Charlie Hills’s grey beat Too Darn Hot fair and square in the Irish Guineas and can confirm the form of that three-length success in the St James’s Palace StakesThe big question for punters on day one at this Royal Ascot is: how many excuses do you make for a horse who was brilliant last year but has yet to show it this season? Too Darn Hot is the relevant animal and he probably still has bundles of talent, despite being winless since autumn.But Phoenix Of Spain (4.20) beat him fair and square in the Irish Guineas and I hope to see Charlie Hills’s grey confirm the form of that three-length success in the St James’s Palace Stakes. Reportedly, he had...
Racing’s ruling body refuses to publish the test reading when a jockey fails a breath test, allowing speculation to flourishI found it frustrating, writing about Oisin Murphy’s failed breath test on Sunday, that I was unable to report the amount of alcohol recorded by his test. To me, this would seem essential context which in most cases would show that the jockey concerned had very little alcohol in his system at the time. Related: Oisin Murphy prevented from riding at Salisbury after failing a breath test Carlisle2.00 Space Ace 2.30 Diamond Shower 3.00 Dream House (nb) 3.30 Chinese Spirit 4.00 Praxidice 4.30 Rosin Box 5.00 Matewan 5.30 Brutalab Continue reading...
The selection was deeply impressive on soft ground in the Woodcote Stakes and is evidently on a very fair markA fiendishly competitive three-year-old sprint handicap is the main betting race on this pre-Ascot Saturday and any punter who comes up with the correct answer to the Pavers Foundation Catherine Memorial at York can count themselves thoroughly in form for the big week ahead. Cosmic Law (3.35) is the suggestion at an each-way price of 16-1.From the Richard Fahey yard that took this three years ago with Mr Lupton, Cosmic Law ran what looked like a career best on his reappearance at Chester last month, giving a stone to the winner and being beaten half a length. His form tailed off...
Wet weather forces cancellation of two Friday cards and Worcester on Saturday with Leicester set to followIt comes to something when we’re getting wet-weather abandonments in the middle of June but that’s where we are after a week in which it felt like most of the country had basically fallen into the sea. Friday’s cards at Newton Abbot and Chepstow have both been called off, while Saturday’s meeting at Worcester has also been lost.There must also be some doubt about Leicester’s card on Saturday too, as the going description is “heavy, waterlogged in places”. This, to me, has an unpromising sound. An inspection is planned for 2pm on Friday afternoon. Related: Talking Horses: Seb Sanders and the case for a...
Thursday’s meetings at Nottingham and Yarmouth have got the all-clear but Uttoxeter and Haydock were both waterlogged It is a very odd week in June when only two washouts on a day’s programme feels like a decent result, but it looked like it could be four on Wednesday evening and in the end, only Haydock and Uttoxeter have succumbed following inspections.Haydock, which raced on Wednesday, was doomed after a further 10mm of rain overnight, while Uttoxeter reported via Twitter that the track has received 100mm of rain in the last 10 days and that there are large areas of standing water on the course.**Racing Abandoned** 100mm of rain in the last 6 days. Large areas of standing water and forecast...