Neil Morrice brings us all of his best bets and tips for Saturday’s racing coming your way from the Longchamp, Ascot, Newmarket and Redcar.
LONGCHAMP
Race 1: Qatar Prix Chaudenay (Group 2)
No5 – MAX VEGA
Trainer: Ralph Beckett – Jockey: Frankie Dettori
The locals are strongly represented, but one that could improve past them is MAX VEGA. The Lope De Vega colt is lightly-raced this year, and after finishing in rear in the Investec Derby gave Hukum a good run for his money in the Group 3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury. He’s out of a mare by Dalakhani and is going to revel in the testing conditions.
Race 4: Qatar Prix de Royallieu (Group 1)
No8 – PISTA (Nap)
Trainer: Joseph O’Brien – Jockey: Pierre-Charles Boudot
Twelve distaffers are set to contest the first day highlight of Arc weekend, and even though she’s the least experienced in the field, PISTA can show herself to be the best. The daughter of American Pharoah has put together an impressive hat-trick of successes, graduating from a Listed race at Leopardstown to the Group 2 Park Hill Stakes at Doncaster in which she displayed a telling turn of foot at the business end. She needs to show she can handle easy conditions, but with a Galileo mare as her dam, she has every chance of doing so.
Race 7: Qatar Prix du Cadran (Group 1)
No9 – PRINCESS ZOE
Trainer: A Mullins – Jockey: J Sheridan
Respect is afforded to the 2018 winner of this and recent Prix Kergorlay victor Call The Wind, but at a short price he might be worth taking on with PRINCESS ZOE. The grey filly has an upwardly mobile look to her after two impressive successes in Galway handicaps, and although taking a big jump up the class ladder, she’s capable of completing a nap hand of victories.
ASCOT
Race 3: tote.co.uk Cumberland Lodge Stakes (Group 3)
No5 – LOGICIAN
Trainer: John Gosden – Jockey: Rab Havlin
Last year’s St Leger winner LOGICIAN stands out in a race carded for him in favour of a crack at the Arc. The unbeaten grey had little more than an exercise gallop to take out a two-runner conditions race on his belated return to the track at Doncaster and should produce a similarly dominating display to follow-up on the way to a Group 1 assignment before the end of the season.
Race 4: No8 – BLUE MIST (Nap)
Trainer: Roger Charlton – Jockey: Pat Dobbs
The lightly-raced BLUE MIST visits Ascot for the fourth time in as many starts. He’s experienced a mixed bag of fortune, racing over six furlongs and this trip of seven. A most unlucky loser over the sprint distance back in June, he impressively landed a valuable seven furlongs handicap at the end of July but after travelling up strongly on his latest start at the start of the month, went out like a light. I think he’s a lot better than that, and can bounce back on ground that should be perfect for him.
Race 5: John Guest Racing Bengough Stakes (Group 3)
No7 – THE TIN MAN
Trainer: James Fanshawe – Jockey: Danny Tudhope
THE TIN MAN can notch a first win in two years now back to a level at which he’s shown ability in recent starts. Named after jockey Fred Archer, the eight-year-old has proved a fine servant to connections and landed the Golden Jubilee here in 2017. Though not as good, his half-length second to Tabdeed in a Group 3 at Newbury reads well in the context of this task, and he was far from disgraced when just out of the money in the Group 1 Haydock Sprint Cup on latest start.
NEWMARKET
Race 2: No1 – THE MIGHTY GURKHA
Trainer: Archie Watson – Jockey: Hollie Doyle
This valuable Sales race looks destined for THE MIGHTY GURKHA, who brings Group form into the contest after inching home on the Polytrack at Kempton. He had earlier run Method to two and a quarter lengths in a Listed race at Newbury and after only five starts are more than capable of making further progression, although in this colossal field he needs to avoid trouble.
Race 3: No10 – KALEIDOSCOPIC (Nap)
Trainer: Mick Channon – Jockey: Hollie Doyle
Sandown scorer KALEIDOSCOPIC makes abundant appeal in this fillies’ handicap. Always well regarded, it took her a couple of outings for the penny to drop, but last time she overcame a wide draw and produced a smart turn of foot to put the race to bed. She’s been in good heart in her work and is at the right end of the weights to again cash in.
Race 4: Kingdom Of Bahrain Sun Chariot Stakes (Group 1)
No8 – VERACIOUS
Trainer: Sir Michael Stoute – Jockey: Oisin Murphy
Testing conditions in this ultra-competitive Group 1 will not inconvenience VERACIOUS, who with just one winning outing under her belt this year is fresh and well for this big class jump. It was in Listed company that she grittily delivered at Haydock last month, but her trainer has had this marquee contest carded for the daughter of Frankel since she came back, a point that holds weight considering his previous wins with Peeress and Integral who ran in the same colours.
REDCAR
Race 1: No14 – CANDACE
Trainer: Richard Hannon – Jockey: Dane O’Neill
Although Baradar has easily the best form on offer the fact that Hannon sends CANDACE speaks volumes for the chance of this Dutch Art debutant who has shown plenty of ability on the gallops at Everleigh.
Race 5: No19 – SPRIGHT (Nap)
Trainer: Karl Burke – Jockey: Clifford Lee
Being drawn in the centre of the field gives SPRIGHT’s pilot options of where to go, and the hat-trick seeking filly has to be taken seriously in the track’s biggest race of the year. The daughter of Charm Spirit delivered at York and Chester before taking out a 15-runner nursery at Doncaster and has been in very good form at home since that taking success.
