There is a terrific 7f handicap at Yarmouth this afternoon and Roger Varian’s 3-year-old Imperial Yellow showed a good turn of foot to score at Leicester on his reappearance over six furlongs giving the impression he would be equally at home over today’s trip.
He has been put in short enough in the betting at Evens, however, and Inveigle (4.20) is an each way alternative against the market leader. Michael Bell’s 3-y-o Inveigle put behind a disappointing reappearance when finishing third at Chelmsford over a mile at the beginning of the month when he gave the impression a slight drop back on distance would not be an inconvenience.
Callum Shepherd is the sixth different jockey in seven starts to ride Her Majesty’s gelding who represents a very much inform stable. This is the time of the year when I like to follow the classic generation against their elders, and I would be disappointed if Inveigle did not run a big race. The ew selection is 3/1 with MansionBet.
In the opener at Doncaster Cedar’s Stars (1.40) drops back to a mile having looked a non stayer over 10f at Nottingham last time when she finished third having led inside the final furlong. The selection – 5/2 with 10Bet – is out of a 7f winner although – as her name would suggest – she is by the brilliant Derby/Arc winner Sea The Stars. The filly is likely to need a decent gallop back at a mile and she cannot afford to get too far back in a race that is devoid of confirmed front-runners.
At Newmarket this evening, Riknnah (6.20) can land her hat-trick having scored on both polytrack and tapeta in recent months for Simon & Ed Crisford. The filly – 6/4 with Boylesports -makes her handicap debut over 7f having been takes out of a mile handicap at the Royal meeting last week when the ground turned heavy. Her opening mark of 82 looks workable.
At the time of writing Hugo Palmer’s last six runners have finished 332223 and he has a couple of leading chances on the July course especially Lovely Breeze (7.30) who lost nothing in defeat when just touched off at Chelmsford last week. She is taken to go one better back on turf and is 2lbs well in this evening having been raised a couple of pounds for that run on polytrack. Palmer reaches for first time blinkers this evening for his filly who is 2s with BetVictor – and fits his other runner – Brunnera – with a hood for her belated reappearance.
There is a terrific card at Newcastle and in the Gp3 Hoppings Fillies’ Stakes I hope to see Zeyaadah (7.20) bounce back to form having failed to cope with soft ground in the Oaks last time when backed into 6/1. Roger Varian’s filly – 5/2 with William Hill – finished runner up in the Cheshire Oaks on her reappearance and I feel she can outstay Lilac Road one of two contenders for William Haggas. It is five years since a 3-y-o won this corresponding race, but I will be surprised if the prize does not go to the classic generation this evening.
In the valuable fillies’ handicap at Chester this evening Bollin Margaret has every chance of landing her hat-trick with Joanna Mason’s 3lbs claim largely negating her 5lbs penalty for scoring at Ripon last week. Marginal preference, however, goes to Babindi (7.05) who is taken to shed her maiden tag having gone down by just a nose at Ripon at the beginning of the month. I hope to see Hayley Turner make plenty of use of her filly – 6/4 with William Hill – with Franny Norton likely to try to dictate his own fractions from the front on Basilicata.
