SIX SUPERNAPS LANDED OUT OF SEPTEMBER SEVEN: No change yesterday as both Daqman and Pricewise (scores remain 68-22) struggled all week with the Doncaster form (now +94 over -113 to single-unit stakes) but there was a sixth September supernap out of the last seven for Daqman in the Irish Champion Stakes last night:
WON 10-11 VERACIOUS (supernap, Saturday September 1)
WON 11-10 PAST MASTER (supernap, Thursday)
WON 8-15 ENABLE (supernap, Saturday)
WON 4-9 LIMATO (supernap, Sunday)
WON 1-2 EQUILATERAL (supernap, Tuesday)
2ND 6-5 PILASTER (supernap, Wednesday)
WON 8-11 ROARING LION (supernap, yesterday)
MORE TWISTS AND TURNS IN LEGER AND ARC TRIALS? Daqman and Pricewise clash again today in the 2.50 Longchamp on Arc trials day and in the 3.05 and 3.40 at The Curragh, featuring the Irish St Leger. ‘There have been tough twists and turns in the late season,’ says Daqman; ’who would have thought the Epsom Derby pacemaker would win the Doncaster St Leger!’
EZIYRA ZIP TO WIN BLANDFORD
2.35 The Curragh (Blandford Stakes) Dermot Weld’s race. He’s won it four times in nine seasons, twice with four-year-olds like Eziyra.
Though the trials are at Longchamp today, Eziyra would boost the Arc chances of Sea Of Class, to whom she was third in the (all-age) Yorkshire Oaks.
That was on firm ground, but she’d just completed a hat-trick on all types of terrain, and it’s hard to find a three-year-old in today’s field that comes anywhere near Sea Of Class (not to mention the sixth filly home at York, Laurens).
In fact, Jessica Harrington’s four-year-old filly I’m So Fancy and her mare Beautiful Morning look the ones most likely to threaten the even-money Eziyra.
14.0 BATTLE LOOKS BIG ON RATING
3.05 The Curragh (Flying Five) Take Cover belied his 11 years over the tough 5f at Beverley on the last day, and landed a hat-trick at this time last year.
But he’s never finished nearer than third in this Flying Five and, in theory, Hit The Bid, who went down by a neck when they met last October, should have progressed enough to overtake him today.
Official ratings say he’s 3lb better while Take Cover is 4lb worse, and he has 3lb and half a lengths in hand on Different League if Tipperary August form on today’s easy ground works out.
Battle Of Jericho seemed to improve when beating Gordon Lord Byron eight days ago. The handicapper says so; boosting his rating 6lb, so that he’s now pressing Hit The Bid on today’s terms.
Tongue-tie and blinkers have failed to put Sioux Nation back on his pedestal and I prefer an improver to one festooned with aids.
Havana Grey, who looked good on today’s course in the summer, has never won a Group 1 but has beaten Battle Of Jericho, Take Cover and Sioux Nation in recent months.
While the BETDAQ orange is big value at 108% this morning, Havana does not look like an easy way to the cigar at around 2-1.
However, that’s what enables me to have two on my side: Hit The Bid (6.6) and Battle Of Jericho (14.0), taking the same view as the handicapper that ‘Jericho’ emerged from the Ballydoyle virus slump on the last day, looking ready to blow some more walls down.
WONDERFUL DONNACHA HAT-TRICK
3.40 The Curragh (Moyglare Stud Stakes) Aidan O’Brien is 50% in the Moyglare in recent years with four winners, notably Minding, winner of over £2m with nine victories.
It would also be a hat-trick in this race for Donnacha O’Brien, if Just Wonderful scored for Aidan today.
The market says that Mark Johnston is his main rival with Main Edition but I warned yesterday that his strike rate had slumped to around 10%. Worse followed.
Dark Vision finished stone last in the Champagne Stakes, and 10 later runners saw the yard missing strike badly with form figures of 2442020422, five of them returned at 5-1 or shorter.
It’s difficult to choose between Bandiuc Eile, Skitter Scatter and Zagitova on August form at Cork and here at The Curragh but Bandiuc Eile was more than 10 lengths behind Just Wonderful (4.7 BETDAQ offers) in the Flame Of Tara here on the first day of the month.
O’BRIEN KNOWS ABOUT QUORTO
4.15 The Curragh (National Stakes) The good (Gleneagles), the bad (Air Force Blue) and the ugly (no names, please) have scored for Aidan O’Brien among his 11 triumphs in this, following closely on the 15 for his namesake, Vincent O’Brien, after whom the race is now named.
But the Godolphin renaissance under the stewardship of Charlie Appleby creates a head-to-head today, with Tyro and Futurity winner Anthony Van Dyck for Aidan taking on Charlie’s darling, Quorto, currently rated 5lb the better of the pair.
But it may be significant that O’Brien had a sighter when his Cape Of Good Hope ran second to Quorto in the Superlative Stakes at Newmarket in July.
It’s the umpteenth time in recent weeks that punters have had to choose between two in a top-line race, and results have gone acey-deucey for the favourite.
Snag is here that 2.44 and 2.56 hardly give you a sequential edge backing the second favourite, so I shall ‘cheat’. I shall put both in my Daq Multiples.
FLAG FIGHTS FOR HIS HONOUR
4.50 The Curragh (Irish St Leger) Same ‘match’ here but better for a straight pick from 3.35 and 3.5 in a 106% BETDAQ orange about the Irish Derby winner Latrobe and St Leger Trial winner, Flag Of Honour.
I fancy Flag of Honour as a Cup horse for next year (he’s already won the Curragh Cup, in fact) the way he’s twice fought off Twilight Payment after that one ran up to Order Of St George in the Spring, all three races over 1m 6f.
WINNER WORTH WAITING FOR
2.50 Longchamp (Prix Vermeille) Well Timed is the sole Group-1 winner but in a weak German Oaks. The Ballydoyle pair, Epsom Oaks third Bye Bye Baby and Ribblesdale runaway Magic Wand have both been been behind Sea of Class twice, seemingly put in their places as Group 2 or 3 fillies.
Meanwhile, Worth Waiting has improved from an 85 rating in a class-4 Windsor handicap to the 105 for having stopped Zarkamiya at Deauville though that one was slightly hampered that day.
Kitesurf is a late improver, four lengths in front of the 105 rated Park Hill winner God Given when they met at Deauville in August.
It’s a very tricky race. Pricewise goes for Magic Wand. His winners are Worth Waiting for, so I’ll give the boy a chance. I’m taking 4.5 on BETDAQ.
3.35 and 4.10 Longchamp Aidan O’Brien has chances with Capri (3.35 Prix Foy) and Hunting Horn (4.10 Prix Niel) but neither look the Arc tests of old in small fields today.
DAQMAN’S BETS
2.35 The Curragh (supernap)
BET 20pts win EZIYRA
2.50 Longchamp (win 20)
BET 5.75pts win WORTH WAITING
3.05 The Curragh (win 50)
BULL’S-EYE BET 9pts win HIT THE BID
BULL’S-EYE BET 3.75pts win and place BATTLE OF JERICHO
3.40 The Curragh (win 30)
BET 8pts win JUST WONDERFUL
4.50 The Curragh (win 20)
BET 8pts win FLAG OF HONOUR
DAQ MULTIPLES (The Curragh)
BET 5 x 2pt win doubles and 2 x 1pt win trebles Eziyra (2.35) and Just Wonderful (3.40) with Quorto and Anthony Van Dyke (both 4.15)
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