Free horse racing betting tips: Simon Holt previews the fourth day of the St Leger Festival at Doncaster

Horse Racing

Sat September 16, 2017 · 7y ago

Crystal Ocean can land the St Leger for Sir Michael Stoute on Saturday, according to top commentator Simon Holt who previews the action.

For Sir Michael Stoute, the St Leger had been a race of many frustrations before Conduit's breakthrough win in 2008, but the master trainer could add a second success with CRYSTAL OCEAN in Saturday's final Classic, sponsored this year by William Hill, at Doncaster.

In an intriguing renewal, this son of Sea The Stars is, along with Count Octave, the most lightly-raced runner in the field but, like many a Stoute-trained horse down the decades, he is improving with racing.

An eye-catching third behind Permian and Benbatl (Rekindling fourth) in the Dante Stakes at York in May, Crystal Ocean was thought too immature to run in the Derby and, instead, ran in the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot where he finished a slightly disappointing third, again behind Permian.

However, given a break afterwards and following the same path as Conduit, he looked a different horse at Goodwood last time, decisively turning the tables on the Ascot runner-up Khalidi over a mile and a half on soft ground. Third-placed Mount Moriah has since run creditably, albeit beaten a long way, to fill the same position behind the top-class Order Of St George in the Irish St Leger.

The big question is whether Crystal Ocean will stay this longer trip, especially as his smart relatives Crystal Capella and Hillstar seemed best at a mile and a half. But the influence of Sea The Stars, whose dosage rating of 11 furlongs is superior to Cape Cross and Danehill Dancer, the respective sires of the aforementioned pair, suggests he could have more stamina.

Once again, Jim Crowley teams up with Stoute, following their successful partnership with Ulysses this season.

On form, Capri's defeat of Cracksman and Wings Of Eagles in the Irish Derby looks the best on offer but, in turning the tables on his Epsom Derby rivals, the grey son of Galileo may have had the run of things.

Close to the pace throughout at the Curragh, Capri was ideally poised to strike for home whereas both Cracksman (surely an improved horse since) and the now retired Wings Of Eagles came from unpromising positions.

They were pegging back Capri close to the finish and it remains to be seen if Ryan Moore's mount will truly relish this extra distance on what is likely to be softer ground.

If stamina is the deciding factor, which it could well be, then Coronet, Stradivarius, Defoe, Rekindling and Raheen House are all more or less certain to stay well and are preferred in that order.

Coronet, the only filly in the field and preferred by Frankie Dettori to Stradivarius, appears to have been crying out for further than a mile and a half in her last three starts in which she got up close home to win the Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot before finishing fourth and second respectively behind Enable in the Irish and Yorkshire Oaks.

Possibly a little quirky, she could be a big threat in the closing stages if able to hold a decent position.

Stradivarius is a certain stayer after his Queens Vase (beating Count Octave a neck) and Goodwood Cup successes though one wonders how much he needed to improve on the latter occasion receiving lumps of weight-for-age from Big Orange who did not have his ideal conditions.

Defoe has done nothing but progress all season, and was another to take advantage of weight-for-age when accounting for Wall Of Fire in the Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury last month for which he started favourite but still produced a career best.

Roger Varian's charge remains a little untapped but this is a tougher task back against his own age group.

Rekindling, no match for a possibly ring-rusty Order Of St George in the Curragh Cup last month, is another sure stayer though probably needs to find more on lines of form involving Wicklow Brave while Raheen House may also need to step up on a defeat of Desert Skyline at Newmarket in July.

Earlier, Godolphin field a potentially high-class two-year when MYTHICAL MAGIC puts his unbeaten record on the line in the Group Two Howcroft Industrial Supplies Champagne Stakes, a race the 'boys in blue' have won four times in the past eight runnings.

I was fortunate enough to see this strapping son of Iffraaj win a listed race at Deauville last month when he made all the running to readily hold off the odds-on, Andre Fabre-trained favourite Cascadian who had previously made an impressive winning debut.

The two colts had the race to themselves throughout the final furlong, pulling three lengths clear of the third, but Mythical Magic never looked like being passed.

Still a bit green and on his toes in the preliminaries that day, there should be plenty more improvement to come and, at this stage, he looks by far the best prospect in the line up with all due respect to the tough Hey Gaman and Red Mist, who fought out a close finish at Newbury last time, and Aidan O'Brien's duo Mendelssohn and Seahenge.

In the opening William Hill Portland Handicap, VIBRANT CHORDS could be ideally suited by the five-and-a-half furlong trip after a good course second over the minimum distance last month.

On that occasion, Henry Candy's consistent sprinter failed by a length to concede 8lb to Desert Law, keeping on well under pressure, after which the winner went on to win again next time at York and is now 13lb higher in the ratings.

Earlier, Vibrant Chords never landed a blow over five furlongs at Goodwood whereas, on his previous start, he ran on well over six furlongs on the same course, going down by a length to Boy In The Bar after a slightly troubled passage.

With a strong pace guaranteed here, this distance could be ideal on his return to Town Moor.

Of course, as ever, it's an open race but Stake Acclaim could be the danger for that fine trainer of a sprinter Dean Ivory.

The five-year-old seems to be in great heart judged on his Shergar Cup (5f good to soft) win at Ascot in August after which he raced alone on the stands side when finishing third to Ice Age over six furlongs at Windsor.