Royal Ascot - Friday

A

Ardross

Senior Jockey
Joined
Aug 8, 2007
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Undoubtedly the weakest day of the meeting . Scrap the Buckingham Palace and replace it with that old very competitive 3 yo 5f hcap that used to be the highlight of Ascot heath day and was then known briefly as the Balmoral - and swop the Britannia for the Wolferton , and the KEVII for the Hardwicke and it will be much better balanced .

Hope to see a Lady Cecil double with Joyeuse and Disclaimer - though Frankie winning on Sandiva and edging out Wedding Ring would be very apt too .

Battle of Marengo surely pretty unopposable , Sky Lantern I suspect will be less disadvantaged than JTJ and likes being held up anyway and so long as too many trees don't get in her way I think she will win as she likes it like a road .

The Wolferton looks unfathomable but jack's revenge could go well in the last for George baker .
 
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I do think the Tercentenary - which is increasingly a hot race every year has had a detrimental effect on the King Edward VII Stakes .

The Friday is significantly the weakest day of the meeting - not that I agree in the slightest with those who suggest that the Tuesday is too good . The fact the meeting starts with such a bang is great albeit one could perhaps make an argument for swopping the Coronation with the St James's Palace .
 
Emilio Largo has been given a typical Fanshawe Ascot preperation. A nice pipe opener over 6f at Ascot which saw him full of running(same race Deacon Blues was runner up in before winning the Wokingham). The step back up to 7f is ideal and in an open race 10/1 seems fair for horse who could be better than a handicapper.
 
Keen on Shabaal Niblis in the last race, Battle of Marengo worth opposing at that price, surely?!
 
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I can see Leading Light getting smashed off the boards after "the lads" have had their say. Magic sign ducking him.
 
Only Cheltenham has come near pulling off the meeting extensions. Goodwood is OK but mainly because if the sun's shining it's a great place to be.
When Royal Ascot was 4 days the Tuesday was always the best with the Queen Anne, Prince of Wales and St James Palace (the Coventry has always been Tuesday, along with the Ascot Stakes, but I can't remember the 6th race). The only gain from the last few years has been the Albany as far as I can see, which seems to have replaced the 2yo colts race (Fenwolf Stakes) on the Heath card.
They should reduce it back to 4 days.
 
Whether she wins or not, Sandiva is the wrong price at bigger than 7/4 for the Albany. She brings a level of form good enough to win most Albanys already.

Naas form boosted by Fig Roll in the Queen Mary. That race has a mixed record in the Albany, but cuis Ghare, yoursothrilling, Lille Langtry, rumpelstilskin etc all went up much shorter than what Sandiva currently is. Some of them having achieved significantly less, and they either won it or we're just touched off.
 
Sandiva is the form pick by a mile and I've backed her but haven't piled in as there are some fillies with real potential in here that I would be worried about. The next three in the betting could all be anything.
 
Sandiva and Nichols Canyon look good to me today.

Battle Of Marengo was a lay yesterday when trading at around 1.7 but he's a much more realistic 1.95 now. He disappointed me at Epsom when he had the run of the race and he looks a bit paceless. He could still win today but I'm against him.
 
I'm so close to going balls deep on Sandiva but Joyeuse is stopping me. Sandiva should have way too much and I think the use of Frankel when discribing Joyeuse is throwing everyone off.
 
The thing that puts me off Sandiva is that it looks like Tony Hamilton hasn't gone to Acot for either of Fahey's runners and Dettori is a negative right now.
 
I'm not sure I'd read too much into that DO, Tony seems harshly looked over for the big rides regularly (Mayson last year as an example), plus the new owner of Sandiva has insisted on Frankie apparently.
 
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