Things went more according to plan in this afternoon’s Prix du Jockey Club, when French 2,000 Guineas runner-up New Bay came with a strong late run to beat Highland Reel, who improved from his debut run behind the winner three … Read More »

Epsom’s ‘Breakfast with the Stars’ proved informative this morning. I am not a great judge of work, but to my eyes Elm Park looked the least well-suited to Epsom’s gradients, which is a surprise given his relatively compact physique. The … Read More »

Sometimes you see a maiden race that leaves you thinking it may be rather better than the norm, and for me this applied to the 1m 2f maiden run at Sandown on Thursday evening. The race was won by the … Read More »

The Derby picture didn’t really get any clearer today when Golden Horn, who does not currently hold an entry for Epsom, beat stable-companion Jack Hobbs and Elm Park emphatically in the Dante Stakes. The winner’s owner Anthony Oppenheimer has always … Read More »

The topsy-turvy Derby market took another hit this afternoon when Highland Reel ran a fairly lifeless race in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains at Longchamp. Aidan O’Brien’s colt was a leading fancy of mine for both the English Guineas and … Read More »

I have just returned from an informative but frustrating weekend at Newmarket. The feature of the meeting was the ground, which was as quick as I have known it. Starting with the 2,000 Guineas, Gleneagles was becoming increasingly restless in … Read More »

I am leaving for Newmarket on Saturday morning to see the first two Classics of the season. I have just finished writing my Online Preview – well over 3,000 words – featuring an in-depth analysis of the 1,000 and 2,000 … Read More »

Watching Channel 4 Racing on Friday, I wondered if there is any point in opposing John Gosden when he is in this sort of form early in the season. His horses go in like clockwork and he is now the … Read More »

Last week was one of those ‘in-between’ affairs where bookmakers don’t mind you thinking that things could so easily have been different because it means you’re more than likely to play again. No real damage was done because Leicester beat … Read More »

The Preview was written just prior to the final two PGA events, the Valero Texas Open and the Shell Houston Open, which precede The Masters. There follows an Update to include important news and respond to the form shown in … Read More »

I cannot remember a more uncertain look to the Classic scene as we are facing this spring, with the markets dominated by horses that have protected their credentials by staying at home. For example, Gleneagles is now as short as … Read More »

Cheltenham and Aintree are now both over and I start to concentrate on the Flat season. I have spent the past couple of weeks updating the site while going through a rebuild to enhance the experience for our web visitors. … Read More »