Festivals
One of the most impressive winners of the Gold Cup in recent memory was Royal Gait in 1988 – but his connections did not pick up the prize as the horse was sensationally disqualified for causing interference in the home straight to a weakening rival, before storming 5l clear...
CORONATION CUP – Winner Pyledriver Owner: La Pyle Partnership Trainer: William Muir & Chris Grassick Jockey: Martin Dwyer Odds: 8/1 One of the best stories from Epsom was the win of PYLEDRIVER from a largely unheralded yard and a small group of owners whose decision to repeatedly turn down...
OAKS – Winner Snowfall Owner: Smith, Magnier & Tabor Trainer: Aidan O’Brien Jockey: Frankie Dettori Odds: 11/2 A modest 2yo by Ballydoyle standards, SNOWFALL is making an early claim to be racehorse of 2021 after an extraordinary 16l demolition job of the Oaks field. An all the way winner...
The two day Epsom fixture last weekend brought us two wide margin classic winners and a cracking duel for the Coronation Cup. We managed to pick out placed horses each-way in the Classics with Divinely (20/1) and Hurricane Lane (6/1). But how did those races rate against previous renewals?...
Epsom selections Saturday 5th June Derby Day and we have an unusual situation for the big race with Aidan O’Brien saddling just one runner for the first time since Galileo won in 2001. Does that suggest he thinks favourite Bolshoi Ballet is unbeatable, or are his crop of 3yo...
Epsom selections Friday 4th June The Epsom Derby meeting is restored to its natural position of the first weekend in June for 2021 and the opening day sees both the Coronation Cup and Oaks as Group 1 highlights. I have a selection for the third Classic of the year,...
Nineteen horses were confirmed at the six day stage for the 2021 Epsom Derby and as usual Aidan O’Brien is well represented with six horse currently set to run. Three sires, Galileo, Frankel and Camelot dominate the leading contenders and we have summarised their prospects and likelihood of staying...
The 1981 Derby, the 202nd renewal of the classic, saw an odds on favourite in Shergar take on 17 rivals, in what was a typically big field in those days. What was notable was there was not a single Irish runner in the race, with two French raiders, although...
At the weekend the six day entries were confirmed for the Oaks at Epsom on Friday. Fifteen horses remain, including the usual strong contingent from Ballydoyle. We analyse the fillies most likely to land the big prize on the Downs. DIVINELY Did win a Group 3 at the Curragh...
The increasing value of Ladies Day meetings to racecourses is clear from a look at the attendances for the 2018 Ladies Days in Britain. In many cases, particularly for the smaller tracks, the attendance for a Ladies Day meeting can dwarf attendances for regular meetings. As such the days...
