Saturday’s UK racing tips come your way from Sandown, Haydock, Beverley, and Leicester on 8 July 2023.
SANDOWN
Race 2 – OUZO 15/2
OUZO looks sure to go well in the Coral Challenge. With Richard Hannon in his younger days, he has been placed in a host of big handicaps for Jamie Osborne, including finishing third in this race 12 months ago.
Having again run respectably on several occasion in Dubai, he was given a break before returning at Royal Ascot in the Hunt Cup, when a creditable sixth.
On the exact same mark as last season, he is bound to be in the mix.
Race 4 – PADDINGTON 1/1
PADDINGTON can become the third three-year-old in a row to win the Coral Eclipse at Sandown.
St Mark’s Basilica and Vadeni have proven in the last two renewals how valuable the weight-for-age allowance is for the Classic generation in this contest and crucially this year PADDINGTON gets 7lb from the filly EMILY UPJOHN, his main market rival.
It would be a bit of a stretch to think either DUBAI HONOUR or WEST WIND BLOWS were capable of giving 10lb to the Irish Guineas winner, albeit the former appears to have taken his form to a new level abroad.
Incredibly, PADDINGTON began this season in a handicap, which he comfortably won before taking a Listed race in similar fashion.
It was then the Irish Guineas, where once the penny dropped he was well on top, and he then lowered the colours of Andrew Balding’s Newmarket Guineas winner Chaldean in no uncertain terms at Royal Ascot.
Like Aidan O’Brien’s last winner of this race, St Mark’s Basilica, he is by Siyouni so the step up to 10 furlongs should be no problem at all and he is likely to have too much pace for EMILY UPJOHN.
HAYDOCK
Race 2 – STRUTH 10/1
STRUTH could outrun his odds in the bet365 Handicap at Haydock.
The way the race panned out in the King George V Handicap at Royal Ascot he had very little chance.
A front-runner, he was drawn ride and got lit up when he was ridden to take a prominent position.
By the time the field turned for home he had run his race and was eased. Prior to that he had pushed the Queen’s Vase runner-up Saint George close at Doncaster which reads well in the context of this race.
Race 3 – MIMIKYU 5/4
MIMIKYU can return to winning ways in the bet365 Lancashire Oaks.
John and Thady Gosden’s filly has only had the one outing this year, when just worried out of it close home at York in the Bronte Cup.
She travelled like much the best horse in that race, though, and it was just lack of a recent run that told in the end.
She really came to herself this time last year and despite being a Group Two winner, she has no penalty.
Race 4 – MAKSUD 13/2
Hughie Morrison’s MAKSUD briefly threatened to take a hand in the finish in the Duke of Edinburgh at Royal Ascot but weakened out of contention.
That means he is able to run in the bet365 Old Newton Cup off 2lb lower. There are all manner of dangers as you would expect in a race worth £150,000, but Maksud is well used to these big fields and is beginning to look well handicapped.
BEVERLEY
Race 1 – EXPERT CHOICE 33/20
Richard Fahey’s EXPERT CHOICE ran green on his debut and should open his account at the second time of asking in the EBF Restricted Novice Stakes at Beverley.
LEICESTER
Race 4 – AL MUZN 28/10
Roger Varian’s AL MUZN absolutely bolted up last tie out and can handle a big rise in the weights in the Toons Furnishers Handicap at Leicester, while at Carlisle Ed Bethell’s Rich Glory can defy a penalty in the Diff-Ability ‘Ability Over Disability’ EBF Restricted Novice Stakes.
