 Expert - Bill Esdaile | |
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| Bill Esdaile has worked in racing journalism in the United Kingdom for over 20 years. He began his working career at the Sporting Life back in 1995, and has since worked for the Racing Post, The Sportsman, and is currently racing editor of London-based City AM. He is a keen form student, and will bring a unique insight into the major European races. | |
Expert Column for Yorkshire Oaks Day (S2) (Bill Esdaile)
S2-1 Lowther Stakes
Karl Burke is hoping that DRAMATISED can make the most of her home advantage to remain unbeaten in three starts. The daughter of SHOWCASING was very impressive on her debut in Newmarket in April when she won a 1,000m maiden by four lengths from MALRESCIA who has since won two races. Following that first run, DRAMATISED was the hot favourite in the G2 Queen Mary Stakes over 1,000m at Royal Ascot where she didn’t disappoint to finish strongly up the straight. She is stepped up for the first time to 1,200m but judging by her past performance that should be no problem.
MAWJ impressed many with her debut performance at Newmarket over 1,200m. She bolted up by over four lengths there and ran another very good race when second in the 1,200m G3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot. Saeed bin Suroor’s daughter of EXCEED AND EXCEL then backed that up with a career best to win the G2 Duchess Of Cambridge Stakes over 1,200m and she looks a worth adversary to DRAMATISED.
George Boughey also has a good hand with fillies, as he saddled this year’s 1000 Guineas winner CACHET. At York, he is hoping that KINTA, unbeaten in two starts on the polytrack, can notch up her first win on turf. She’s only been seen once on that surface – a very good second to LEZOO in the G3 Princess Margaret Stakes at Ascot over 1,200m, and with her trainer’s horses running so well this season, she’s certaintly not without a chance.
It has been a bit quiet around Kevin Ryan but there is no doubt that he is more than capable of springing a surprise, especially with a 2YO. This is obviously a big step up in class for QUEEN ME, who only made her winning debut in an admittedly average 1,200m maiden at Haydock last month, but the DUBAWI daughter should have plenty more to give. She might not have beaten much at Haydock, but she put the race to bed nicely and will certainly come on for the run here. Connections must think plenty of her to pitch her into this company on just her second start and she’s an interesting contender.
MATILDA PICOTTE has held her form well in four runs in Ireland including finishing close-up behind two talented Ballydoyle fillies in MEDITATE and STATUETTE. Those performances came at G3 and G2 level when she finished fourth and third respectively beaten less than two lengths on both occasions. She then finished second to VOCE DEL PALIO in the valuable Ballyhane Stakes over 1,186m trip a few weeks ago, and a reproduction of that should see her in the mix here.
SELECTIONS: 1. DRAMATISED, 2. MAWJ, 6. KINTA, 10. MATILDA PICOTTE & 12. QUEEN ME
S2-2 2yo Allowance
Trainer Richard Hannon has a very good record in this 1,200m contest having won four of the last six runnings. His main hope is SHOULDVEBEENARING who comes into this after a taking display last time at Ripon over 1,200m. The son of HAVANA GREY picked up in eye-catching fashion on his first try over the distance and seemed to win with plenty in hand. There is surely more to come and with the form being boosted on several occasions since too, he should go well again here.
REDEMPTION TIME looks to be swimming in much calmer waters here after running in some hot races previously. He was last seen finishing ninth in the G2 Norfolk Stakes over 1,000m at Royal Ascot where although comfortably beaten, was staying on the end suggesting this step up to 1,200m would suit. It’s however the form of his third over that same course and distance back in May which really brings him into this. He finished a close third to the very well-regarded pair of NOBLE STYLE and WALBANK, while he was ahead of ROYAL SCOTSMAN – a commanding winner of the G2 Richmond Stakes over 1,200m. That’s very strong form and a repeat would be good enough to win this.
Richard Fahey’s runner at York should always be respected and he saddles DARE TO HOPE. The son of CAMACHO beat a subsequent Listed win on debut and has largely kept his form since. He finished down the field in the Weatherbys Super Sprint at Newbury over 1,031m but bounced back with a good run over this course and distance last time. Fahey’s colt was doing his best work at the finish there, so if the rain does arrive his stamina should come to the fore.
METAHORSE comes into this on a hat-trick. He’s won his last two impressively at Chester over 1,215m and Thirsk over 1,400m and is clearly full of confidence. Michael Bell’s colt looks versatile when it comes to trip and while he’ll need to improve again, there’s plenty to suggest he will.
REVISION is one of the most unexposed runners in the line-up, and with such untapped potential, he’s worthy of including. He ran a cracker on debut over 1,200m – form of which has been boosted since – and he got the job done at the second time of asking at Newcastle last time over 1,200m. The front two pulled a long way clear of the remainder and REVISION has plenty of scope for further improvement.
SELECTIONS: 3. REDEMPTION TIME, 4. DARE TO HOPE, 9. METAHORSE, 14. SHOULDVEBEENARING & 13. REVISION
1ST DOUBLE TRIO SELECTIONS (36 unit bets):
S2-2:
Banker – 3. REDEMPTION TIME
Selections – 4. DARE TO HOPE, 9. METAHORSE, 14. SHOULDVEBEENARING & 13. REVISION
S2-3:
Banker – 7. CRUYFF TURN
Selections – 17. BLUE FOR YOU, 14. ISLA KAI, 11. ORBAAN & 5. RHOSCOLYN
S2-3 3yo+ Handicap
Course form is always an advantage at York and that gives CRUYFF TURN a big chance in this 1,575m handicap. He won this race 12 months ago and he was also successful at this track over 1,575m in May when holding off BRUNCH, LION TOWER and WHAT'S THE STORY. His two runs since haven’t been anywhere near as good but he was far from disgraced when sixth in the Bunbury Cup last month, especially as the 1,400m distance was shorter than ideal. The demands of these big-field handicaps suit him well and the return to his favourite course gives him solid claims.
Yorkshire-based trainer David O’Meara has a strong hand. His BLUE FOR YOU was unlucky when runner-up behind stablemate ORBAAN in a 1,600m event at Goodwood. Despite racing from the best draw, he found all sorts of trouble in the straight and only got clear when the winner had flown. He had also finished second over this course and distance in July when just unable to peg back EILEAN DUBH. When everything drops right, he will win a race like this.
ISLA KAI was fourth behind EILEAN DUBH in that York contest over 1,575m. He pulled a little too hard for his own good when making the running and he was again keen in the early stages when fifth over 1,594m at Ascot’s Shergar Cup meeting. His sixth in the Royal Hunt Cup over 1,600m at Royal Ascot shows he is capable of running well in a race of this nature. If he settles better than he has on his last two starts, he could easily be involved in the finish as York promises to suit him better than Ascot.
ORBAAN had become incredibly frustrating before winning his first race for more than two years in a 1,600m event at Goodwood last month. He followed up, despite dropping to 1,400m at Ascot in the Shergar Cup meeting, and he will attempt to complete a hat-trick of wins while in the form of his life.
RHOSCOLYN – also trained by David O’Meara – has claims. He finished strongly when third in the Buckingham Palace Stakes over 1,400m at Royal Ascot and it was a fine effort to finish seventh behind stablemate ORBAAN at Goodwood last month, considering he had a terrible wide draw.
SELECTIONS: 7. CRUYFF TURN, 17. BLUE FOR YOU, 14. ISLA KAI, 11. ORBAAN & 5. RHOSCOLYN
S2-4 Yorkshire Oaks
You have to go back to September 2020 to find the last time the Sir Mark Prescott-trained ALPINISTA tasted defeat and the 5YO mare will attempt to make it seven wins from this G1 2,371m Yorkshire Oaks. She has been brilliantly handled by her master trainer racking up four consecutive G1 successes all across Europe over the space of the last 12 months since winning the G2 2,359m Lancashire Oaks at Haydock last July. That journey began in the G1 Grosser Preis von Berlin over 2,400m at Hoppegarten last August where she left subsequent Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe hero TORQUATOR TASSO toiling back in second. She returned to Germany to land the G1 2,400m Preis von Europa at Cologne the following month before landing a third top flight success in Munich over 2,400m six weeks later. However, she took her form to an even higher level when reappearing this campaign in the G1 2,400m Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud where she had the likes of HURRICANE LANE, BARATTI and MARE AUSTRALIS all behind. She has been freshened up again for this contest in which she finished runner-up to LOVE a couple of years ago and comes here in the form of her life. Any rain certainly wouldn’t be a negative as she has won on all ground ranging from soft to firm.
She looks the one to beat with her biggest danger potentially another filly in LA PETITE COCO. The daughter of RULER OF THE WORLD ended last season with a G2 2,000m victory in the Blandford Stakes where she beat LOVE by a short head. She proved that was no fluke when making a successful reappearance in the G1 Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh back in June landing her trainer Paddy Twomey his first G1 prize in the process. The extra distance will be no problems as she has won over 2,400m trip in the past and any rain will be a bonus too.
3YOs have a tremendous record in the race as they get plenty of weight from their elders. Only ENABLE has been able to win for the older generation in the last eight years, so the challenge from the likes of MAGICAL LAGOON, TUESDAY and RACLETTE shouldn’t be dismissed lightly.
MAGICAL LAGOON arrives in the best form having won the G1 2,400m Irish Oaks at the Curragh last month. That followed G2 2,392m Ribblesdale Stakes success at Royal Ascot and she seems to be improving with age.
TUESDAY can be forgiven her no show against the colts in the G1 2,400m Irish Derby last time and is better judged on her G1 2,405m Oaks success on her previous start. She is likely to be seen in a much better light here against her own sex.
Finally, French trainer Andre Fabre can never be ignored when he sends one to England and he is represented here by RACLETTE. She is another on the upgrade as she steps up in trip and won a G2 over 2,400m at ParisLongchamp last month.
SELECTIONS: 1. ALPINISTA, 2. LA PETITE COCO, 4. MAGICAL LAGOON & 7. TUESDAY
S2-5 Galtres Stakes
In recent years this 2,371 Listed Galtres Stakes has been a steppingstone for some quality fillies to go and compete at the highest level, most notably SEARCH FOR A SONG and LAH TI DAR in the last four years. If any of these runners look like they could progress to those ranks, it’s GOLDEN LYRA. She will be bidding to give William Haggas his third win in the race and on the evidence so far, that could be a successful bid. After a taking debut performance last year in a 1,400m novice event she wasn’t seen again until June where she reappeared in Listed company in the Abingdon Stakes over 2,000m. Although she was just beaten after showing signs of inexperience, she lost nothing in defeat as the victor that day is clearly smart and came into the race having finished second to G1 Prix de Diane and G1 Nassau Stakes winner, NASHWA.
MIMIKYU seems to have found her ideal trip and has progressed well over her three starts this year, which culminated in a destructive win in a Newmarket (July Course) handicap over 2,400m back in June. This filly clearly has plenty of ability and is still a work in progress. Her penultimate start saw her come up against and get the better of TIME LOCK. They battled it out in a novice event at Haydock over 2,327m where the daughter of FRANKEL looked to run out of steam on the slower surface, which is something to consider if the expected weather in York brings a deluge.
HASKOY is represented by Juddmonte and has only been seen on the racecourse once. Her sole outing came in a seven-length success at Wolverhampton over 2,446m where she looked potentially very smart. She’s likely to progress from that run and could be an interesting contender.
Rounding out the selections is VOODOO QUEEN. She’s been seen twice this season and has recorded two victories from those outings which both over 2,000m. The Roger Varian-trained filly will be stepping up in distance in this and while there’s nothing in her breeding to suggest this will be her optimum trip, she hasn’t been stopping at the line in her races so far. However, she might prefer a sounder surface and the step up in trip could be too much of a challenge if the ground is on the slow side.
SELECTIONS: 4. GOLDEN LYRA, 8. MIMIKYU, 5. HASKOY, 11. TIME LOCK & 12. VOODOO QUEEN
2ND DOUBLE TRIO SELECTIONS (36 unit bets):
S2-5:
Banker – 4. GOLDEN LYRA
Selections – 8. MIMIKYU, 5. HASKOY, 11. TIME LOCK & 12. VOODOO QUEEN
S2-6:
Banker – 2. ONE NATION
Selections – 5. KYEEMA, 7. X J RASCAL, 3. SCHOLARSHIP & 1. COURAGEOUS KNIGHT
TREBLE SELECTIONS (27 unit bets):
S2-5: Multiple – 4. GOLDEN LYRA, 8. MIMIKYU & 5. HASKOY
S2-6: Multiple – 2. ONE NATION, 5. KYEEMA & 7. X J RASCAL
S2-7: Multiple – 4. MOBADRA, 8. EIDIKOS & 1. BELLOSA
S2-6 2yo Handicap
Godolphin star ONE NATION looks to have an excellent chance of completing a hat-trick of wins in this 1,400m nursery handicap. He is bred to smart as a son of top stallion DUBAWI and a nephew of dual G1 winning-mare WUHEIDA. The form of his 1,400m Sandown novice win in July is good and he came home very strongly when beating two useful rivals in a three-runner nursery over 1,400m at Newmarket on his handicap debut. The cheekpieces he wore for the first time helped him to concentrate and there’s every chance he will turn out to be better than a handicapper.
KYEEMA looks well handicapped for his first run in a nursery. His debut third behind MYSTERIOUS NIGHT – placed in two G2 races since – in a 1,300m Newbury novice race was a solid starting point and he seemed to find the stiff track against him when fourth over 1,400m at Ascot last month. He wasn’t all that impressive when getting off the mark at the third attempt in a 1,405m Catterick maiden but he doesn’t do a great deal when he hits the front. The likely strong pace of this race should suit him well.
X J RASCAL beat a couple of fair rivals when successful over 1,195m on his debut at Brighton in June. He’s been a bit unlucky not to win again since switching to handicaps. A slow start put him on the back foot before finishing second behind PRAIRIE FALCON over 1,400m at Goodwood and he again tried to come from further back than ideal when beaten just a head over 1,405m at Doncaster two weeks ago. He’s another suited by a strong gallop.
The form of the 1,200m Haydock maiden SCHOLARSHIP won on his debut has worked out really well. The two placed horses have both won twice since and SCHOLARSHIP has had a nice break since finishing down the field in the Coventry Stakes over 1,200m at Royal Ascot. He didn’t seem able to go the early pace in that G2 contest and he should like the step up to 1,400m for the first time.
COURAGEOUS KNIGHT is a handy second string to ONE NATION for Charlie Appleby. He had some solid form in three runs before bolting up over 1,403m in an Epsom maiden last month when wearing cheekpieces for the first time. Top weight shouldn’t stop him running well.
SELECTIONS: 2. ONE NATION, 5. KYEEMA, 7. X J RASCAL, 3. SCHOLARSHIP & 1. COURAGEOUS KNIGHT
S2-7 3yo+ Fillies & Mares Handicap
Roger Varian’s MOBADRA might be the one to start with in this strong looking fillies and mares handicap over 1,400m. She appeared well ahead of her rating when getting off the mark in handicaps at the second time of asking at Kempton over 1,400m in November. She then wasn’t seen until making a belated seasonal reappearance, when quickening up smartly down the outside to win with plenty in hand at Chelmsford over 1,400m last month. It tends to be difficult to come from behind at that track, so it’s an effort that can be upgraded and this daughter of OASIS DREAM should still be ahead of the handicapper after only a small rise in the weights.
EIDIKOS has been running consistently in Listed class this season, including when a good third to a strong rival at Carlisle over 1,377m in June. Last time out she wasn’t disgraced in the G3 Valiant Stakes over 1,594m at Ascot and should appreciate both the drop in trip and class here. This will be only her second start in handicap company – finished runner up last season – and she doesn’t look badly handicapped judging by that form as she looks an improved filly this season. William Buick is an interesting jockey booking and she can be expected to go well.
Another 4YO filly that has largely competed at a higher level is Jane Chapple-Hyam’s BELLOSA, who looked so impressive last season when winning her first two career starts, the second in Listed company, with ease. While her reappearance this season was far from impressive, as she finished last of eight in the G3 Abernant Stakes over 1,200m in April, it’s too soon to give up on her and she still appeals as a filly with plenty of potential.
Nothing comes into this race in better form than ADAAY IN ASIA, who has won her last three races over 1,215m and 1,200m. This 3YO now steps up in trip for the first time and judging by the way she finished her race off when winning at Ascot most recently, 1,400m should be within range. However, this looks by some way the toughest task she has faced so far and now up in the weights she might just be vulnerable from a win perspective.
TRUELY ACLAIMED is only marginally higher in the handicap than when winning at Ayr over 1,445m in June. John Quinn’s filly has won over this course and distance already this season and could be one to fill out the frame.
SELECTIONS: 4. MOBADRA, 8. EIDIKOS, 1. BELLOSA, 6. ADAAY IN ASIA & 10. TRUELY ACLAIMED
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