ANOTHER SATURDAY AWARD GOES TO DAQMAN: Daqman’s beloved Enable (WON 4-9) – he’s followed her since before her first ever Group win – plus Award Scheme (WON 11-8) gave him another Saturday victory over Pricewise of the Racing Post, 2-1, taking the score to 21-8 overall, with 271 points separating them to 10-point stakes. The value hunt continues today at Ascot and York.
Today’s headlines
🔹 BREAKING HEARTS AND RECORDS..
🔹 THIS UNRAVELS TO 14.0 KNOTTED
🔹 DASH COULD HANG ON AT THIS TRIP
🔹 17.5 THE FORGOTTEN HORSE ARMORY
🔹 REVENGE IS BEAUTIFUL FOR O’BRIEN
BREAKING HEARTS AND RECORDS..
Enable made hacks of them. Aidan O’Brien chose from six in a bid to bag the King George for Ballydoyle but John Gosden left it all to Enable and she galloped into history as three-time winner of the King George at Ascot yesterday.
I read the race right, which wasn’t difficult, with O’Brien’s two select opponents playing different hands: Sovereign bidding to put it to bed from the front, as he had in the Irish Derby, and Japan close marking Frankie Dettori to make a false move, go too early or too late.
John Gosden decently declared that Enable was put back at her best by the Coral-Eclipse when, again, with her public in mind, he had admitted she was not quite ready that day.
Match and tag races are not races I like; nor is multiple entry as a tactic. I believe the game is about decent odds for the punter for a fair collection of horses across the divide, not for a covey of super-rich owners to play games on the turf, as if it were croquet on their front lawn.
For once, O’Brien put his ace on the table for all to see, declaring delightedly that Japan had had this race as his target and was working best of all.
In the event the tactics were ordinary and so was the opposition as Enable left Japan more than 16 lengths in her wake, having quickly dismissed the pace horse and gone clear. ‘She’s unbelievable,’ said Dettori; ‘now for another record. A third Arc.’
THIS UNRAVELS TO 14.0 KNOTTED
⭕ 1.55 Ascot Magic J quickened well at Sandown in first-time cheekpieces but his immediate victim, second horse Konchek, had won only his maiden 14 races back, always a bad sign.
CD-winner Mountain Peak (BETDAQ 5.8 this morning) was runner-up in a Heritage handicap on the course earlier this month, after a Haydock win that put him up 7lb. That cost him the Heritage race but this looks less competitive.
⭕ 2.10 York Get Knotted, favourite when third in this last year, did himself no favours weight-wise with two fine runs at Ayr at the backend, winning the Silver Cup.
But he is a CD winner off today’s 95 rating under this jockey and this is a modest field. So 14.0 in the BETDAQ orange looked big.
Finoah and Alemaratalyoum win on soft-heavy and are also likely to be playing a waiting game, with the going on the firm side of good (cloudy).
I’ll also wait on 5f winner True Blue Moon, ineffective raised to 7f the last twice, but could come into form again dropped back in trip.
Dancing Vega could still be anything; and nothing. Right Action and Tintoretto have always been class-4 animals.
Daniel Tudhope had a double here yesterday, and Firmament was heavily backed for this last night, but 1-48 in four years isn’t my idea of the form horse. Ditto Presidential’s 1-20 in 21 months; again, good runs in defeat though.
DASH COULD HANG ON AT THIS TRIP
⭕ 2.30 Ascot Country steps up a grade here, raised 4lb for his July Course success, but was beaten both tries in class 2 at the back end of last year, and there is a stamina question mark today about a keen-going sort.
Almania’s best form is at 1m 6f and he ran well over that trip here at Ascot in June. His only success was in his maiden, and you know how I feel about that.
Sam Cooke seems a fragile sort, with long breaks between two runs since October 2018, and Dal Horrisgle failed to cope with ratings rises of up to 8lb since scoring at Haydock a year or so ago.
Front-running Dash Of Spice was thereabouts at today’s trip when fading over further the last day, first run since being gelded and, as a CD winner, might be worth BETDAQ 8.5.
I’ll have a second bite of the cherry. My man in the long grass reports that 12.0 offer Jeremiah, who has run well enough in quality races since a long lay-off, has been working really well in blinkers at home.
17.5 THE FORGOTTEN HORSE ARMORY
⭕ 2.55 The Curragh (Tattersalls Gold Cup) Aidan O’Brien bids for a hat-trick and his 10th success in this gold cup with last year’s winner, Magical, who is half a stone clear of her nearest rival in the ratings.
But you couldn’t guess without looking who that nearest rival is? Search For A Song has done nothing this year, including pulled up in a hood on the last day, though she won the Irish St Leger in the autumn.
How will purist ratings anoraks react to BETDAQ offers of 1.3 Magical and 58.0 Search For A Song?
Close behind that one, both on 114, are Mooresbridge winner, Leo De Fury, and Buckhurst, who beat him a head, giving 3lb away, in the Royal Whip (soft) last August.
Buckhurst gave 3lb and a beating to Sir Dragonet, though that one was a shade of odds on, in a three-horse contest at The Curragh in June.
Odd man out is Armory, second to Pinatubo in the National Stakes and third in the Lagardere to Victor Ludorium.
Touted for the Derby at one stage, Armory, bumped and carried left more than a furlong out, returned with a promising fourth to Siskin in the Irish 2,000 Guineas, and looks the value at 17.5.
It’s not normally a race three-year-olds win but Armory is the forgotten horse here and, just 6lb adrift, has to make only normal improvement for his age to play a leading role.
REVENGE IS BEAUTIFUL FOR O’BRIEN
⭕ 3.05 Ascot Miss O’Connor went into the Fortune Cookies before the lockdown and has missed engagements since at Royal Ascot.
The level-stakes 20 points would reap quite a return for the horses-to-follow list if she won at this morning’s 4.5 or better.
The firm surface has eased to ‘good’ but her unbeaten 4-4 came off soft-heavy ground and I marked her for the autumn in my last Fortune Cookies update.
It may be the day for Agincourt, beaten only a head by Nazeef here on good, but further behind on soft in the Falmouth on the July Course when Billesdon Brook was second.
Billesdon Brook is a dual Group-1 winner and should figure here, 6lb clear in the ratings, but has only ever won on turf at Goodwood and Newmarket.
⭕ 3.40 Ascot The Queen Mary came quickly for More Beautiful after her impressive Naas win, but major reason for her disappointment at evens favourite was a Welsey Ward filly called Campanelle.
It’s hard to get close to a machine like that and she could be back to take on all comers, colts and all, in the big two-year-old races in Europe.
Caroline Dale was third in the Queen Mary and followed up by landing the odds at Windsor. The market says that she won’t beat More Beautiful (BETDAQ 3.3) this time, that Aidan O’Brien’s filly will get her revenge, deliberately brought back to the scene of her demise to test her again in a different kind of race.
DAQMAN’S BETS
1.55 Ascot (win 10)
BET 2pts win MOUNTAIN PEAK
2.10 York (win 50)
BULL’S-EYE BET 3.75pts win GET KNOTTED
2.30 Ascot (win 50)
BULL’S-EYE BET 6.5pts win DASH OF SPICE
BULL’S-EYE BET 4.5pts win JEREMIAH
2.55 The Curragh (win 20, place win 10)
BET 1.25pts win and 3pts place ARMORY
3.05 Ascot
FORTUNE COOKIE
BET 20pts win MISS O’CONNOR
3.40 Ascot (win 20 nap)
BET 8pts win MORE BEAUTIFUL
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