Best Bets For York Dante Festival – Wednesday 17th May 2017
Attention
moves to York
this week up on the Knavesmire for the Dante Festival.
The first
of the big races this week is at 3.30 the Group Two Duke Of York Clipper Logistics Stakes over the six. The
Tin Man heads a field of 13 having posted a
career best effort in the G.1 Champions Sprint at Ascot
(6f) last back end where he proved a length too strong for Growl with Brando
back in third. He does have a penalty to carry in this. Brando and Growl
were first and second in the Ayr Gold Cup prior to that and are naturally
feared. Last years winner Magical Memory is back again and Charlie Hills
and owners Kennet Valley Thoroughbreds have their fingers crossed conditions
will not deteriorate. "We're looking
forward to it. He's in great shape and has been working very well at home.
He'll come on for it, but we are worried about all the rain that's about,"
said Kennet Valley's racing manager, Sam Hoskins. "The ground got him beaten well and
truly at Haydock and if it got very soft it would be a major concern.” Suedois who was second last year is also back
and both will enter some peoples
calculations but they both had previous runs last season, a benefit neither has
this year. Three runners will carry the Godolphin blue, Baccarat, Comicas and Jungle Cat with the last named of the
most interest I feel. The five-year-old made
the frame in the G.3 Palace House at Newmarket
and G.1 King's Stand at Royal Ascot last term and has been in good form in Dubai during the Carnival
culminating in a decent fourth in the G.1 Al Quoz Sprint. Drawn in seven he is
ideally placed to go where the pace is, has gone well in soft before so the
rain won’t bother him and with ‘match fitness’ at 11-1 to my eyes is as good an each-way
punt as you will see all week.
John
Gosden's unbeaten filly Shutter Speed
puts her Classic credentials on the line in the Group Three Tattersalls
Musidora Stakes at 4.05. Shutter Speed beat stablemate Enable at Newbury
earlier in the season and Enable has subsequently boosted the form by winning
last week's Cheshire Oaks. Both fillies are owned by Khalid Abdullah and his
racing manager, Teddy Grimthorpe, intimated after the race on the Roodee that
Enable could heading to Epsom with Shutter Speed going to France due to stamina concerns. The
Dansili filly will tackle an extended 10 furlongs on the Knavesmire. "Shutter Speed won nicely at Newbury
and we rather feel, at this stage, around a mile and a quarter is her
trip," said Gosden earlier this week. "When she ran at Newbury, the plan was the Musidora. We said that
straight away and we're staying with the plan. She is a nice type of filly -
she could do no more than what she has done so far." She is
effectively un-backable at 2-5 but
if she is to go on to the Prix de Diane at Chantilly
(1m 2½f) she needs to be winning this; that said the rain will not be
welcomed by connections.
Out at Happy Valley
in Hong Kong Jetwings is out in the France Galop Cup, race 7 on the card
due off at 3.15. I put the chestnut gelding up back on 22nd February when
fourth after 14 months off the track and he went straight into the notebook. He
duly won next time out on 15th March – bang in the middle of the
Cheltenham Festival and I missed it! He didn’t run on 26th April due
to another little niggle. Drawn in two for this he should be able to sit in
just behind the early pace and come with a late surge as is his preferred style
of running. You can get 5-2 early.
Be lucky