A Preview of May's UK Horse Racing
May ushers in the first Classics of the current turf Flat season, beginning with the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket on May 6. All eyes will be upon the short-priced favourite George Washington as he bids to bring trainer Aidan O’Brien back-to-back victories in the colts’ Classic following Footstepsinthesands smart success twelve months ago. In recent years the 2,000 Guineas has been the personal preserve of the Flat’s big battalions with Sir Michael Stoute, Saeed Bin Suroor and Aidan O’Brien dominating the race year after year with a succession of expensive blue-bloods. This time around it’s the tight-lipped O’Brien who seems to hold all the aces courtesy of the aforementioned George Washington, a brilliant, if at times temperamental, colt who swept all before him as a juvenile and sets out this season to prove he’s not just a two-year-old wonder but can mix it with the best and come out on top as a three-year-old. Only Barry Hills and Dermot Weld have broken the big boys’ monopoly of the 2,000 and this year it’s Marcus Tregoning who has been cast in the role of party-pooper as he bids interrupt the top guns by training Sir Percy to land the opening Classic. Regarded as the best horse that he’s ever trained by his astute handler, last season’s Dewhurst winner is sure to go close in a race that will be run to suit his talents. On the same day Newmarket stages the Palace House Stakes, a Group 3 for up-and-coming sprinters and the fast-improving Reverence well be an intresting runner while over at Haydock, the jumps stages a last hurrah with the valuable William Hill Swinton Handicap Hurdle, and Philip Hobbs could hold a strong hand here courtesy of Wellbeing and Motorway, two progressive and late-blossoming timber-toppers. On Sunday May 7, it’s the fillies’ turn to strut their stuff in the 1,000 Guineas where Gololphin’s Silca’s Sister, Ballydoyle’s Rumplestiltskin and Race For the Stars will do battle with John Gosden’s Nanina for the fillies’ Blue Riband. On the same day Breeders’ Cup hero Shirocco is likely to come up against Sir Michael Stoute’s late-developer Hard Top and the evergreen John Porter winner, Mubtaker, in the Jockey Club Stakes at Newmarket. Spring gallop s reports have singled out the Stoute horse for top honours. Chester’s prestigious three-day meeting follows hot on the heels of Newmarket and the Derby hopefuls will be on show in the MBNA Europe Bank Chester Vase (May 11), with the fillies taking centre stage in the Weatherbys Bank Cheshire Oaks on May 10. Barry Hills has a superb record on this turning track and any horse he runs in the previous two races will be worth close inspection. On Wednesday May 10 the totesport Chester Cup is the meeting’s big betting race and recent Newmarket winner Mikao set down an early marker for this big staying prize. Four-year-olds often run well here and trainer Barry Hills boasts an excellent record. Friday, May 12, closes the Chester meeting and the feature race for the older horses is the Blue Square Ormonde Stakes landed last year by Day Flight. The run of Classic trials continues at Lingfield on May 13 with the Letheby and Christopher Derby Trial and the totesport.com Oaks Trials respectively for the real things at Epsom the following month. It isn’t just the Classic colts and fillies that are in the firing-line at Lingfield because the Surrey course also stages the totesport Victoria Cup, a closely fought and always influential 7f handicap that frequently throws up a Royal Ascot winner or two. Over in France the following day, May 14, the European Flat season raises the volume with the Poule de’Essai des Poulains (French 2,000 Guineas) and the Poulai d’Essai des Pouliches (French 1,000 Guineas) on the same card at Longchamp. Ballydoyle and Godolphin have begun to target these two important races in recent seasons and their runners should be respected, but Criquette Head-Maarek’s Quiet Royale will be fancied for the ‘Pouliches’ after a satisfactory spin in second at Longchmap the other day. Flat racing’s domestic caravan rolls on to York for their three-day Dante meeting and the potential Oaks fillies will run in the Musidora Stakes on May 17, the meeting’s opening salvo which is now a Wednesday on account of the fixture moving forward by a single day. On May 18 the Derby hopefuls will run in the Dante Stakes and it’s worth recalling that in recent times, North Light and Motivator, the last two winners of this race, have gone on to glory at Epsom in just over three weeks’ time, while looking a little further back in the race’s illustrious history, it’s worth noting that Shahrastani, Reference point, Erhaab and Benny The Dip all went on from the Dante to Derby success. This mile and a quarter Group 2 contest has clearly become a key Classic trial in recent seasons and mustn’t be missed. There’s sure to be a host of top-class performers in contention on the Knavesmire and Sir Michael Stoute has the best contemporary Dante record with two winners and three placed horses. On the same day as the Dante keep a close eye upon the outcome of the Hambleton Stakes, a valuable mile handicap that has a habit of throwing up the winner of the Royal Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot the following month especially if the Hambleton winner is trained by Sir Michael Stoute. The final day of the Dante meeting sees the stayers take centre stage in the Yorkshire Cup, a useful pointer to the rest of the campaign’s leading staying races. Alan Swinbank’s stable star Collier Hill, a winner of the Irish St Leger last season, is a likely runner and may well be capable of surprising more fancied horses. On May 20 it’s the turn of the season’s crack milers to unleash their firepower in the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury and this has been a good race for Saeed Bin Suroor and the boys in blue in recent seasons, and it would be no surprise to see them land this Group1 event with Proclamation, who is surely heading for the top after joining Godolphin on the back of a brilliant three-year-old season. In France the following day Longchamp’s Prix d’Ispahan always draws the top mile and mile and a quarter horses and this a race that mustn’t be missed as a key pointer to some of the season’s top races over this classic ten furlongs. The month of May rounds off with the Irish 2,000 Guineas on May 27 followed by the Irish 1,000 Guineas on the following day. Both these valuable races tend to go to horses that have raced in the equivalent events at Newmarket and inevitably British trainers hold an excellent record in both races. Finally, Sandown’s two-day fixture at the very end of the month is always informative with the Henry 11 Stakes for top-notch staying horses on May 29 followed on May 30 by the Temple Stakes for sprinters over the minimum trip and the Group 3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes in which trainer Sir Michael Stoute boats a useful record. Any runner from his yard should be noted carefully.
Other Horse Racing Tips Articles
25 Ways to Cut Backpack Weight You’ve done your research and made plans for an incredible adventure. You’ve picked a remote destination and put together an elite group of adventurers (or maybe just some people you like to hangout with). You’ve planned a menu for kings, heck you’ll be eating better than you do at home. The only problem is you have to carry everything on your b ...Ice Skating through the Centuries Ice skating has a long history. In fact the origins of ice skating date back to the early ninth century. The purpose then was far more practical, however, than recreational. The earliest ice skates are believed to have been found in London and made of horse bone. It is believed that these skates served utilitarian purposes such as movement from ...Custom Truck Wheels Look around and you will see an increase in custom wheels used on trucks today. Less than 20 years ago trucks were just cargo hauling vehicles. In the early 1900s trucks were used primarily for local wholesale and retail deliveries. Today when we talk about trucks we are talking about light trucks. Light trucks include pickup trucks, minivan ...Stephenville, Texas! Cowboy Capital of the World, and a Whole Lot More Besides Stephenville, Texas, there are several cities across the nation that refer to themselves as the "Cowboy Capital of the World." Whoa! Now, wait a minute! How can Dodge City, Kansas, Banderas, Texas and Oakdale, California ALL claim the same title as Stephenville? Somebody ain't tellin' the truth.Git a rope.True, Oakdale, Cal ...The Dish: Surprise, Surprise Roger Clemens is coming back to the Astros.Man am I surprised.Just about as surprised as I was when Barry Bonds turned soft-and-cuddly during his ESPN interview with Jim Grey.And as surprised as I was when people sent more cards and letters to Barbaro than they'd ever consider sending to troops in Iraq.And as surprise ...One Pocket Billiards Game One pocket billiards is the billiards answer to soccer, while 14.1 continuous billiards is the billiards answer to basketball’s horse. Requiring to shooter to specialize in specific types of shots, in on pocket billiards the table is cut from six pockets for shots to two open pockets. You don’t have to call what ball will go into that pocket but ...Sports Betting 101- How to Bet on Horse Racing Horse racing along with what is known as buggy racing is still considered tops in many circles of the American sports betting world. The annual highlight of horse racing takes place every year during the months of May and June with what is known as the Triple Crown races which are held at three different race tracks.The Kentucky Derby tak ...Vermont State Fair Fills a Small State with Big Fun During the first 10 days of September the small state of Vermont is aglow with the lights from its state fair in Rutland, Vermont. The admission prices to the fairgrounds are about the average price compared to that of other state fairs; maybe even a little cheaper when you include the family day, dollar day and patron appreciation day. Family ...Horses - War Admiral Sometimes the sons of the fathers surpass the accomplishments of the father. Such was the case with one of the greatest races horses of all time, the son of Man O' War, War Admiral, who went on to become racing's 4th triple crown winner.War Admiral almost wasn't the 4th triple crown winner. He was almost the 5th. Owner Samuel Riddle, o ...The Dubious Immorality of Online Gambling The recent back-door legislation which outlawed online gambling in the USA has been championed as a moral cause. This is in direct opposition to a Gallup Poll taken earlier this year which found that 60 percent of adults believe gambling is morally acceptable.Chief sponsor Jim Leach (R-Iowa) has called it one of the most important pieces ...New Hampshire State Fair has Many Agricultural Shows Contocook, New Hampshire hosts the state fair each year as a Labor Day weekend tradition from Aug 31st to Sept. 4th and you'll find that make it an annual tradition of your own is fun and easy. The New Hampshire State Fair is also known as the Hopkinton State Fair so do remember not to get too confused if you find directions for this fair when ...Betting Horse Racing So you don’t live anywhere near a racetrack. No problem! Today, betting horse racing online at tracks around the world has never been easier. The sites we’ll talk about are well-established, legal, secure, and can provide much of the same experience you would get if you were at the track…without leaving home!The basics of betting horse ra ...A World Record at the Pyramids Alberto, the English-speaking taxi driver who picked me up at my hotel in Cairo, assured me that he could arrange whatever I needed. He had the connections. If I wished to go into the secret room in the leg of the Sphinx, he could arrange it. If I wanted to stay all night inside a Pyramid, like Napoleon had done more than a century ago, no probl ...Sports Betting Truths The first ever recorded sports bets, took place on 10 September 1858, by two spectators watching a game between the Brooklyn Eckfords and the New York Mutuals, placed a 100$ bet as to whether or not John Holden would hit a home run. Holden himself was assured 25$ if he hit, he did and after the game all the debts were settled.In 1865 agai ...Preview of February's UK Horse Racing Sandown opens the month on February 4 with an excellent card and another set of possible Cheltenham clues. In recent seasons the Agfa Diamond Chase has suffered through small and uncompetitive fields but that worrying trend has started to change of late and this year’s renewal is sure to be a competitive one.Alan King’s tough stayer Fork ...THE HORSES OF ERATH COUNTY: This Texas County Ain't Horsin' Around When Texas seceded from the Union at the beginning of the Civil War, the new Confederate government now faced the task of participating in the war while still defending the Texas frontier from Indian attacks.The Confederates actually tried several methods for maintaining order on the frontier. Their final attempt to deal with the Indian m ...Horses - Secretariat - The Legacy In this article we're going to review the life and career of one of the greatest horses in horse racing history, Secretariat.If you were around in the early 70s, regardless of whether you were into horse racing or not, you knew who Secretariat was. His name was plastered all over every newspaper in the world. There had never been a hors ...Horses - Assault If seven is a lucky number it certainly was a lucky number in the year 1946 for a horse by the name of Assault who went on to become the 7th triple crown winner in horse racing history.Assault didn't have an easy time of it on his way to the triple crown. For that matter, he didn't have an easy time of it just racing. Coming from a fami ...Betting Exchange Place Markets - Wise Up And Win How To Use The Betting Exchange Place Markets To Your AdvantageIntroductionIn article one, I introduced you to the Betting Exchange concept and explained the basics of LAY Betting (Lay to Lose). Now in this article, I'm going to introduce you to another unique and powerful feature of the betting exchanges, th ...The Pool Table Bars and recreation venues in rural or urban areas offer to their visitors the excitement and the sportsmanship of a famous table-played game, called pool or billiard. On the billiards table’s totally flat surface, pool game fans strike, with the use of a specially designed long wooden stick known as “cue stick,” colorful balls moving them aroun ...Horse Racing Betting System - Designing a Simple System Putting together a system is not as difficult as it may sound, even for a beginner. The important thing, and with any betting, is that you write down every rule and follow it for at least 100 bets. You do not need to trade real money, paper trading is best at first. If after 100 bets it is in profit, you can then give it a betting bank and start ...Vacation in Dubai Dubai is such an exciting and diverse travel destination that it attracts millions of visitors annually – particularly during the winter months when the weather is perfect for every single activity from sunbathing and scuba diving to camel racing and desert safaris.If you’re planning a trip to Dubai here’s a guide to the types of attracti ...Horse Racing Tips There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to betting on the horses. Some people believe that it’s impossible to profit in horse racing. Some believe that all you need to do is bet the favorites. Still, others believe that the only way to make money is to bet the huge long shots and pray for a miracle. All of these thoughts are false. You c ...Golden Rules of Horse Racing Betting Forget old wives' tales, home-spun wisdom and the advice of cabbies, says Tony Paley. If you really want to know how to punt on horses, you should engrave these 37 Commandments on tablets of stone and carry them with you wherever you go. Not literally, of course - that would be impractical.Rules. Mavericks and misfits might not like to ad ...Hunter Jumper Horses Jumper courses are very demanding, calling for technical accuracy on the part of the rider and absolute obedience from the horse. Connecting with the horse from the hind legs, through the back to the bit will prevent most of resistance problems that horses have with jumping. As the riders head toward the jump, they focus on the rhythm of your ho ...
|
