Alex and Opposition.
A beautiful warm start to the morning and it looks like we are in for a scorcher.
We worked 11 on the Al Bahathri first lot and Dane O’Neill came in to partner Thanaaya. Mr Gredley was out to see his charges.
Mr Milmo and Mr Gompertz are due in shortly before lunch for an inspection of their battalion.
Mrs D and I are shooting off early this morning for leaver’s day at Tudor Hall. We won’t be heading up to Newcastle as a result, but we have an important day in prospect with Oasis Fantasy spearheading our trio in the Northumberland Plate.
He has been handed a nightmare draw in 21 and it’s never easy to get into a good position when you start out in the car park.
However, the horse is in good form, we think he will stay and the form books tells you he has improved this year. If Chad can get him switched off in the early stages, hopefully he will be making good late headway.
Earlier on the card, Zarwaan lines up in the seven furlong handicap. The plan for some time had been the Wokingham last weekend, but we just couldn’t run him on ground that quick, and genuinely good ground this afternoon will be perfect.
He has to concede plenty of weight, but he’s a classy horse for whom things haven’t fallen right this season, and we think he is capable of landing a nice prize.
Taqneen runs last of the three in the mile and a quarter handicap. He has failed to build on his promising reappearance at Kempton and the handicapper hasn’t cut him any slack.
That said, we are keen to try him over this trip again on nice ground, and he’s run his best races on flat tracks.
Finally, we might have an odds-on favourite for this evening’s Irish Derby in the shape of Jack Hobbs, but the race has a much more competitive look to it than it has in recent years.
John Gosden’s horse sets a very solid benchmark, but I doubt we have seen the best of Highland Reel and Giovanni Canaletto yet, while the Oaks winner is relatively unfancied. A cracking race lies in store.
Have a brilliant weekend.
Ed