Bless Him will relish the conditions at Goodwood on Friday and he's one of two big-priced selections for Matt Brocklebank, who hit the bar with a 25/1 second on Thursday.
Recommended bets, Friday July 31
1pt win Wasmya in 1.45 Goodwood at 16/1
1pt e.w. Bless Him in 2.45 Goodwood at 16/1
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Battaash towers above the rest of the field in Friday’s King George Qatar Stakes and, like many punters no doubt, I gave up opposing him a while ago.
The odd blip is still evident – and it was only his penultimate appearance when finishing a long way behind the reopposing Glass Slippers as an odds-on shot in the Abbaye – but he looks fresh and fit again based on last month’s fantastic King’s Stand victory at Royal Ascot.
Goodwood suits him even better based on the past three editions of this race and he’s not one to be taking on despite the juicy prices being dangled about Glass Slippers and Liberty Beach.
The only angle worth suggesting is that Battaash was clearly looked after close home in last year’s race, something referred back to after his subsequent track record performance in the Nunthorpe at York, and it could be worth delving into the winning distances markets if desperate for an interest in the day four feature.
That’s not for this column, admittedly, but the Unibet Golden Mile Handicap is tailor-made and a great race to really get stuck into.
The first thing to note is that we’re not faced with the usual 20-strong field but regardless of that there is plenty of pace signed up, with Mark Johnston stablemates Vale Of Kent and Cardsharp kindly drawn in stalls three and five respectively.
They’re likely to be tracked by Urban Icon, who is a fascinating horse in his own right making his belated debut in handicap company from a mark of 109. He’d be interesting off a slightly lower mark and Sir Busker is another danger to all following a slightly unfortunate second in the Bunbury Cup, for which he’s been dealt a 5lb rise.
Minimising the chance of being unlucky in the run is one thing, but everything ultimately boils down to price and at 16/1 (William Hill 1/5 1,2,3,4) it’s worth chancing BLESS HIM gets the kind of dream passage enjoyed by Beat The Bon when winning 12 months ago, which isn't out of the question given there are 'only' 15 runners this time.
David Simcock’s horse hasn’t found his stride yet in two starts this term but the assessor has eased him a couple of pounds as a result and the strength of his handicap wins on fast ground over a mile at Yarmouth and Ascot last year is too good to ignore.
He beat the recent Prince Of Wales’s Stakes winner Lord North, plus Dubai Legacy, Chiefofchiefs and Seniority, at Ascot and that came on the back of a resounding success over Solid Stone and Arigato, who have also gone on to achieve greater things in 2020.
He’s still 8lb higher than for the most recent of those wins but has always had a significant touch of class and the sun shining from Thursday morning onwards will shift the going right into his ballpark.
That wasn’t the case at all when he trailed home 12th of 16 in the big 10-furlong handicap run in miserable weather at this meeting last year, and it’s a clear sign of his raw ability that he was due to run in the Group Two Lennox Stakes earlier this week before the rain put paid to that plan.
A strongly-run Golden Mile looks the ideal scenario in which he can come roaring back to form and the booking of a cool-headed, in-form Tom Marquand is a massive boost.
Wildly impressive Britannia Stakes winner Khaloosy – form that has already worked out really well since Ascot –looks to have scared off a few prospective rivals and he faces just four in the Bonhams Thoroughbred Stakes.
The race doesn’t appeal from a betting point of view and I’ll be leaving the l’Ormarins Queen’s Plate Glorious Stakes alone too, despite course winner Le Don De Vie coming close to making the cut.
Earlier on the card, One Master sets a warm standard in the Group Three Saint Clair Oak Tree Stakes but with the ground drying out a little too much for her, the six-year-old dual Group One winner is possibly one to oppose.
The one who stands out at the prices is WASMYA (16/1 General), who has seven and a half lengths to the find with the favourite on last year’s Foret running but might not have stopped improving just yet.
She made a pleasing return to action earlier this year when second behind subsequent Group Three winner Spinning Memories in a seven furlong Listed race at Longchamp and then didn’t seem to enjoy the straight mile in the Duke Of Cambridge at Royal Ascot.
The return to this trip on a speed-favouring track will definitely suit, her trainer Francis-Henri Graffard is absolutely on fire (5-13 in last fortnight) and James Doyle looks an interesting jockey for a filly owned by this meeting’s principal sponsor.
It’s not strictly relevant but French-based Francois Rohaut won the race three times on the trot from 2015 to 2017, while stall two should give her rider the chance to pick up a decent early position.
Posted at 1600 BST on 30/07/20
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