Best bets for the horse racing over the Platinum Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend
We are heading into a four-day weekend thanks to the Queen (gawd bless her) and the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. There is a plethora of horse racing to enjoy along, of course, with the Derby and the Oaks at Epson and the Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly to name but three races. The full details of my thoughts on, and the horses backed, for the Derby and the Oaks at Epsom this weekend can be found on the Classics page.
It would be impossible to put all the bets for the next four days up in advance for the simple reason that final declarations for the races aren’t confirmed yet so do keep checking back over the Bank Holiday weekend for updates. The bets that have been placed thus far or are planned can be found below.
Horse racing Thursday 2nd June
It’s a quiet start to the weekend and in fact I am having just the one bet, White Moonlight in the 1m2f EBF Fillies' Novice Stakes at Chelmsford City due off at 8.40. The filly was actually one of my Dirty Dozen in 2020 but hasn’t been seen since her two-year-old campaign of 2019! I find it interesting that Godolphin have kept her in training for three years without a run and at 9-5 I have to be on as I honestly thought she may turn out to be top-class back in 2020; if she has retained her ability and Saeed bin Suroor has her fit she will this.
Bet for the horse racing at Epsom on Friday
I fancy three on Friday at this time and will shop around for the best prices Friday morning; hopefully none will be silly short.
As well as the Oaks on Friday they also host the Group One 1m4f Dahlbury Coronation Cup at 3.10 on the Downs with the older generations running over the Oaks and Derby course. A couple of the big names expected won’t be on show but Charlie Appleby appears to have a decent ‘second string’ in the absence of Adayar with Manobo running in this. Unbeaten in his first five career starts he was turned over at odds-on in a G.2 out in Meydan over two-mile in March. The gelding drops back to 1m4f here which is perhaps a little surprising but I reckon Charlie knows what he is doing. The four-year-old can front-run or sit just off the pace and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Buick try and make this a bit of a stamina test picking-up the pace from the turn and up that rise in the final furlong. I am a fan of Hukum, won me a few quid, but I feel he is better over a little further than this and to be seen at his best over twelve-furlongs he needs a bit of ease in the ground to make it a proper test and the drying weather forecast is not in his favour. He can chase home the selection. Last year's winner Pyledriver is back again and has to be shortlisted but I have never been fully convinced by him and he is unlikely to be improving now. High Definition has never quite lived-up to the hype and has a habit of running well in defeat which is a quality that must frustrate the team at Ballydoyle something shocking.
Bets for the horse racing at Doncaster on Friday
I will be backing two from the Appleby yard at Doncaster on Friday and they both owe me. I tipped First Ruler on his debut in May when third at HQ over a mile. He was no match for the experience Mighty Ulysses there but it was a fair first run. He is by Dubawi out of Zhukova a Group winning middle distance mare, including the G.1 Man O War Stakes, during her career with Dermot Weld. There are a host of big names on the pedigree page such as Dubai Millennium, Nightime and Galileo to name but three and much must be hoped for from him. Cheekpieces have gone on and he can take the mile Weldricks Pharmacy Supporting WPCC Novice Stakes at 5.33.
The mile Weston Park Cancer Support On 01145533330 Handicap at 6.42 up at Doncaster on Friday would not have been the type of race Godolphin expected to run Dhahabi in when they bought him but that’s where he will be. I backed the colt as a two-year-old on all three of his starts back in 2020 including when finishing third in the mile G.3 Autumn Stakes; I then was on again for his return to action as a four-year-old at Newmarket last month when fifth. I have mentioned before he cost a cool 3.1 million Guineas and it is a pedigree to die for being by Frankel out of Fleche D'or with his grand sires being Galileo and Dubai Destination and grand mares Kind and Nuryana. Clearly, they like him at Moulton Paddocks to have kept him in training, Appleby has said the held him in high regard before the setbacks that lead to him missing his entire three-year-old campaign. They will be desperate to win a couple of races with him and hopefully he can start by winning this.
Bet for the horse racing at Goodwood on Friday
Kingsofthemidlands went into my notebook for the season as he is fancied to have a big year by many at the Kingsclere yard not least work rider Lois Day. Opening handicap mark of 77 may prove lenient if this well-bred type has improved over the winter. Snips were reached for over the break so he'll need to win races now and can start in the 8.12 1m4f
Heycar.co.uk Apprentice Handicap.