Best bets for the York Ebor Festival day two Thursday 23rd August

It’s Ladies Day on the Knavesmire Thursday and there are some very good fillies and mares in action.

They get underway on day two at 1.55 with the two-year-old fillies over six furlongs. Aidan O’Brien had six potential runners in the Group Two Sky Bet Lowther Stakes at the confirmation stage but has whittled that down to just one. Fairyland was last seen when I tipped her finishing third to Main Edition in the G.3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot. It should be remembered she won the race over on the far rail with the re-opposing Angel's Hideaway behind. The winner and second, La Pelosa, came down the middle and have of course both gone on and franked the form plus third in that group, fifth in the race, was subsequent G.1 Prix Morny winner Pretty Pollyanna. The yards runners looked better on Wednesday than they have recently and I have grabbed the 15-8. The re-opposing Angel's Hideaway looks to biggest danger off the back of her G.3 Princess Margaret Stakes win last month.

The Group One Yorkshire Oaks features the Irish and French Classic winners; the Oaks winner Forever Together was taken out at the declarations stage on Tuesday morning. After the Juddmonte Wednesday we have another stonker of a race to enjoy. With the weight for age and the class of the 3yo’s here I see no reason to look at the older mares with respect to them. Sea Of Class won the Irish Oaks and will be jolly having gotten the better of The Oaks winner Forever Together that day, the Aidan O’Brien filly just a neck behind at the Curragh. It can be argued that Sea Of Class had a bit left up her sleeve that day and is open to more improvement so you can see why she heads the market. Laurens steps up to 1m4f having won the French Oaks over 1m2½f last time; tipped on here at 7-1. P J McDonald is pretty excited about the ride watching an interview with him last week on ATR saying she is in great shape and as good as she was before winning the Prix de Diane. Earlier this week he was still in a bullish mood "I'm itching to ride her over a mile and a half because if she improves again for stepping up in trip she could be an absolute monster.” Karl Burke has aimed her at this since the win in France and he has been talking positively for weeks saying as far back as 23^rd July “I watched her canter this morning (Monday). She’s moving brilliant and she looks fantastic. She had a good, easy three weeks after the Prix de Diane. She put on 22 kilos during that time, but you wouldn’t know looking at her. She’s got such a big frame. She’s back in her full routine now and hopefully heading to the Yorkshire Oaks.” I am a fan and she certainly won’t go down without a fight as she showed yet again at Chantilly. She has never won further than a neck in her five victories confirming she isn’t afraid of a scrap. At the prices, I have taken the 4-1 about the Karl Burke filly to prove the best here, though probably not by much!

The Listed British EBF & Sir Henry Cecil Galtres Stakes over 1m4f at 4.15 looks to be at the mercy of Lah Ti Dar. The Gosden trained filly won a Newbury maiden and a Newmarket Listed race in the spring before an unsatisfactory blood test forced her to miss the Oaks for which she was the favourite. She also missed the G.2 Ribblesdale at Royal Ascot as connections thought she was not ready. If she is anywhere as good as she potentially looked back in May she will win this in a canter and is duly short but I snaffled Evens with Hills earlier.

At 4.50 they go over seven furlongs for the British Stallion Studs Ebf Fillies' Handicap. I put up Victory Wave when the chestnut filly won last time at Newmarket and she goes again in this. She is very much on the up and as I said last month concerning the HQ race if she is to tackle races such as the Group Two Park Stakes that she is entered in at Doncaster later in the year she needs to win races such as this. I think she will prove black type class eventually and have backed her here at 6-1. I can’t see why they have dropped the jolly Move Swiftly back to seven and I can’t see her enjoying it.

Be lucky