Bryan’s claim may make the difference

Although I was disappointed with El Vip last week, this was so clearly not his running that I think we shall recoup later in the season. Any line involving Oh This Is Us is very smart handicap form and I’m sure Luca Cumani will find out what went wrong and place El Vip to advantage. It was still a profitable weekend, thanks to Dream Berry’s second at 20/1 at Punchestown.

I love Goodwood and shall be there for the opening meeting this Saturday. At first sight I thought Henry Candy might have a double and I still believe QUEEN OF TIME should account for modest opposition in the maiden at 4.25. It’s possibly significant that the trainer is happy for her to take on the boys and the allowance is increased by the lad’s 3lb claim.

Stable-companion Vibrant Chords must also have a very fair chance in the preceding 5f dash, though rather too much may have been made of his unlucky run through at Newmarket first time up. He is in the right race here – the six-furlong handicap at Newmarket on Sunday looks very competitive and Doncaster on Saturday evening quite similar, whereas the Goodwood race is full of exposed handicappers. Three of them met at Windsor recently and I believe the fact that Josh Bryan takes over and claims 7lb on Andrew Balding’s DARK SHOT may make a crucial difference.

The only potential improver in the valuable 7f handicap is William Haggas’ ZWAYAAN and we should make him our starting point. My best outsiders in the race are Balding’s Make Music and, right at the bottom, Medburn Dream, who ran well at Windsor and is nicely treated when the promising David Egan claims his 7lb allowance.

It has not escaped my attention that the Qipco 2000 Guineas is the highlight at Newmarket, though I fail to see how anyone can be dogmatic about a race involving four unbeaten colts. If we’re really honest about it, anyone forced to name the winner with a great deal at stake would opt for Churchill, but there are obvious and not so obvious dangers. I think there is better value about Aidan’s WASHINGTON DC in the Palace House earlier on.