Another sporting overload this coming weekend, with five televised Premier League fixtures and a feast of flat racing action, as the ITV cameras head to Beverley, Chester, and Sandown. It’s the biggest day of the season at the Yorkshire track of Beverley, with the annual editions of the Silver Cup Handicap and Beverley Bullet, whilst Chester chips in with a competitive handicap and the Listed class Chester Stakes. The highest quality comes from Sandown, with the Group 3 doubleheader of the Atalanta Stakes and Solario Stakes, which has a tendency to produce a future star.
Here, we run through the eight excellent events on offer and pick out our best betting options in this week’s Saturday Racing Tips.
1:35 Contact Company Handicap
Class 2, 7½f
Chester is notorious for its draw bias, and the trend against high numbers has certainly been apparent in this event. Over the past nine editions, 22 horses have attempted to win from a double-figure stall – none have even made the frame, with seven of the nine winners emerging from stall six or below.
Of those drawn low, the unexposed Lord Bertie (5/2) makes obvious appeal for William Haggas, having hacked up at Thirsk. A mark of 95 may prove lenient, but he will face significantly quicker conditions than in that soft-ground novice event. We prefer an each-way punt on Tim Easterby’s Boardman (17/2), who loves it around these twists and turns. A regular visitor to Chester, the son of Kingman has won three times from seven starts over this course and distance and is only three pounds higher than winning in effortless style here in May.
1:50 Virgin Bet Best Odds Daily Handicap
Class 3, 7f
We move down to Esher for another seven-furlong handicap affair in race two. Course and distance winner Tough Enough (4/1) heads the betting for James Tate and Rossa Ryan and seems likely to go well, despite being four pounds higher in a slightly hotter race. Amber Island is another for the shortlist, having improved hugely for the first-time cheekpieces at Thirsk on her most recent outing. Much like Tough Enough, she is up four pounds and moving from Class 4 to Class 3, and we suspect there may be a better-handicapped rival lurking a little further down the list.
The one we like best at a nice each-way price is the Tony Carroll-trained Youarenotforgiven (16/1). This one disappointed last time out when seemingly all at sea around Brighton. However, he wouldn’t be the first horse to fail to show his form at the distinctive South Coast venue, and conditions look far more suitable here. The five-year-old boasts a perfect two from two record in seven-furlong turf handicaps and is now a pound lower than when getting on top late at Newbury two starts back.
2:05 William Hill Silver Cup Handicap
Class 2, 1m4f
This looks a fiendishly competitive affair, with the top five in the market all priced between 9/2 and 11/2. Dancing In Paris (9/2) heads the betting in most lists but will be stepping up to this trip for the first time, which doesn’t seem certain to suit, with similar comments applying to Charlie Johnston’s Perfect Play (11/2).
Dark Jedi (14/1) is the old man of the field but is proven in this sort of race and makes some each-way appeal, but for us, the two to concentrate on are Fulfilled (5/1) and Aimeric (11/2), with narrow preference from the latter. Roger Varian’s lightly raced four-year-old is two from three over this distance, with the only defeat coming in the red-hot Duke of Edinburgh Handicap at Royal Ascot. He didn’t enjoy the clearest of runs that day but still only went down by four lengths. Getting in here off the same mark of 96, a repeat of that effort may be good enough in what looks like a weaker race.
2:25 Virgin Bet Atalanta Stakes
Group 3, 1m
Sir Michael Stoute’s Potapova (11/2) returns to defend her crown in this event for the fillies and boasts solid claims. The only real negative is that she is five years of age now, and all of the past 10 renewals have fallen to a runner aged four or younger. Heredia (9/2) makes the most appeal of the four-year-olds on show, having won impressively at Haydock, but conceding five pounds to the improving three-year-olds in the field may not be easy.
The John and Thady Gosden runner Coppice (7/2) is the one the market has latched onto, and it does seem likely that we haven’t seen the best of her yet. However, she is now zero from two at Group 3 level or above – beaten a combined 17 lengths – and looks short enough. The one to side with is Richard Fahey’s Midnight Mile (5/1). A Group 3 winner over seven furlongs, her only previous outing over this trip resulted in a solid fourth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, when she may have finished closer but for blowing the start. Raced over further so far this season, she ought to be finishing as well as anything dropping back in trip and can get on top late.
2:40 William Hill Beverley Bullet Sprint Stakes
Listed, 5f
Apollo One (10/3) heads the betting for the feature at the East Yorkshire track and has been knocking on the door, having filled the runners-up position in his last three starts. He boasts amongst the best recent form on offer, but all those efforts have come over six furlongs, and he may be tapped for toe in this lightning-quick event. Silky Wilky (7/2) and Kerdos (4/1) have been flying at a higher level this season and can go well dropping in class, but it may be worth taking a chance that we will see a little bit of history made this year.
Only established in 2004, this race has already seen three dual winners, but no horse has come home in front on three occasions. Hopefully, that record will be broken this year, as the one carrying our cash is the 2021 and 2022 champ Tis Marvelous (7/1). The Clive Cox star hasn’t shown much of late but that was also the case in the lead-up to last year’s race, and didn’t stop him scorching clear to score by one and a quarter lengths. Likely to be primed and ready ahead of his big target of the season, he’s attractively priced to land the hat-trick.
3:00 Virgin Bet Handicap
Class 2, 1m2f
Having finished first and second in his two most recent outings over this course and distance, the William Knight runner Dual Identity (5/1) heads the betting. He’s been below par of late, but looks fairly handicapped and may be revitalised by a return to this track. Lord Protector is another course specialist and has better recent form than Dual Identity, but he is yet to make the frame in six outings off a mark of 95+, and runs off 98 here.
In a tricky heat, it may be worth giving another chance to the beautifully bred Educator (8/1), who goes in the Royal silks. By Deep Impact and out of a Dubawi mare, this one hasn’t delivered all that would be hoped for, but has made the first three in seven of 11 starts. He lost the plot in soft ground on the Epsom undulations on his most recent effort over this trip, but had previously scored over the distance when coming from an uncompromising position at Newmarket last year. Ryan Moore is an eye-catching booking in the saddle and, off a mark of 91, he’s fancied to at least hit the frame.
3:20 Caa Stellar Chester Stakes
Listed, 1m6½f
Just the six go to post in the classiest contest of the day from Chester, but most have some sort of question to answer. Lone Eagle (7/2) is classy on his day, but has looked a shadow of his former self of late and is yet to win over this far. Divine Jewel (8/1) is more solid, having gone down by a head in a similar event at Leopardstown. Shanroe (9/1) has at least won over the distance but is more commonly sighted in handicap company.
Overall, the best option may be to simply back Godolphin’s Military Order (8/13) to have a significant class edge over the field. This one’s most recent outing saw him sent off the 9/2 joint second favourite for the Epsom Derby. He finished last of 14 that day but wouldn’t be the first horse to bounce back from failing to handle the Epsom undulations. Prior to that, he had stayed on powerfully to see off Waipiro in the Lingfield Derby Trial when looking all about stamina. With that horse subsequently winning the Group 3 Hampton Court Stakes in good style, the form looks solid. Receiving weight from all bar rank outsider Greysful Storm, this son of Frankel ought to be up to winning this.
3:38 Virgin Bet Solario Stakes
Group 3, 7f
Sir Michael Stoute runners who manage to win first time out are generally worth noting, and that may well prove to be the case with Starlore (5/2), who heads the market here. The fact that the win came over course and distance is also in his favour, but he did only hang on by a nose and looks to be facing a higher calibre of opposition here.
Charlie Appleby’s Aablan makes plenty of appeal on paper and made a promising start when staying on best to score on debut at Newmarket. Appleby has won that novice event with a number of smart sorts in the past, and this son of Dubawi seems unlikely to be far away. However, the one to narrowly get our vote is the Ralph Beckett runner, Mortlake (11/4). Hopeless on debut in a soft ground event at Salisbury, this Churchill colt took a huge step forward to blitz clear of the field at Leicester last time out – smashing the juvenile course record. We loved the attitude he showed when getting his head down that day, and he may prove tough to pass.