10.55am Pendleton happy with racecourse debut
You can read Chris Cook’s report from Newbury on Victoria Pendleton’s first ride in public last night at Newbury and also see the video recording of the race by clicking the link here.
10.50am Sandown set to water before Eclipse Stakes on Saturday
Tony Paley: Sandown appear increasingly likely to start watering at the track before the Coral-Eclipse Stakes on Saturday.
The going at the track has been given as good to firm, good in places on Friday morning before a seven-race card in the afternoon and the forecast suggests there is only a small chance of any rain falling ahead of the track’s flagship meeting of the Flat season this weekend.
Clerk of the course Andrew Cooper will wait until later this afternoon before making a final decision on whether to water, but admits he will likely do so with conditions drying out all the time.
“It’s a beautiful morning, as expected, and I think we’re going to have another beautiful morning and beautiful day tomorrow,” Cooper told At The Races.
“Both days are looking like 26 or 27 degree days, with bright sunshine. There is really only a 10 per cent chance of a shower overnight. The last couple of days have been pretty trying. We had an extremely hot day on Wednesday and then we had widespread showers forecast for Thursday morning, which didn’t materialise at all. In a sense that set us back a bit from where we thought we would be.
“The track is generally good to firm and on both the sprint and round courses there are bits and pieces of good. In terms of watering, if we’re still getting a forecast suggesting only a 10 per cent risk of showers at 5pm tonight, I’m sure we will crack on and water again.
“We’ve been putting on around three millimetres, which is what we reckon we lose on a day like today. We’ll take stock after racing and see what the forecast is. You can’t take these things for granted when the weather is in a volatile situation.”
Friday’s best bets, by Greg Wood
The forecast is promising for Sandown on Friday, so its watered ground will hopefully not suffer the same fate as the turf at Haydock Park, which turned from good-to-firm to soft in little more than an hour on Thursday afternoon. The going in Esher remains good-to-firm, good in places as it was overnight.
Slip Sliding Away (2.20) may be the pick of the card in the opening sprint handicap. Peter Hedger’s gelding is fully exposed at the age of nine, but is still more than capable off a mark of 84 and has appeared to be running into form in his last two starts. A good third over this trip at Goodwood was followed by another solid performance in a well-run race at Newmarket after a slow start. Useful claimer Tom Marquand takes over in the saddle today and if he can be a little sharper at the gates, Slip Sliding Away is a decent bet at around 5-1.
Singular Quest (5.05) is still a maiden after six starts but has been knocking on the door for most of his brief career and his close second behind Yorkidding over today’s course and distance reads well in the context of what may be a slightly weaker event.
London Citizen (4.30) is a fair price at around 10-1 given that he is lightly-raced for a five-year-old and still finding his way back from a long layoff. This is his third race after a 21-month break, and if he is still capable of form approaching his win at Beverley in August 2013, Chris Wall’s runner has a serious chance.
Elsewhere on a busy Friday, Victoire De Lyphar (3.35) is a live contender for the seven-furlong handicap at Doncaster if he can reproduce a recent course-and-distance second, while Agapanthus (4.55) and Dutch Descent (7.15) both to go post with obvious chances at Newton Abbot and Beverley respectively.
Guardian online racecards
We apologise for the fact that our online racecards disappeared from the site this week. Our contract with a data supplier has expired and we are considering our options regarding an alternative supplier. We hope you can bear with us during this time and will keep you informed through Talking Horses.
Tipping competition, day five
Our winners so far:
Monday
Gran Canaria Queen 7-2
Tears Of The Sun 9-2
Rasaman 15-2
Tuesday
Move In Time 4-9
Pennine Warrior 17-2
Noble Friend 11-4
Wednesday
Just Awake 9-2
Qaffaal 9-2
Purple Spectrum 11-2
Thursday
Galileo Gold 13-8
Iseemist 11-2
Whitman 8-1
And our leader is ...
BearRides +11.25
... despite a winnerless Thursday. Ormrod76 (+10.57) found Galileo Gold to hold his position in second. Dean055 (+10) and orso (+9.50) had Iseemist. Other good scores: JahLion +7.19, 72luca +6.19, sandiuk +4.94, titusisashambles +3.49, jakebuckfast +3.
For today’s thrilling climax, we’d like your tips, please, for these races: 3.35 Doncaster, 5.05 Sandown, 5.20 Doncaster.
This week’s prize is a pair of Premier enclosure tickets to July Cup day at Newmarket a week on Saturday, 11 July, day three of Newmarket’s Moet & Chandon July Festival. Apparently, there is also “ plenty of fun for all ages in the family enclosure including swingboats, inflatables, garden games and a face painter”, to say nothing of live music and dancing after the last. If you don’t win, you can buy tickets here.
As ever, our champion will be the tipster who returns the best profit to notional level stakes of £1 at starting price on our nominated races, of which there will be three each day up until Friday. Non-runners count as losers. If you have not joined in so far this week, you are welcome to do so today, but you will start on -12.
In the event of a tie at the end of the week, the winner will be the tipster who, from among those tied on the highest score, posted their tips earliest on the final day (TODAY).
For terms and conditions click here.
Good luck!
And post your tips or racing-related comments below.
