Best bets for the horse racing Thursday 23rd May at Goodwood & Sandown Park

There are a couple of great meetings on Thursday with Goodwood hosting day one of their May Festival in the afternoon featuring the Listed Height Of Fashion Stakes plus you have the Goodwood Food Show to enjoy. Then later Sandown Park hosts the Brigadier Gerard meeting in the evening with two Group 3's and two Listed races to look forward to.

They are a couple of lovely courses and with good weather forecast what else are you going to do? It’s forty-six odd miles between the two tracks, just about an hour by road with a clear run up the A3. If you left Goodwood after the sixth on their card (missing the apprentice handicap) you could be in Sandown for their first at 6.00; don’t spare the horses and all that!

So to the bets for the day and I am having five in total, all quite short-priced I fear so you might want to have a multiple bet. 

I fancy just the one at Goodwood in the 4.20 the 1m2f Listed Height Of Fashion Stakes. I put up Shamobolic when she was second at HQ on the 5th, she looked to be going well but then Maqsad simply breezed by. She was 4-lengths clear of the rest mind you and may simply have come off second best to a very good filly; the winner is as short as 7’s for the Oaks. She can get back to winning ways in this at 13-8.

There is not much form to go on in the Listed 5f Matchbook Betting Podcast National Stakes at 6.35. Full Authority caught my eye, and many others, when a six-length winner on his debut at Chester a couple of weeks ago, the form looks fair with the fourth having come out and won since. Made every yard with what looked to be plenty left under the bonnet and looks a solid selection at 4-5.

At 7.05 they face two-mile for the Group Three Matchbook VIP Henry II Stakes. Dee Ex Bee won the G.3 Sagaro Stakes at Ascot earlier in the month and is being talked of as a stayer to follow by many. He should be backed for this at 6-4 as he needs to show further progression from that run before a tilt at Stradivarius and the Gold Cup next month.

It’s the main even the Group Three Brigadier Gerard Stakes over 1m2f at 7.35.  Matterhorn has been banging in the wins over the winter and was second on Turf earlier this month at Chester in the G.2 Huxley Stakes. Regal Reality was third in the G.2 Bet365 Mile here in April and remains fairly lightly raced. He should appreciate the step-up in trip and if the usual progression you would expect from a 4yo in the care of Sir Michael Stoute materialises he can win this. I have the 15-8 Hills went early.

At 8.10 it’s the Listed 1m Matchbook Low Commission Exchange Heron Stakes. Sangarius has the extra 3lb to carry here but looked right out of the top-drawer winning a Newmarket maiden and a Doncaster Listed race on his first two starts as a 2yo. He was then fourth in the G.1 Dewhurst at the end of the season behind Too Darn Hot. Everything would suggest should be too good for this level and with the tongue tie fitted for the first time, he is expected to win this at a fair 4-1 before taking on bigger targets over the summer.

Be lucky