While the five-year-old has not seen a racecourse since October, he won this race off a 107-day break last yearA competitive renewal of the John Of Gaunt Stakes is the highlight of the card at Haydock on Saturday and, with seven of the eight runners priced up between 100-30 and 14-1, it has the feel of a handicap rather than a Group Three.They will all go to post under 9st 2lb, however, which gives Kinross (3.30), who has a few pounds in hand on most of his rivals per the official ratings, an obvious chance to follow up his win in the same race 12 months ago. Continue reading...
The race for the Flat jockeys’ championship could keep the sport in the wider public consciousness into the autumnWith the football season all but over and the World Cup shunted off towards Christmas, the stars have aligned for racing to enjoy an unusually high public profile over the next few weeks. First, the Derby will take centre stage during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations and then attention will turn to Royal Ascot in mid-June, when the Queen is expected to have several fancied runners.And while it might seem to be tempting fate to suggest it, there are early signs too that when the pomp and ceremony of Ascot is done for another year, the race for the Flat jockeys’ championship could...
Saeed bin Suroor’s five-year-old has yet to win a Group One race but has what it takes to upset the unbeaten BaaeedBaaeed could set off as the shortest-priced favourite for the Lockinge Stakes since the mighty Frankel a decade ago at Newbury on Saturday, but this may not be as straightforward an assignment for William Haggas’s unbeaten colt as the betting might suggest.Baaeed was flawless in six starts last season and has a big year ahead of him at the highest level, but he is only 5lb clear of the field on Timeform’s ratings, has not seen a racecourse for 210 days and faces three significant rivals that have all had at least one run in 2022. Continue reading...
There are fears that racegoers are ‘out of the habit’ as Chester’s May Festival attendance dropped by a thirdConcerns about the extent to which racing fans have “got out of the habit” of going to the track during the pandemic can only increase following the news that Chester’s prestigious May Festival from Wednesday to Friday last week attracted a total attendance of 35,000 – a 35% drop from the 53,500 who were at the course over the same three days in 2019.Chester is – according to Guinness World Records, at least – the world’s “oldest racecourse still in operation” with a history dating back to 1539, and also one of Britain’s best-attended tracks, thanks in part to its memorable setting...
Fresh has the form to win one of the most competitive Flat handicaps of the season on SaturdayThe Classic trials at Lingfield on Saturday afternoon will offer a few more pieces of the puzzle before the Derby and Oaks at Epsom next month, but a more immediate priority for many punters will be an annual attempt to find the winner of the Victoria Cup at Ascot, one of the most competitive Flat handicaps of the season.A double-figure draw has been vital in the last decade, and Vafortino, who joined Kevin Philippart de Foy from Joseph O’Brien’s stable over the winter, is interesting from 27 after a promising return in March, while the 33-1 shot Royal Pleasure could outrun his price...