Neil Morrice shares all of his best bets and tips from Saturday’s racing coming your way from Ascot, Catterick Bridge, Newton Abbot and Wolverhampton on 15/10/2022.
Check out Neil's video preview for Saturday's racing at Ascot below:
ASCOT
Race 1 Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup (Group 2)
No5 TRUESHAN (Nap)
Trainer: Alan King – Jockey: Hollie Doyle
TRUESHAN was a storming winner of this in 2021, and with underfoot conditions rank in his favour the six-year-old will be a tough nut for a host of doughty challengers to crack. His record weight-carrying performance in the Northumberland Plate has been succeeded by a very solid run behind Kyprios in the Goodwood Cup and a narrow defeat by the reopposing Coltrane in the Doncaster Cup. The Nap was possibly not at his best that day, and can bounce back to take the scalps of Aidan O’Brien’s Irish Cesarewitch winner WATERVILLE and St Leger hero ELDAR ELDAROV.
Prediction: 1st TRUESHAN, 2nd Waterville, 3rd Eldar Eldarov
Race 2 QIPCO BRITISH CHAMPIONS SPRINT (Group 1)
No1 ART POWER (Each Way)
Trainer: Tim Easterby – Jockey: David Allan
With only three outings under his belt this season there should be more to come from last year’s winner CREATIVE FORCE, who was beaten in a photo by stablemate NAVEL CROWN over course and distance in June (Platinum Jubilee Stakes) before troubling the judge behind Alcohol Free in the July Cup. Freshened up since that race, Creative Force can turn the tables on Naval Crown and is greatly respected.
KINROSS has proved a talisman for Ralph Beckett with his Pattern race hat-trick completed in comfortable fashion on very soft ground in the Prix de La Foret over seven furlongs at Longchamp. His last four races have happened at that distance, and he needs to prove he can be as good over shorter only two weeks since he last ran.
ROHAAN is a standing dish at this course with his only blemish coming in the corresponding race 12 months ago. The David Evans-trained gelding looked firmly back to his best when taking out the Bengough Stakes here a fortnight ago, a performance that brings him right into the argument.
VADREAM is another that finds her best form here, and though underwhelming in most of her starts this season could easily bounce back as a sexy exotics must-include.
Preference over all of these, however, is for the lightly-campaigned ART POWER, who took home a minor cheque in this 12 months ago but looked close to the top of his game when bolting up in a soft ground Group 3 at the Curragh. The grey entire loves to get his feet into the terrain and enjoys a middle draw from where his pilot can choose which side of the track to target.
Prediction: 1st ART POWER, 2nd Creative Force, 3rd Rohaan, 4th Kinross
Race 3 QIPCO BRITISH CHAMPIONS FILLIES & MARES STAKES (Group 1)
No2 ESHAADA (Each Way)
Trainer: Roger Varian – Jockey: Jim Crowley
ESHAADA sprang a 16-1 surprise in the 2021 running of the equivalent of the Filly And Mare Turf at the Breeders’ Cup. One or two of her foes could wing their way to Lexington for that prize if acquitting themselves well, and it would come as no surprise to see Australian champion VERRY ELEEGANT leaving behind the underwhelming form show in three outings for Francis Graffard in France.
EMILY UPJOHN has to put a thrashing in the King George here in July behind her, but if scoring a line through the run her Musidora win and short head second to Tuesday in the Oaks makes her a contender to be feared.
SEA LA ROSA has displayed a willing attitude in completing a fine hat-trick for William Haggas and will relish getting her toe into the ground.
LILAC ROAD is as honest as they come and gave it her all when narrowly denied by Sweet Lady in the Group 1 Prix Vermeille at Longchamp.
Godolphin relies on ETERNAL PEARL who bids to strengthen the solid record of three-year-olds in the contest. The daughter of Frankel looks the most upwardly mobile in the field and having cosily taken out Group 3s at Deauville and Newmarket needs respecting.
She’s the one who I predict will prove the main threat to ESHAADA going back-to-back. Roger Varian’s charge will have just a fourth start of the season and looked for all the world like a filly approaching her peak when second in the Park Hill at Doncaster.
Prediction: 1st ESHAADA, 2nd Eternal Pearl, 3rd Lilac Road, 4th Verry Elleegant
Race 4 QUEEN ELIZABETH II STAKES (Group 1)
No9 INSPIRAL
Trainer: John Gosden – Jockey: Frankie Dettori
While hesitant to dismiss her rivals straight off the bat, if INSPIRAL is as good as she’s looked when landing the Coronation Stakes (Group 1) over course and distance in June and the Group 1 Prix Jacques Le Marois at Deauville in August she could make hacks of the others under a confident Dettori. The daughter of Frankel possesses a scintillating turn of foot, will handle the ground and barring accidents should run out an uncomplicated winner.
JADOOMI looks to be the most progressive of the remainder, having amassed an unbeaten hat-trick in as many start for Simon Crisford in a Listed race in France and Group 2s at Goodwood and Leopardstown.
He’s another that relishes easy conditions and can beat MODERN GAMES to the runners-up spot. The latter chased home Baaeed in the Sussex Stakes and scored just as he liked in a conditions race in Canada. He’s a candidate to be on the plane to Kentucky if acquitting himself well here.
Prediction: 1st Inspiral, 2nd Jadoomi, 3rd Modern Games
Race 5 QIPCO CHAMPION STAKES (Group 1)
No2 BAAEED
Trainer: William Haggas – Jockey: Jim Crowley
Racing writers have run out of superlatives to describe unbeaten BAAEED, who is, without doubt, the best horse we’ve seen since the incomparable Frankel, winner of this on his swan song in 2012. It’s the same story for William Haggas’s champion, who will retire to stud as the winner of eleven races unless there is a catastrophe lying in wait.
His Group 1 sequence of the Lockinge, Queen Anne, Sussex and Juddmonte International Stakes this year stamps the son of Sea The Stars as something out of the ordinary, and his crushing defeat of Mishriff when stepped up in trip at York will go down as one of the visually finest performances ever seen in a Group 1.
Connections made a correct decision is swerving the temptation of stepping him up to a mile and a half in the Arc, and the four-year-old will receive a hero’s send-off if, as expected, he outclasses his foes.
Charlie Appleby reckons he has last year’s Cazoo Derby and King George winner ADAYAR back to near his best following a readying success at Doncaster, while Sir Michael Stoute’s BAY BRIDGE had excuses when out of the money on the Eclipse, and could prove the closest pursuer to BAAEED if back on song.
Prediction: 1st BAAEED, 2nd Bay Bridge, 3rd Adayar
Race 6 Balmoral Handicap
No5 JOHAN (Each Way)
Trainer: Mick Channon – Jockey: David Egan
It will take a horse with a touch of class to prevail in a wickedly competitive nightcap, and one that fits the bill is JOHAN. After a change of stables, the five-year-old ran right away with the Lincoln and has been conspicuous in his absence with only two subsequent outings this year. He wasn’t beaten far, even though last in the Group 2 Sandown Mile, and ran well to a point in a Class 2 at Doncaster. His trainer has targeted this race, and a big run is in the offing.
It’s logical to go wide in the perms for Bipots and Jackpots and those that most interest me to earn apart from the main pick are BLUE FOR YOU, ORBAAN and MIGRATION.
CATTERICK BRIDGE
Race 6 No12 SWEET FANTASY (Nap)
Trainer: Ralph Beckett – Jockey: Hector Crouch
Beckett is sending SWEET FANTASY on a long journey in order to open the account of the daughter of Wootton Bassett. After near misses in each of her last four starts, the three-year-old should have too many guns for her mainly older rivals.
NEWTON ABBOT
Race 3 No1 UMBRIGADO
Trainer: David Pipe – Jockey: Tom Scudamore
UMBRIGADO returned from nine months off following further win surgery to chase home Mr Yeats here last month. He travelled with purpose until blowing up on a first outing in 10 months and will be sharper.
Race 8 No4 AMERICAN LAND (Nap)
Trainer: Joe Tizzard – Jockey: Brendan Powell
AMERICAN LAND placed in a Dromore bumper on his only start in Ireland before being purchased to continue his career in the UK. He’s looked the part in his work ahead of this intriguing clash with much-vaunted newcomer Mullins Bay.
WOLVERHAMPTON
Race 6 No5 SATONO JAPAN
Trainer: Sir Michael Stoute – Jockey: Rhys Clutterbuck
The visored SATONO JAPAN comes with risks attached, but his trainer keeps persevering with the five-year-old who has not added to his debut success at Kempton in the autumn of 2019. He’s undoubtedly a bit of a thinker, but if on a going day can give market leader Sonnerie Power plenty to think about.
Race 8 No8 CAPTAIN HOWSE (Nap)
Trainer: Sir Mark Prescott – Jockey: Luke Morris
The Arc-winning team of Prescott and Morris can take out the nightcap courtesy of Australia gelding CAPTAIN HOWSE. His last five outings have yielded figures of 22212, and with everything else in the field out of form he is a logical choice.
