Limato was the big mover in the July Cup market on Monday as punters and bookmakers reacted to positive comments from his Wantage trainer, Henry Candy, who will also field the current favourite, Twilight Son, in Saturday’s big sprint. Candy told a media event at his yard near Lambourn that the pair had a similar chance and he could imagine either coming out on top.
“It would not surprise me if [Limato] did beat him as the British Horseracing Authority rate him 2lb higher than Twilight Son, which is fair enough,” Candy said. “Twilight Son is a stroppy brute on a racecourse. Limato wears his heart on his sleeve and is a tough little fighter.”
Twilight Son, a dual Group One winner, had been a best price of 9-2 on Monday morning, with the relatively unproven Limato more than double that at 10-1. Their odds are now much closer, Twilight Son having been edged out to 5-1 while Limato has crashed into 13-2.
Candy said Twilight Son had been working well since his narrow victory in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot last month, adding that his runners had been in “pretty lousy” form when the four-year-old was only fifth on his reappearance in May. “I do think he has progressed from Ascot. Going on what Ryan Moore has said, he will improve with that run.
“The attitude and his work have been very good. Obviously it is a short time between two Group Ones so we have not done a lot of work. I think it will be a stronger race than the Ascot race. He will need to be a little bit better than at Ascot but I am hopeful that he will be.
“Limato is a very free worker. He is a nightmare but, when he is in a good mood, he is a sweet horse and a great character. He has never been easy to saddle and the lad that rides him every day is brilliant with him, he knows what to do and when to leave him alone.”
Nineteen horses remain in the July Cup after the latest entry stage, at which Profitable, winner of Ascot’s King’s Stand Stakes when last seen, was supplemented into the race by his trainer, Clive Cox. Candy raised an eyebrow at that news, on the grounds that the horse has yet to win over this distance of six furlongs.
“If Profitable gets the trip, he is a very serious animal,” Candy said. “I am surprised they have elected to try him at six, as he looks a complete five-furlong horse. Clive Cox is a long way from being an idiot, though, and he is having a fantastic season.
“If I was a bookmaker, I would make Quiet Reflection favourite. She has got a hell of a change of gear.”
Bookmakers offer 8-1 about Quiet Reflection, the third potential runner in this race to have been successful at Royal Ascot last month, when she won the Commonwealth Cup.
Newmarket’s July meeting, which starts on Thursday, might be the first major festival of this Flat season to take place on a fast surface. The going is currently good while the forecast for the next few days is warm and mostly dry.
That was welcomed as good news by connections of Magical Memory, beaten half a length by Twilight Son when fourth at Ascot. “We’re really pleased to see the forecast,” said Sam Hoskins, racing manager to the four-year-old’s owners.
“It looks set fair. Frankie [Dettori] felt the ground was a bit sticky at Ascot and in hindsight we had quite a lot to do.
“He made up quite a lot of ground very quickly and showed all his ability. Saturday should be a quick pace and the ground should be fine. Hopefully he should go there with a really good chance.”
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