For the third year in a row, a single-figure field will go to post for the Oaks at Epsom on Friday afternoon when softish ground is expected to complicate the test for horses, riders and punters alike. Epsom somehow managed to escape a downpour during the day but, with a sudden heavy shower still possible until well into the night, the going for the Oaks and Saturday’s Derby is likely to be good-to-soft at best.
“You could see it coming our way on the radar from first thing,” Andrew Cooper, Epsom’s clerk of the course, said on Thursday afternoon, “but so far, it just hasn’t materialised in any quantity.
“There’s no sign of any rain on the radar now, though things can pop up pretty quickly and we won’t be out of the woods until midnight according to some forecasts. But it’s encouraging that we’ve escaped so far and now there’s probably as good a chance of us staying dry as there is of us getting some rain.”
Even on fast summer ground, Epsom is quite a test for a lightly-raced filly in the early stages of her three-year-old career. Genuinely soft ground for the Oaks would increase the challenge significantly in a contest where even Flattering, the outsider of the entire field, is no bigger than 28-1 with the major firms.
The betting is so open, at least in part, because Charlie Appleby’s Wild Illusion, the likely favourite, has not so much claimed her place at the top of the betting as inherited it. John Gosden’s Lah Ti Dar seemed sure to start favourite before being ruled out by injury a few days ago, and though Wild Illusion was a Group One winner as a juvenile and finished fourth in the 1,000 Guineas, she has no form at all beyond a mile.
She is also up against no fewer than five fillies trained by Aidan O’Brien, including Magic Wand, who, like last year’s winner Enable, took the Cheshire Oaks on her way to this race. Magic Wand finished nearly four lengths clear of Forever Together, who will join her stable companion in Friday’s field, but Forever Together would have been much closer with a clear run. As a result, it could be argued that O’Brien’s team may be longer on quantity than quality.
If so, the way could be open for Perfect Clarity (4.30), the Lingfield Oaks Trial winner, to maintain the only unbeaten record in the field. Like Appleby, Clive Cox, her trainer, has yet to win a Classic, but nine Group One wins show he knows what it takes at the highest level.
Like Enable, Perfect Clarity is a daughter of Nathaniel and her win at Lingfield made it clear that Friday’s trip should hold no fears, even on soft ground.
“We’ve always held her in high regard at home,” Cox said. “She’s only had two starts and she’s not as experienced as some of the others but she’s progressive and she’s got class.
“She only ran once at two and Nathaniel is not known for first-time-up juvenile winners but she won it well. She won a Listed race on just her second start and she’s got a live chance tomorrow. It will be a huge step forward for her, but we’re really hopeful that she will acquit herself well.”
The time of Perfect Clarity’s win at Lingfield was also that of a very talented filly and at around 8-1 she is a fair price to give Cox his Classic breakthrough.
Market Rasen 1.40 Settie Hill 2.15 Windspiel 2.50 Atalanta's Gold
3.25 Pixiepot 4.00 Notnow Seamus 4.45 As You Like 5.20 Pretty Reckless
Catterick Bridge 1.50 Li Kui 2.25 St Malo 3.00 Eeh Bah Gum
3.35 Elgin 4.10 Brockholes 4.55 Foxtrot Knight 5.30 Mitchum
6.05 Glyder
Epsom 2.00 True Belief 2.35 Donncha 3.10 Cracksman 3.45 Ajman King (nb) 4.30 Perfect Clarity (nap) 5.15 Kings Shield 5.50 Taurean Star
Bath 5.45 Toolatetodelegate 6.20 High Horse 6.50 Purple Jazz
7.25 Accomplice 7.55 Waseem Faris 8.30 Hit The Beat 9.00 King Crimson
Doncaster 6.00 God Willing 6.30 Cheer The Title 7.00 Chess Move 7.35 Spanish City 8.05 Come On Come On 8.40 Maid Up 9.10 Silver Character
Goodwood 6.10 Fintech 6.40 Main Edition 7.10 Impulsion 7.45 Magical Dreamer 8.15 Albizzia 8.50 Ganayem
