The horse racing broadcaster offers up his best bets for Friday's racing at Newmarket, where every race is sponsored by Betway.
A fully sponsored Betway card at Newmarket on Friday so a complete run through with five being shown on ITV. Fast ground will still be the order of the day, but there doesn’t look to be the tailwind that made the times very fast there last weekend.
Fillies are in the spotlight for the first three races, starting with the Listed Rosemary Stakes where ARISAIG 100/30 (13:15 Newmarket) can hopefully end a frustrating losing run. Her achilles heel is she needs a good pace to run at and has seldom had it in recent runs. She goes well at Newmarket where the uphill finish helps others that have often got first run to come back to her. She was placed in a stronger renewal of this race last season and her career record at Newmarket (including the July course) reads 433532. Her chief rival Estissa has a similar hold up run style so hopefully Jamie Spencer can time it right.
Last year’s winner of the Rosemary Stakes was Arasaig’s stable mate FRANCOPHONE 15/2 (13:50 Newmarket) and she can win again on the card in the Group 3 Princess Royal Stakes. She has largely contested Group 2’s since that victory but her run last time on her first try at 1m 4f looks to have opened up new avenues. That was over on the July Course where she chased home the promising Romantic Symphony, comfortably holding the rest. She was placed in the Musidora at three, so it is slightly surprising she had not tried 12f in the two years that followed. Inis Mor is the pick of the weights and with her stable finally ending a long losing sequence on Wednesday, if she was to run well then the Menuisier yard could be one to keep a close eye on.
The feature juvenile race of the day is the Group 2 Betway Rockfel Stakes over 7f where LIGHT OF DAWN 7/2 (14:25 Newmarket) represents very solid form lines. The Cheveley Park on Saturday is shaping up to be the race of the week, and she chased home both Libertango and Sun Goddess in the Albany at Royal Ascot and last time out won the Group 3 Prestige Stakes at Goodwood on her first attempt at 7f. At this stage she has achieved more than market leader Spirited Gesture, who has shown considerable promise but is priced on that potential rather than the worth of her form.
THE LOST KING 13/2 (15:00 Newmarket) fared far better than I expected on the deep ground at Haydock in the Superior Mile when needing another stride to catch Persica. With Audience and long striding Hankelow likely to force the pace, the drop back to 7f will hopefully not be a problem and I want to take on Talk Of New York who I am not certain is the easiest ride. He was set a task at Goodwood but I think that is because his rider was at pains to settle him and he effectively had a pacemaker to set things up for him when winning here in April and looks to take too much of the market.
A small but select field for the Listed Betway Godolphin race where Charlie Appleby saddles two unbeaten horses in Castlemont and Fortitudine. The latter is the choice of William Buick and given the exploits of the likes of Notable Speech, two wins at Kempton for this outfit always catches the eye. KOKBASTAU 10/11 (15:35 Newmarket) may have their measure though and has the battle-hardened experience of handicaps to call upon. He took a massive hike in the ratings for his win at Kempton but not only was that not enough to stop him at Sandown but he was value for more than the narrow winning margin having had to wait for a gap. That success off 102 will have forced connections hand to go down the Listed route and he looks a genuine Pattern race performer.
After the ITV cameras have stopped rolling there is a very different puzzle to solve in the Confined Maiden where not only must contestants not have won, but they can have run no more than twice. Harry Charlton is having a good season with his juveniles (5/35 A/E 1.49 with another 10 making the frame) and SENOR BLUES / (16:10 Newmarket) showed enough on his debut to suggest he can add to that tally. He made good late headway at Ascot on his debut as the penny began to drop and that race has worked out really well with fifth and ninth both winning next time out from only three to have subsequently run from the race. Rider Lewis Edmunds is also having a fine time (6/18 in the last 7 days).
Finally MYTHICAL GUEST / (16:45 Newmarket) looks to have dropped to a mark off which he can make his presence felt in the concluding Betway Bet 10 Get 40 Handicap over 1m 1f. He was only caught near the finish on the July Course in August off today’s mark of 78 and has placed off a fair bit higher here in the past over 10f and even though his losing streak has become a long one, his last victory was on the Rowley Mile in May 2024 off a higher mark (79) than he runs off today.
Visit Betway’s horse racing betting page.
