Former Talksport man Charlie McCann marks your card with six to follow on Saturday at Newbury and Newmarket. View selections below
There is a terrific card at Newbury on Saturday and Somewhat (2.05) can take the listed Washington Singer Stakes dropping down in grade having finished runner up in the Group 2 Superlative Stakes at Newmarket last month; leading French jockey Gerald Mosse takes the mount and the hope is that the colt, who is entered in all the major juvenile races this autumn, is allowed to stride on from the front. The most interesting opponent is the Godolphin newcomer Be Ready but this Derby entrant will have to be exceptional to win a Group 2 first time out.
Any significant rain would certainly help Aiken who is due to make a belated reappearance in the Geoffrey Freer and trainer John Gosden will be desperate to get a run into his son of Selkirk who will be fresher than most but does need rain; Red Cadeaux is the best horse in the race but has a 6lb penalty to shoulder and was not at his best in the King George and the vote goes to Biographer (2.40) who suggested at Ascot last time that he is at least as effective on good or fast ground as he is on the soft.
I am a massive fan of Hannon’s Montiridge and believe he is a Group 1 horse; with that in mind I think Tawhid (3.15), who finished behind Montiridge in his last couple of starts, can take the Hungerford Stakes for the classic generation who have landed the last three renewals of this Group 2 contest. Johnny Murtagh gets a rare ride for Godolphin but he is not a bad ally to have in the saddle.
Dance And Dance usually finds a way to lose but he remains extremely well handicapped for Ed Vaughan and Kieren Fallon takes over in the 7f handicap, but preference is for Born To Surprise (3.50) who is dropping down the weights and can race off a mark only 1lb lower than his last success; he is one who wouldn’t want any more significant rain for the Michael Bell yard whose stable are in decent form of late.
At Newmarket Kassiano (4.00) returns from a four-moth lay off and drops in grade for his British debut; last seen when down the field in the Dubai World Cup there is no question he is a very smart all-weather performer but can he transfer his tapeta form to turf? He gives weight away to his four rivals including the lightly-raced 3-y-o Mujazif who is another returning from a break.
Royal Dutch may have needed his last start and is a big danger in the concluding handicap but preference is for Hold On Tight (5.05) who was not suited by Windsor’s tight turns last time and will find this galloping track much more to her liking.
The form of her last couple of starts has certainly been franked in recent days and she must go close in a race in which the classic generation have won three of the last four renewals. The three-year-olds receive 10lbs weight for age from their elders at this time of the year and that might be the decisive factor.
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Be lucky
Charlie
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