I plain love racing at Doncaster, there, I said it. It is one of the fairest tracks around, with a wide stretched course, long and never ending straight, and the roar of the crowd near the finish line, it is a proper northern track. There looks to be some pretty good racing there surprisingly enough for a Sunday afternoon, and an abundance of tough handicaps to sink our teeth into. Let's give it a shot.
The first race is an apprentice handicap, and strangely enough a race where there isn't a single course and distance winner in the field. Over the extended mile and three quarters, in soft ground, the trip will require some hardy staying performance. Mick Channon has started the season well, but yet to have a winner so far at Doncaster, two ducks can be broken here with HANDLES FOR FORKS, still a maiden after seven runs, but he has shown significant promise in races last year. Running around two miles, he is dropped down, and tried on soft ground for the first time. A son of Hawk Wing, his offspring usually get better with age, and he could spring a surprise at quite a hefty price.
BIOGRAPHER will probably go off around a skinny price at around the even money mark, but looks very difficult to get beat in the mile and a half maiden. A well bred son of Montjeu, will love the soft ground, and the form of his first run was franked yesterday with Opinion winning a good handicap at Sandown under Ryan Moore.
Another maiden, but a whole different ball game entirely, with a 20 strong field, and some lofty connections bringing some extremely well bred specimens to the table. Horses from the Bell, Brown, Ryan, Godolphin yard make up the top end of the market, but it could be worth taking a chance on COLUMELLA with William Haggas and the eyecatching booking of Frankie Dettori, both of whom have great records around Town Moor. A well bred daughter to Kyllachy, the filly is also a sister to star two year old filly Memory, and given how well the stable are performing, with another winner yesterday (tipped on up on the blog I hasten to add), she makes most appeal, at expected double figure prices.
It is far too early to be writing off SHAHZAN for the Roger Varian yard, after the colt made an eye catching maiden victory over course and distance last month. The Dansili colt demonstrated a game attitude to win that day when pressed by Milika (won next time out), and the form has been bolstered with the seventh and eighth that day also coming out and winning next time out. He disappointed last time out on firm ground at Haydock, when not seeing out the step up in trip, and he should benefit from a return to conditions here.
A horse that may see buckets of money come for is the newly emerging Burke yard, famous for the Hunt Ball exploits, and their horses have a terrific record when signing up the services of one Martin Harley, buoyed with confidence after his first classic win in The Irish 1000 Guineas. They are 2/2 in June and have new recruit DUKE OF ARICABEAU in the seven furlong handicap, and looks an intruiging prospect, having been bought from the Mick Easterby yard. He showed gradual progress in maidens, before being heavily backed in two handicap runs (fourth and second), and looks open to further progression.
The David O' Meara stable are flying at the moment, in particular in middle distance handicaps in the north. The 4.40, a Class 4 handicap over a mile looks to have their fingerprints all over it, and it would be no shock to see INGLEBY EXCEED bounce back from his reappearance at York last month. The filly was 18 of 20 that day, but wasn't knocked about, and only lost by 14 lengths, on her first run 261 days. The fifth has come out and won, and ninth that day Dolphin Rock ran a screamer to finish third at York yesterday. The stable are flying, with a 10/1 winner at York yesterday, and the horse won well last season, the run after its seasonal reappearance.
2.00 Doncaster - Handles For Forks (Ew)
3.35 Doncaster - Shahzan (Ew)
4.10 Doncaster - Duke of Aricabeau (Ew)
4.40 Doncaster - Ingleby Exceed (Ew)
The Yorkshireman - Jack Milner (@JJMSports)
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