Best bets for the horseracing this weekend

It has a feel of out with the old and in with the new this weekend with the Flat season winding down and the Jumps season beginning to kick into gear. Sadly the weather has caused meetings to be abandoned again with Newbury calling off both days of their final Flat meeting of the season. Doncaster had to survive an inspection this morning after their card on Friday was also abandoned, thankfully they race and it should remain fairly dry Saturday. It is definitely a day to play safe as far as I am concerned as the going could play havoc with form and there aint a lot of form to go on anyway over the sticks just yet!

Best bets for the horse racing at Doncaster

The opener, the 7f Doncaster Groundworks And Reinforcements Nursery Handicap at 1.35, looks a fair race. Palmar Bay heads the market stepping up in trip again. Second on debut over the minimum at Windsor he got off the mark at Salisbury over five again before winning over six-furlongs back at the Wiltshire track earlier this month. The trip might find him out on the going here. Ice Max won a Nursery at Catterick hard held last time having been tried at Listed class in the Flying Scotsman Stakes here over track and trip before that. Up 11lb for his Catterick win last time things won’t be so easy here. I tipped Edge Of Blue when he won on debut at Yarmouth in September and he followed that up by winning Wolverhampton earlier this month so arrives two from two. As I mentioned before a €200,000 yearling purchase the snips were reached for before he even ran so it’s all about winning races for this one now. A son of top sprinter Blue Point he is out of the unraced Galileo mare Davantage so a half-brother to four winners and has to be considered. A mark of 87 may be lenient and the style in which he has won his two starts to date suggest he won’t mind a test, which in these conditions this race will be. I am on at 9-4 as I expect the Godolphin owned colt to outstay the jolly. 

The mile Group One Kameko Futurity Trophy Stakes is of course the big race of the day at 2.10. With no Ryan Moore to rely on Aidan O’Brien will give the leg-up to James Doyle on the unbeaten Diego Velazquez. The colt won his maiden at the Curragh over seven before stepping-up to a mile at Leopardstown to win the G.2 Champions Juvenile Stakes last time. That form has had a couple of boosts since but this is by far the toughest test yet and we're on ground that is an unknown for him. Dancing Gemini has been progressing nicely and won the Listed 7f Flying Scotsman Stakes here on soft last month. This is a bg step-up but he is going in the right direction. Gods Window is the one that could be anything. Won his maiden here over track and trip on soft last month but nothing much has come out of that race so the form can be questioned. It is interesting that team Gosden are prepared to pitch him in here on just his second start but I can’t be backing the colt. Ancient Wisdom has three wins and a third to his name, that defeat coming in the Listed Pat Eddery Stakes at Ascot over seven, the form of which is red hot with the first six home that day winning since including two Group Ones! Stepped up to a mile after that run he won the G.3 Autumn Stakes by 3¾ from Chief Little Rock and arrives top rated off the back of that win; he stayed every yard and his action gives you hope that the underhoof conditions will suit. His trainer Charlie Appleby said this week “We have been very pleased with how Ancient Wisdom came out of the Autumn Stakes. It wasn’t an immediate decision afterwards to come here but we thought that we would keep an eye on his wellbeing with a view to potentially heading to Doncaster.We are happy with him going into this and he showed at Newmarket that a mile on testing conditions suited him, so he ticks a few boxes in a race where stamina is going to play a part. It’s a competitive field and we are looking forward to seeing how he gets on.” I am on at 11-8 and hopefully it's a quick double for the team from Moulton Paddocks. 

Ballymount Boy was tried at the top-level last time in the G.1 7f Qatar Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere and steps down in trip and significantly in class in the 6f Listed William Hill Prospect Stakes and surely he will have too much for this line-up. Second in the G.2 6f Vintage Stakes on soft back in August behind Vandeek and that looks strong form now with the winner subsequently taking the G.1 Prix Morny and G.1 Middle Park Stakes. I honestly thought this one may be odds-on and have happily taken 6-4 this morning. 

Be lucky