The ITV cameras head to Sandown this coming Saturday as the Esher venue lays on its biggest flat meeting of the year – headlined by the historic Coral-Eclipse Stakes. Named in honour of an all-time great, this 1m2f affair boasts a spectacular roll of honour, featuring the likes of Brigadier Gerard, Sea The Stars and Enable, and has attracted a small but select field in 2023.
The Lancashire Oaks card from the Merseyside venue of Haydock fills out the TV schedule, with the Old Newton Cup providing something for fans of big field handicapping action to get stuck into. With seven cracking contests on offer, this looks like another excellent day to settle down in front of the TV, and here we attempt to enhance the entertainment with a winner or two in this week’s Saturday Racing Tips.
1:50 Coral Charge
Group 3, 5f
Quality sprinting action kicks off the entertainment as a field of 11 tackles the flying five furlongs. We have a whole host of interesting contenders in here, including Annaf, who ran a cracker to finish third in the King’s Stand, Get Ahead, whose last time out second in France rates amongst the strongest form on offer, and the Charles Hills runner, Equality, who pulverised his handicapping rivals last time out, but is yet to show he can do it at Group level.
In a competitive heat, the one to carry our cash is a filly who did us a favour over this course and distance last time out. Karl Burke’s Lady Habana had to sit and suffer behind a wall of horses in that Scurry Stakes event, but once the gap opened, the response was emphatic as she quickened past quickening rivals to put the race to bed. This is tougher, but at a big price of 16/1, she may be a little underestimated to at least hit the frame.
2:05 bet365 Handicap
Class 2, 1m6f
We move right up in trip for the first event of the day from Haydock, as the stamina of the three-year-olds is put to the test in this 1m6f affair. William Haggas’s Lordship and Pledgeofallegiance both arrive seeking a hattrick and are unsurprisingly proving popular in the market, as is the Michael Bell runner Banderas, who also won nicely on his most recent start and goes in the first time cheekpieces here.
Of those available at bigger prices, Brian Ellison’s Chilhi was a big eye-catcher at Chester, and Flower Of Dubai shouldn’t be dismissed from towards the foot of the weights. In a tricky contest, we have come down on the side of the unexposed Rogue Sea. Hailing from the yard of Tom Clover, this son of Sea The Stars is yet to finish outside the first two in three starts to date, with his only defeat coming on bottomless ground at Nottingham. A comfortable winner over 1m3f at Ripon earlier in the month, he steps up in trip here but has stamina on both sides of his pedigree and looks set to go close – at least.
2:25 Coral Challenge
Class 2, 1m
Indemnify heads the betting for this competitive handicap on the back of his solid win over course and distance last time out. He’s up 5lb for that – and has since left the Roger Varian yard to take up residence with Alice Haynes – but rates an obvious contender. Perotto heads up a clutch of runners who head here from the Royal Hunt Cup and won’t need to improve much for the first-time headgear to play a role in the finish.
The consistent duo of Dutch Decoy and Spirit Catcher are others worth a look, but the horse to most catch our eye is the bottom-weight, Sceptic. As the only three-year-old in the field, the mount of Hollie Doyle is open to more improvement than most and – barring a no-show at Goodwood, when becoming upset in the stalls – has been progressing nicely this season. An easy winner back at Goodwood on his most recent outing, he’s up 4lb here, but we fancy that may not be enough to stop him.
2:40 bet365 Lancashire Oaks
Group 2, 1m4f
John Gosden’s Mimikyu is the clear market leader in the feature contest from Haydock and merits plenty of respect hailing from a yard which has won four of the past nine renewals of this one. However, we are reluctant to take so short a price about a filly who has been beaten a combined 25¾l in two previous outings in 1m4f events at Listed level or above. Sea Silk Road is the obvious alternative to the jolly, having beaten the reopposing Poptronic and Time Lock in the Group 3 Lester Piggott Stakes over this course and distance.
Overall, we suspect this may just be a little more open than the odds suggest, and the filly we fancy to at least run on into a place is Tom Ward’s Luisa Casati. Lightly raced for a five-year-old, she will be making only her ninth start and, significantly, arrives on the back of a big career best, having stormed home down the outside to land a Listed event at Goodwood. The forecast rain in the area certainly won’t inconvenience this daughter of Vadamos – which can’t be said for all of her rivals – and at a double-figure price, she looks very solid each-way value.
3:00 Coral Distaff
Listed, 1m
We stick with the fillies for the penultimate race of the day from Sandown, in an intriguing contest for the three-year-olds. The Gosdens took this with Grande Dame in 2022 and look to boast solid claims once again with Bridestones, who enjoyed no luck at all last time out at Royal Ascot. Similar comments apply to Richard Hannon’s Magical Sunset, who beat everything on her side of the track in the Sandringham Stakes, only to find that those who stuck to the stands side were eight lengths ahead.
As much as the aforementioned duo are respected, it is Stenton Glider who brings the strongest recent form to the table. Second to the talented Remarquee on her seasonal return, she bombed out in a soft ground 1000 Guineas but then bounced right back to form when an excellent second in the Group 2 German 1000 last time out. Dropping back in class, she looks a worthy favourite to record a first win of the season at the fourth time of asking.
3:15 bet365 Old Newton Cup Handicap
Class 2, 1m4f
Seventeen go to post in the last of the day’s events from Haydock. William Haggas boasts a likely-looking contender at the top of the market in the shape of the lightly raced La Yakel. Already a distance winner, this son of Time Test looks reasonably treated off a mark of 92 and can go close if fit and ready to go following a 274-day absence from the track.
Topweight Teumessias Fox and Hughie Morrision’s Maksud look the best of those available at double-figure prices, but we fancy the two to concentrate on are the hattrick-seeking duo of Cumulonimbus and Sheer Rocks, with the latter just getting the vote.
Largely consistent last season, despite only managing to get his nose in front once from eight starts, a gelding operation over the winter appears to have worked the oracle for this son of Iffraaj. A perfect two from two so far this term, he won by an eased down 2l last time out at Epsom and can cope with this 5lb hike in the handicap.
3:40 Coral-Eclipse
Group 1, 1m2f
Rather disappointingly, just the four go to post in the feature, with the market making this a match between Irish 2000 Guineas and St. James’s Palace Stakes hero Paddington, and Coronation Cup winner Emily Upjohn. Both Dubai Honour and West Wind Blows are not to be dismissed entirely, with the former already proven in Group 1 company, but overall it would be a surprise if the winner didn’t come from the top two in the betting.
To our eyes at least, this does look to be a coin toss. In Emily Upjohn’s favour is that she will definitely see out the trip, having already won over this distance and at up to 1m4f. In contrast, Paddington steps up from a mile for the first time. However, as the only three-year-old in the field, the Aidan O’Brien runner receives 10lb from West Wind Blows and Dubai Honour, and 7lb from the filly Emily Upjohn.
Considering he is already 3lbs clear of the field on official ratings, that weight concession gives his rivals a pretty tall obstacle to overcome. Being by Siyouini and out of a mare who won over 1m4f, his pedigree suggests he ought to stay, whilst an Arc entry implies connections are also optimistic. In a fascinating head-to-head battle, we will take the up-and-coming colt to come out on top.