RYAN REVENGE WITH LINGFIELD DOUBLE: Daqman made a profit on the day yesterday with Birkenhead (WON 11-10) at Lingfield after an excruciating defeat there, when Oisin Murphy on the eventual winner by a nose, Fictional, and Rossa Ryan on Smart Charger, came together in a final-furlong battle. An aggrieved Ryan lost out in the Stewards Inquiry but then doubled up a 16-1 strike with revenge on Murphy in the next.
ECLIPSE ABC GUIDE: White Birch has tests today to see if he can line up in the Eclipse but is only fourth in Daqman’s ABC guide.
WHITE BIRCH ECLIPSE WORRY
WINNER in Ireland over Auguste Rodin in the Spring, White Birch had to miss Royal Ascot when his blood count was wrong. There is a similar concern for the Eclipse: a decision will be taken today after the grey is put to light work after a blood sample is taken this morning.
⭕ 3.35 Sandown Saturday (Eclipse Stakes)
A: RATING: 119-126 Ten out of 12
B: AGE: 3 Since 2015: 3yo 66%.
C: FORM: 10 out of 12 had won Group 1 or Group 2
D: TRAINERS: Aidan O’Brien 7. JOCKEYS Ryan Moore 3, William Buick 3.
ABCD CITY OF TROY Lightly raced winner of four races but poor start to the season, odds on for the Newmarket Guineas when beaten 17 lengths.
The Dewhurst winner remained number one at Ballydoyle and comfortably won the Derby at Epsom, the placed horses finishing one-two in the Irish Derby, as if to confirm claims by the trainer that City Of Troy is the best Derby winner he ever had, though Timeform rated Galileo better.
ACD CONTINUOUS Runner-up in the 2023 ‘Ascot Derby’ (King Edward V11 Stakes) and won the Great Voltigeur on the way to St Leger triumph on the soft, and Arc de Triomphe fifth (short of room 150 yards out).
Not reappear until Royal Ascot when ‘looked after’ in the Hardwicke on firm ground. Rated 119 alongside Luxembourg 120
ACD LUXEMBOURG Won the Beresford and the Doncaster Futurity as a juvenile; and third in the Newmarket 2,000 Guineas in 2022.
Best trip proved to be 1m 2f, winning the Irish Champion Stakes that year and going down only half a length in the same race in 2023 to Auguste Rodin.
Back to form at Epsom in the Spring, enterprisingly making all under Ryan Moore to hold off the older Hamish in the Coronation Cup (1m 4f good to soft)
AC WHITE BIRCH Epsom Derby third behind Auguste Rodin but, when completing a hat-trick this season, the colt turned the tables on that one in May, traveling strongly and taking the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh (good to yielding) in fast time, catching Auguste Rodin a furlong out. Rating: 121.
BC GHOSTWRITER Unbeaten in three races as a juvenile, including the Royal Lodge Stakes (Newmarket Group 2), and steady improver on a sound surface.
Stumbled start and unbalanced in the Dip when more than four lengths fourth in the 2,000 Guineas. Always prominent, fourth, in the French Derby (heavy)
B DANCING GEMINI Listed winner as a juvenile; second in the French 2,000 Guineas and should go well here given cut in the ground, after failing to stay the Derby distance.
B JAYAREBE Progressive as Listed winner in April and stepped up to take Group 3 Hampton Court Stakes at Royal Ascot. Needs a bigger leap forward now.
B SEE THE FIRE Placed in May Hill and Fillies Mile as a juvenile; kept on well in the Coronation Stakes (1m) at Royal Ascot recently.
C AL RIFFA National Stakes winner as a juvenile; second to Ace Impact in a Deauville Group 2 last August but lost form this year on extremes of going.
C STAY ALERT Won Group 2 for fillies and mares at Newmarket in May; runner-up Group-1 Pretty Polly last July.
D HANS ANDERSEN Won the Leopardstown 2,000 Guineas Trial on heavy in 2023 but this year’s sole success was on Dundalk AW.
MY, MY, MY DELILAH …
⭕ 6.30 Bath today Without getting political, and heaven knows we’ll have enough of that this week, but a desperate day for the industry when a UK racecard has been ‘cancelled’ by some bookmakers. I often talk about too much racing but this certainly isn’t the road to go down.
Ironically the six race card at Bath tonight is perfectly competitive from a bookmakers point of view. No races with odds-on favourites and field sizes that have held up well – despite the firm ground.
Business as usual at Bath on Betdaq Betting Exchange and the one bet on the card for me is previous course and distance winner My Delilah in the sprint at 6.30.
The filly is a season ticket holder at Bath, accounting for seven of her eight turf starts including her C&D win last May where she won pretty impressively off a mark of 62. Weirdly, despite some reasonably consistent runs since, she is now racing off a mark 2lb lower and can go one better than her second place effort here last month.
UP THE CREAK
⭕ 7.25 Epsom Sticking with the sprinters at Epsom tonight too and I thought Indian Creak was a spot of value in this tight looking class 3 handicap.
The Jack Channon trained runner hit form at a similar time last year with back to back wins in this race and at Windsor and is tonight racing off a mark lower than 12 months ago.
He’s generally been mixing it in better company without much success but there was a definite signal of a return to form at Windsor last month when he finished fourth to one of tonight’s rivals Get It. The 5lb swing should make things interesting especially if Indian Creak finds more improvement from his better run last time.
Mr Wagyu heads the market but is on a long run since his last win – specifically 053505/0873977493850-2623 and his trainer(s) John and Sean Quinn are also in the fridge on a current form of 0-25.
LEAVING THURSDAY ON WEDNESDAY
⭕ 8.30 Epsom I reluctantly oppose Thursday who did the column a big favour when winning at Windsor last month at 10/1. It was a little disappointing that she couldn’t follow that up next time at Lingfield in what looked a moderate classified event for which she was sent off at 6/5 and finished second.
Standbackandlook brings the best form into the race but what really swings it for me is the current form of his trainer William Knight. 6 wins from the last 18 runners.
Our Pappa Smurf popped up at 22/1 to win at Goodwood last time but may have benefitted from more testing ground that day and will find following up hard under a 4lb hike.
DAQMAN’S BETS
6.30 Bath (win 10, nap)
BET 3.9pts win MY DELILAH
7.25 Epsom (win 10)
BET 2.0pts win INDIAN CREAK
8.30 Epsom (win 10)
BET 2.0pts win STANDBACKANDLOOK
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