Best bets for the horse racing this weekend across the globe

There is plenty of action to enjoy this weekend here in the UK and abroad on Turf and the All-Weather and a nice card out in Kentucky tonight. 

Best bets for the horse racing at Kempton Park

They get underway on the All-Weather at 2.00 with the 6f Group Three Unibet Sirenia Stakes. The two standouts on ratings looking at the race earlier in the week were Symbol Of Honour and Symbol Of Strength and with the first not lining-up Symbol Of Strength appears to have every chance here now. A surprising third in the G.2 6f Gimcrack Stakes a couple of weeks ago, as his price of 80-1 confirms, but it was a good run and a similar effort here would surely see him there or thereabouts. He won a fairly average looking 5½f Maiden Stakes at Ayr prior to that and the booking of Tom Marquand to ride has to be seen as a positive. I have 13-8

The 1m4f Group Three Unibet September Stakes at 2.35 sees a nice mix of three-year-olds and older horses lining-up. Lions Pride won what has turned out a fair Listed race over track and trip last back end but hasn’t shown any great form this season so far and was last of five in the G.3 Glorious Stakes last time out at Goodwood. Winner of this race in 2021 Hamish is top-rated but has to give weight all around here and could be vulnerable to one of the three-year-olds in the shape of Kalpana getting a stone in weight as she does as the only three-year-old filly in the race. Her third in the 1m4f G.2 Ribblesdale Stakes at Ascot looks pretty good and she won a Listed race at Hamilton, Gods Window second, over 1m3f as she liked on her last start in July. She started her career earlier this year on the Tapeta at Wolverhampton and Newcastle so you would expect she’ll be fine on the Polytrack here and this could prove a nice bit of race placement by Andrew Balding. She’s the one most likely to have more to offer yet as well so I am on the filly at 6-4.

Best bets for the horse racing at Haydock Park

The 6f Group One Betfair Sprint Cup Stakes at 3.35 is the race of the day and quite a competitive affair it appears. Inisherin dropped to six furlongs following his sixth place in the 2,000 Guineas and his career as a sprinter started well. Victory in the G.2 Sandy Lane Stakes over track and trip was followed by victory in the G.1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot. His fifth-placed finish in the G.1 July Cup at HQ last time blotted his copybook especially considering he was receiving weight from his elders and Vandeek was able to reverse the Sandy Lane Stakes form finishing ahead of him at Newmarket. He has questions to answer for me with the form of his two wins not exactly red-hot either. Five of the six rivals he beat in the Sandy Lane failed to win on their next starts and both Lake Forest and Jasour, the two that chased him home in the Commonwealth Cup, have also lost since. Elite Status is worth a try at this level but his two efforts at the top-level as a two-year-old ended in pretty hefty defeats and I think he was perhaps lucky to hold on in the G.3 Hackwood Stakes last time. Shouldvebeenaring will run his race but is a frustrating sort that doesn’t win as often as he perhaps should and is still winless at the top-level. Swingalong has been knocking on the door at the top level this season. Second in the 6f Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes and 6f July Cup Stakes he ran a fair race to finish fourth in this last year but he has a habit of finding one too good. Spycatcher was on my shortlist as a possible each-way punt but they haven’t had anything like the rain we’ve had in London up on Merseyside and the ground has probably dried out too much for that one. Having been off the track since May you are taking a bit of a leap of faith in regard to the match fitness of Bucanero Fuerte but you can certainly argue he was the best juvenile out of all the three-year-olds lining-up; won the G.2 6f Railway Stakes, the G.1 6f Phoenix Stakes, with subsequent three-time G.1 winner Porta Fortuna four-lengths behind, and was a weakening third in the 7f G.1 Vincent O'Brien National Stakes. He took the G.3 Lacken Stakes at Naas on his three-year-old seasonal debut giving 3lb and a beating to Givemethebeatboys, but then missed the G.1 6f Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot due to signs of travel sickness. He is actually officially top-rated (120) and I can see him slipstreaming Art Power, who you’d think will blast off as normal, along with Elite Status, Inisherin and Swingalong who will all be prominent you’d think and may just cut each other's throats early. The fact connections are happy to travel over to Haydock is seen as a positive and I am on at 8-1.

It has been a quiet few days for the yard of Charlie Appleby and he has just the one runner on Saturday in the shape of Age Of Gold in the Listed mile Betfair Daily Tips On Betting.Betfair Ascendant Stakes at 4.07. A winner on debut over 6f at Yarmouth he was disappointing in the 7f Listed Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot where I tipped him, the yard appeared under a cloud at the time with several below par performances, he ran a lot better when beaten just a neck in a seventeen 7f Nursery at York in August. By Frankel out of Promised Money he is a full-brother to Group-placed 6f winner Fivethousandtoone, one I have tipped a few times, as well as a half-brother to three other winners. There’s a few in here that really could be anything but his experience will help in a big-field and he should be up to winning at this level with the step-up to eight-furlongs expected to bring out further improvement. William Buick is here to ride, the yard also have Symbol Of Honour running in the G.3 at Kempton as mentioned above so that is seen as a positive, and I think he is worth an investment at 5-4.

Best bets for the horse racing at Kentucky Downs

There are four Pattern class Turf races on the card at Kentucky and a few European horses have made the trip with Frankie Dettori picking up a number of rides on Ballydoyle raiders.

Greenfinch goes in the Grade Three 1m2½f Light & Wonder Ladies Marathon Stakes at 8.27 but I know next to nothing about the Killarney Listed winner and I am not getting involved with the race. Mountain Bear will be a name more familiar to US racing fans as he finished second to stablemate Unquestionable in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Santa Anita last year. He lines-up in the Grade Three mile Mint Millions Stakes at 9.41 and with that bit of experience of racing in America clearly has to be considered. Last year's winner Ancient Rome is back stateside for Charlie Hills and the five-year-old globetrotter looks capable of taking this prize again. His third in the 1m2f G.1 Arlington Million Stakes at Colonial Downs last month behind Nations Pride certainly showed his well-being and I would expect to see Jamie Spencer weaving a path through late. This is a strange track for America, described out there as "European style" due to its unusual layout, it actually looks a bit like a kidney, and features a number of small rises and dips as opposed to the more common flat-racing surface in the States. It should be between the two raiders and I think the Wetherdown House inmate can come out on top. 5-2 is available.

Chief Little Rock was last seen on what appeared to be pacemaker duty in the G.2 1m4f King Edward VII Stakes at the Royal meeting. He goes in the Grade Two 1m4f FanDuel TV Kentucky Turf Cup Stakes at 10.55. A comfortable winner of the G.3 1m2f Gallinule Stakes at the Curragh before Ascot he gets weight all round out in the States as the only three-year-old in the race and is worth a look. As mentioned Frankie Dettori gets the leg-up and though stall 11 isn’t great he’s front-running style should suit Stateside and he may be able to lead the locals a merry dance in this if Frankie gets the fractions right. I am on at 5-2. 

Two-time 6f G.1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes winner Khaadem goes in the Grade Two 6f Ainsworth Turf Sprint Stakes for Charlie Hills with Spencer in the saddle at 11.31. It will be fascinating to see how he goes; to the best of my knowledge the only time he raced round a bend was over 7f at Chester back in 2021! He has every chance IF he copes with the track. Cogburn has been racking up the wins and looks the best of the home team but to my eyes didn’t look that comfortable on the track when fifth in this last year and is possibly all about speed and better over five on a flat track. One Timer was second in this last year and had a nice prep over 6½f here last week finishing second beaten in the shadow of the post. His track figures read 1,2,2 which is surely significant on this quirky track and I think he can get his head in front in this. I have the 10's.

Be lucky