16.5 BETDAQ STRIKE PLUS A DOMINATING NAP: Daqman is absolutely dominating the layers, starting the final week of the Flat the same way he finished it.. with big winners! He made 60 points profit yesterday with three hits, including his nap, appropriately called Dominating, and strikes at 9/1 (from 16.5) and 9/2 from 9.2. Here are the last two days:
Monday
WON 9-1 CONNECT (16.5 on BETDAQ taken)
WON 9-2 SILVERY MOON (9.2 on BETDAQ)
WON 6-4 DOMINATING (nap, 3.2 BETDAQ)
Sunday
WON 97-10 INTIMATION
WON 51-10 ICE BREEZE (French St Leger)
WHO MATCHED THE GOSDEN GOLDEN GEESE? Daqman posed the question last week, whether one trainer had had such a duo as John Gosden’s Enable and Cracksman in his yard at the same time. Today he researches the record books and comes up with two Irish stables, one on the Flat, one over jumps.
HE WAS FLYING ALONGSIDE ARKLE
Maybe O’Brien had the best duo of Flat horses at the same time. Not Aidan but Vincent, trainer of the great Nijinsky by Northern Dancer, whose grandson, Galileo, also trained by Aidan, is now such a great servant to the modern Ballydoyle.
The year is 1977 and Vincent O’Brien wins the Epsom Derby with The Minstrel. But, come the Arc in the October, he scores with another three-year-old, Alleged.
Alleged won the Arc again the following year, and was top-rated European racehorse of both 1977 and 1978.
The Minstrel, a threequarters brother to Nijinsky, in the same ownership as Alleged (Robert Sangster), and also ridden by Lester Piggott, won 1977 Epsom Derby, Irish Derby and King George.
I posed the question, who had saddled a champion duo at the same time, as John Gosden has now, with Enable and Cracksman? There seems no Flat equal to the combined record of The Minstrel and Alleged.
Full-brothers Double Trigger and Double Eclipse, who met in the 1995 Ascot Gold Cup, and were separated only a neck, were obviously around together for Mark Johnston. Double Trigger won a Gold Cup, and three each of Doncaster Cup and Goodwood Cup.
Over the Jumps, a modern star duo stabled together were Cue Card and Thistlecrack, Cue Card winning the King George V1 Chase for Colin Tizzard in the same year (2015) that Thistlecrack won his first big staying hurdles. Thistlecrack would also win the King George a year later.
Paul Nicholls had the big prizes to himself for the years that saw Kauto Star win five King Georges and two Gold Cups, overlapping Denman’s Sun Alliance and Hennessy, with his own Gold Cup (2008) sandwiched between Kauto’s. They were Timeform rated 191 and 183 (Denman) at the end of their careers.
The most astonishing double act of all time was probably Arkle and Flyingbolt, both trained Tom Dreaper, and Timeform rated 212 and 210 respectively.
Under Pat Taaffe, Arkle won three Gold Cups, the King George, Hennessy, Whitbread and Punchestown Gold Cup, plus the Irish National, though never allowed to go to Aintree or to meet Flyingbolt.
Flyingbolt won over a much-wider distance range, and in major races over both hurdles and fences, from the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and Irish Champion Hurdle to the Cheltenham Champion Chase and through the miles to the Irish National.
To win the Champion Chase (2m) and the Irish National (3m 5f) in the same year, 1966, was phenomenal for one horse but to do so at the same time that Arkle took his third Gold Cup and third Leopardstown Chase was perhaps to see the most remarkable duo ever for the same stable.
As Tom Dreaper’s son, Jim, said later: ‘It is foolish to say there can never be another steeplechaser as great as Arkle. There may have been one in the yard along with him.
‘It is impossible to tell how fantastic Flyingbolt might have been if he had not contracted a serious illness.’ The equine Usain Bolt of his day.
Incidentally, Tom and Jim Dreaper trained 14 Irish Grand National winners between them. Never mind the horses, has there ever been a more prolific human father and son in the racing game!
Hoofnote: Paul Nicholls has welcomed young people into his yard at Ditcheat under the Key4Life scheme to help prevent recidivism among offenders. Key4Life programme participants have a reoffending rate of 14% compared to the national average of 63%.
YANWORTH’S FIRST DAY AT SENIOR SCHOOL
A proper good jumping card at Exeter this afternoon and with Cheltenham back this weekend too, the jumps really moves into the next gear.
All eyes today will of course be on Yanworth in the Best Mate Beginners’ Chase at 4.50pm.
Alan King’s star hurdler makes his chasing debut and reportedly has schooled well.
A winner of 10 of his 14 races he rounded off last season with a victory in the Ryanair Stayers Liverpool Hurdle at Aintree and this looks a great introductory race for him.
In fact, it pretty much looks a match with only Sternrubin looking a serious rival. The Phillip Hobbs trained runner has winning form on both the flat and hurdles. On ratings alone he has a massive bridge to find with Yanworth but will keep him honest if adapting to the larger obstacles and building up a rhythm – especially as he could easily lead in a race that is a must watch for future clues.
2.50 Exeter Lalor looks the nap on the Exeter card. The Richard Woollacott trained runner is a hugely exciting jumping prospect who was narrowly beaten in his first two bumpers at Wincanton but then the penny dropped and he won both his subsequent bumper starts at Wincanton and Aintree last time out where he stormed home despite being a 33/1 chance in the market for the Grade 2 event.
I’m taking a chance that his jumping will be sound but it’s a chance well worth taking on any Grade 2 bumper winner who is priced at evens or above for his jumping debut.
JP McManus has strong challengers in the race with both Kapcorse and debut Irish PTP winner Onefortheroadtom and both will be interesting to watch but the ones with more experience will surely have something to find on the lightly raced sorts?
4.20 Exeter ‘JP’ also has a good chance here with Cernunnos in a wide open handicap chase over the stamina sapping three miles on the expected soft ground.
The Tom George trained runner has winning form on soft ground at Leicester and proved his current well being with an easy win at Bangor last time out under new headgear which is on again today. He’s up 7lb for the win but might well still be ahead of the handicapper and revitalised for the new equipment.
He’s trading around 10.5 on the win market and 3.2 on the BETDAQ place market with the four places up for grabs.
DAQMAN’S BETS (staked to win 20 except NAP)
BET 1.5pts win and place HOWBAAR (2.40 Newcastle)
BET 10pts win (nap) LALOR (2.50 Exeter)
BET 2pts win and place CERMUNNOS (3.20 Exeter)
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