NORFOLK 9:30 (ALL TIMES ET)
Sunday Sovereign is a worthy favourite for the Norfolk having beat the coventry winner Arizona easily 2 back and then smashing up by 7 lengths in very fast time he could well put his trainer on the map but the one I’m interested in is A’ALI he was an expensive breeze up purchase and was well bet for debut , he settled nicely behind the leaders and moved up travelling very well he went 1/10 inrunning but the horse who had led at a steady pace on the favoured rail found more. They had pulled 9 lengths clear in a fast time but the closing sectional made it look even better A’ALI had run the last 3f in 33.4 seconds. That run was on softish ground and his pedigree is fine for soft so with I’m hoping Frankie can do me a favour instead of a kick in the teeth here.
HAMPTON COURT 10:05
The Hampton Court is next and I’ve got a couple of plays KING OTTOKAR beat Queen’s Vase winner Dashing Willoughby at Newbury travelling well and quickening past that one to win nicely, he then went to a derby trial at Chester and again faced Dashing Willoughby he was a bit fresh but was still travelling well 3f out but the jockey decided to circle the field and got pushed 4 wide it was all a bit much and he faded, given time since then and dropped back to 10 furlongs I expect him to move back in the right direction. OLD GLORY has to improve but is in the right hands to do so and his last run isn’t as bad as it looked, he was held up off a slow pace made a nice wide move before flattening out, it’s a very hard to track to do that on & looks worth a few quid here.
RIBBLESDALE 10:40
The Ribblesdale looks fairly uninspiring with some unexposed types taking on the solid Oaks form of Fleeting and Frankelina. I’m worried about the soft ground for Queen Power on action and pedigree. Fleeting looks the most solid option but with no special angles I will pass.
GOLD CUP 11:20
The Gold Cup is not really a big betting race for me but looks a fantastic race this year . It’s hard to get away from Stradivarius who keeps performing and is a real warrior , Cross Counter is a high class horse who was very impressive winning in Australia/Dubai and I can see him coming there on the bridle but I think Stradivarius might just outbattle him late.
BRITTANIA 12:00
The Brittania is a 30 runner 3 year old handicap that is an absolute minefield with potential draw/pace biases but there are a couple that stand out on sectionals as being well handicapped. DAVYDENKO is the first one he has improved with each start and on the face of it didn’t achieve much last time but his last 3f of 33.2 was very swift especially considering he was eased. The second selection is MIGRATION who is trained by David Menuisier who is only a small yard but has brought along multiple handicappers bringing them up to a high level. Migration was held up off a slow pace last time and did very well to win , he sneaks in here off 90 and his hold up running style is really suited to the straight mile here.
KING GEORGE 12:35
The King George V handicap rounds off the card and like the Brittania it looks a bit of a minefield with multiple well handicapped types. High draws do very well in this and CONSTANTINOPLE is drawn 18, he only won by a narrow margin last time still looking like a baby and taking an age to get up off a slow pace. He looks sure to improve masses for experience and the step up in trip /stronger pace. Dangers include Sir Ron Priestly who should be well positioned and is a likeable type, Good Birthday who made a big move in a hot race before flattening out(worried about the trip and tactics for him).
