the Flat since Chester (Kingfisher, Orchestra), with just one maiden and one handicapper taking small prizes.
Queens Vase and Doncaster St Leger winner Leading Light, one of 10 Ballydoyle runners today, must show that he’s on the way to the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, or whether he drops back to one of the nervous alternatives, the Coronation Cup and the Hardwicke Stakes.
But his Group-1 penalty means that – on official ratings – he has just 2lb in hand on Royal Diamond and only a pound on Pale Mimosa, the pair who were first and fourth in the late-season Group-3 version of the Ascot gold, the British Champions Long Distance Cup there last October.
The 2m that day was a new test for Royal Diamond, who gets better with age for Johnny Murtagh, winning his Group 1s at six and seven years old.
Pale Mimosa wins when fresh and, although she also came up short in the Irish St Leger last season, is said to have wintered really well and leapt to the front of the markets this morning.
Backers are no doubt wary of Ballydoyle and worried that Royal Diamond has never before won first time and, at eight, will probably be ring rusty.
4.15 Auteuil (Prix Le Questarabad) Willie Mullins’ big, galloping filly Gitane Du Berlais won the Nivernais at this meeting last year and has improved further with back-to-back success at Aintree and Fairyhouse (the Grade-3 Solerina). Ambrose is the one she has to beat.
4.20 Cologne (German 2,000 Guineas) Ballydoyle folowers will recognise Wilshire Boulevard, fourth to French Guineas winner, Karakontie, as a two-year-old.
The improver is Lucky Lion, a High Chaparral colt, but the race’s leading trainers are Jens Hirschberger (Andoyas and Sahand) and Peter Schiergen (Nadelwald)
4.50 Auteuil (Prix La Barka) Willie Mullins rides the full barouche for the La Barka: a four-strong team likely to overpower the modest French defence.
Willie landed a one-two last year and the second horse that day, Diakali (Ruby Walsh), must be lead horse on that evidence, now with the same 160 rating as Thousand Stars though five – repeat five – years younger.
Paul Nicholls tries to improve his chances with Zarkandar by booking David Cottin from under French noses but the horse hasn’t won for a year or so now, and has officially declined by 7lb, albeit through defeats by ‘monsters’ like Annie Power and The New One
Both Zarkandar and Diakali have run The New One to a length in their time but Zarkandar, who prefers a sounder surface, while Diakali loves the mud, has to give away 7lb this afternoon.
If Diakali can do it, the grey will be one up on his stablemate, the prolific mare Quevega, who could finish only ninth when sent over in 2009.
BETDAQ INTERNATIONAL VERDICT:
Singapore With Military Attack out wide and Dan Excel the bridesmaid, the ripening-with-age Side Glance (win and place at 11.0 on BETDAQ, (1.40 Kranji) has his big moment.
France Shannon Rock (3.30 Auteuil) at 6.0 on BETDAQ and 2.9 the grey Diakali (4.50) both bid to to step up on last year’s seconds in their respective races.
Shannon Rock’s preparation has run a bit short of time and a place bet to cover would cost as much as I like to spend on a win. The blinkers might help.
Ireland All the tipsters have come to a similar conclusion about the upgraded Vintage Crop Stakes at Navan, so Pale Mimosa is favourite and no longer value when my words reach you.
Leading Light has had two strong racecourse gallops at The Curragh. If he can go close here, he’s a deffo for a tilt at gold, for which he is 4.4, Pale Mimosa 15.0 and Royal Diamond 19.0 on BETDAQ.
Germany Wilshire Boulevard (4.20 Cologne) has conditions in his favour and 10.0 offers on BETDAQ, win only.
LOST ART OF TALKING THROUGH YOUR POCKET
I had no idea there was a book about Dancing Brave out on Saturday. Ryan Moore was looking forward to reading it, but he might have waited until he got off, or at least dog-eared it before the final furlong on Fort Knox (Don’t tell him the bit about Epsom).
They say that I shouldn’t really complain, because I was deep into a book of magic at the time called Talking Through Your Pocket. What else should a punter do, if not speak out on issues which affect his betting?
Without backers, there would be no racing, save for a few so-called gentlemen matching their horses across the heath.
How can a champion jockey get boxed in when he’s at the back of a small group on an open prairie called Newbury? Answers on a postcard please to the stewards’ secretary.
And how do winners feel when a horse behind them should have finished in front? A bit like Arsenal, I guess; celebrating with scrambled egg all over their face (Arsene it all before).
The award for telling it how it is goes to Aidan O’Brien, who warned of the speculation behind Verrazano’s run in such precise terms that you could see the race he’d run before he ran it. He’ll take Olympic Glory’s crown if the two meet again at Royal Ascot.
BRONZE ANGEL A CASH COW FOR THE LAYERS
There are angels on this planet! Those who tipped Bronze Angel. Those who backed this lay of the day in to 4-1 favourite (see my column yesterday). And now one, Dave Orton, who offers the same tipsters a ready-made excuse for tipping him again next time (‘he got there too soon,’ he opines in the Racing Post results page this morning).
DAQMAN’S BETS (to win 20 points)
BET 2pts win and place SIDE GLANCE (1.40 Kranji)
BET 2.7pts win and place KING OF THE DANES and 0.9pts win and place PARTY ROYAL (4.10 Ripon)
BET 2.2pts win WILSHIRE BOULEVARD and 1.4pts win (stakes saver) LUCKY LION (4.20 Cologne)
BET 10pts win (nap) DIAKALI (4.50 Auteuil)
Daqman is the Betdaq name of a long-time winning tipster, professional gambler and racing writer. He is independent and has no association with this exchange or any bookmaker.
NEW !!!
You can now follow BETDAQ updates on Google+
For further details – CLICK HERE
Did you know that as well as checking the realtime prices on BETDAQ below – you can also log into your account and place your bets directly into BETDAQ from BETDAQ TIPS.
