A Day To Forget

Saturday was a day to forget for Paul Nicholls - out of 14 runners across 3 meetings he was only able to manage 3 third places and there will be some long faces down at Ditcheat.
If we look back to last season Nicholls was a standing dish every Saturday from the beginning of November onwards and on this corresponding day he picked up 4 winners at Aintree, Sandown and Chepstow.
I'm not sure exactly what is wrong with his Saturday runners at the moment - Southfield Theatre was beaten a long long way out and you couldn't put that down to just the going being softer than ideal - he surely should have been more competitive than that. I thought Vibrato Valtat was a bit free on the way to the start as he seemed to run away with Sam Twiston Davies. In the race itself he had it set up for him if he was good enough to win - but he wasn't and it was a disappointing run.

As I said in Friday's post I was at Aintree yesterday and there were some top performances. I was particularly impressed with the Irish runner Jer's Girl in the first race who was up against Alan King's duo Forgiving Close and Mystery Code. Apart from this race Alan King only had 1 other national hunt runner yesterday and that was at Sandown in Simply A Legend who won. This listed race has only been run 3 times and King won it in both 2012 and 2014 and was 2nd in 2013 - so he meant business. Despite that Jer's Girl brushed them aside like they weren't there and was eased down for a 10 length success and she is a horse that you need to keep on the right side of in future engagements.
The race itself was run in honour of Everton FC great Howard Kendall and part of the winning prize for the trainer was a signed EFC shirt by all the current players - however they didn't bank on Gavin Cromwell being a Liverpool supporter and he was cheekily asked by Gordon Brown if he could have the shirt for a fiver, Cromwell responded by saying he could have it for two quid!!

Nick Williams, regular as clockwork, farms the month of December. Tea For Two ran away for an impressive 10 length win for Lizzie Kelly the day before at Exeter in a Class 2 novice chase and Williams third runner of the month, Agrapart, won the Class 3 hurdle and in doing so doubled the winning distance of Tea For Two for Lizzie Kelly and he looks a decent sort.

Onto Sunday now and both the trainers we are following have runners

Dan Skelton
Huntingdon
12.50 - Bon Chic doesn't want it overly soft and was withdrawn when it was heavy a few weeks back. She is said to perform better on good but despite that she ran on soft at Ascot first time out and performed with credit to finish 2nd to Thomas Brown which the stable were happy with. The plan is to campaign her with the Listed mares novice chase final at Cheltenham in April in mind. Harry Skelton takes over today and although it's soft ground again the race doesn't look like it will take a great deal of winning and looks a match between her and Kalane but is not one for a bet as she is too short. 2nd - Bon Chic came up against what could turn out to be a useful prospect in Kalane and was unable to go with her,

2.00 - Al Ferof has been a top performer over the years with Paul Nicholls and starts afresh here. Dan Skelton reports that his preparation has gone smoothly and his record first time out is good. The going shouldn't be a problem and he has a good wins to runs ratio. Although his last two wins came in the Amlin Chase at Ascot he missed that to avoid meeting Vautour and he comes up against the Amlin second Ptit Zig. The chances are he will improve for the run but Skelton knows him well from his days with Nicholls and whatever happens his next race will be the King George. 1st - Started the season with another win for this popular grey who was always in control when he got to the front. Next stop King George.

Paul Nicholls
Huntingdon
2.00 - Ptit Zig was a Grade 1 hurdle winner but chasing was always been the long term plan and he won 4 chases on the bounce between November and January last season. Consequently he started this season on a rating of 157 and he went over to Down Royal in the Grade 2 Powers Irish Whiskey Chase over 2m 4f on yielding to soft. Paul Nicholls thinks he will stay 3m. The initial plan for the first half of the season had been the King George but that appears to have been revised to this race. He has a tendency to jump out to his right and his jumping was a bit sketchy at Down Royal and Ascot last time out. He did well against Vautour though at Ascot as he was 12lb inferior ratings wise and he was also conceding 5lbs and at one point it looked as though he may win. His job isn't as difficult here and the biggest problem may be a lack of confidence following yesterday's dismal results, but he looks the one to beat. Fell - Ptit Zig was hesitant at nearly every fence and lost ground, when thrown at the last he hit it hard and came down. This will have dented his confidence even more and any King George ideas will probably be shelved now. If he is to make it in this grade then he needs to jump more fluently. 

2.35 - Lac Leman wears a hood for the first time but Nicholls is not averse to reaching for the various types of head gear and he must use them more than any other trainer in the UK. Lac Leman ran just the once last season finishing 4th of 9 in a Claas 4 novice hurdle at Taunton on soft. He ran very free and pulled hard there and it is hoped that the hood will calm him down and that the breathing operation he has had in the interim will help. We have seen several of Nicholls novices this season come out and win well after having initial problems last season but this is a fair old race and may not prove as easy to pick off. - 4th

Kelso
12.30 - Silsol ran 4 times last season winning twice at Newbury and Ffos Las on soft and heavy so has no trouble with conditions and bids for a 3 timer in 4 weeks while the going is in his favour. He is the highest rated hurdler Nicholls has sent chasing this year. He is solid, dependable and jumps well and the plan has always been to campaign him in the north as the stable are high in the novice chase department. He won on his return at Carlisle beating Maximiser and today's rival Seeyouatmidnight and he is 10lb worse off with him so has it all to do.

2.15 - Vivaldi Collonges is said to stay forever and this trip may prove too short on his return. Nicholls is confident he will win races this season but I think it will be on another day and I'm giving him a miss this time. 1st

Bets

I am concious that my bets aren't going too well but they are limited to the two stables that we are following. Im going to give some thought as to how I can improve things and I may look at putting up some horses from other stables in addition.

Ptit Zig - 1 point win at 9/4 with 888sport

Friday Again!!

I was pretty much bang on with my stable horse appraisals yesterday and there are 7 runners today to look at below :

Dan Skelton
Ascot - Soft, good to soft in places. There doesn't appear to be any further rain due.
1.30 - Bon Chic was due to run at Wincanton yesterday but was taken out because of the heavy going and presumably she doesn't want it overly soft and performs better on good so that is a big negative today. The stables early plan is to campaign her with the Listed mares novice chase final at Cheltenham in April in mind. Her jockey Robert Dunne only has a 3% strike rate this season and she is one for another day when the going is more in her favour.

2.40 - Squire Trelawney has been with the stable a while but his first win from 7 starts for them came last time out at Wincanton in a 6 runner Class 4 novices limited handicap chase over 2m 4f on good. He has been off for 557 days prior to that win so there may be a "bounce" factor to consider. He has gone up 6lb for that win and is on a workable mark of 114c which brings him into this Class 3 on bottom weight of 10-1 which is Ryan Mahon's lowest riding weight in last 12 months. The stable thought he would improve for the run pre race last time even though he had done a lot of work. He is a sound jumper who should appreciate the softer going, longer distance and stiffer track. Of his opponents Tenor Nivernais and Garrahalish are back down to their last winning marks,

Haydock - Soft, heavy in places. There are patches of rain in the area at present.
1.55 - Welsh Shadow is another from the stable that is highly thought of being related to Celestial Gold and he won his bumper by 7 lengths beating Duelling Banjo's who won the Class 4 novices hurdle at Kempton recently. He was comprehensively beaten by Champion Bumper 4th Yanworth, who has since won again, on his first run back at Exeter in a Class 3 2m1f novices hurdle on soft going. He remains at a similar distance in this Class 1 Listed race and the stable will be hoping of a better showing here on his second run back as I would imagine they have aspirations of the festival with this horse but odds on ain't for me.

3.05 - Baratineur was a dual bumper winner in France on soft and heavy going. He is said to have a shown a lot of speed and ability at home. Returned at Huntingdon in a Class 5 maiden hurdle over 2m on good going finishing 4th behind Great Hall. He failed to settle and pulled hard and it is hoped the first race has taken out some of the fizz and brought him on too.

Paul Nicholls
Haydock
1.20 - Solar Impulse has won twice from 13 starts for Paul Nicholls so he doesn't win as regular as some in the stable. That said he is on a fairly stiff chase mark of 149c due to consistent form in good company running with smart novice form with Josses Hill, Three Kingdoms and Monetaire. The stable have chosen to go down the graduation chase route and that works in his favour today as he is favourably weighted with his two opponents - ie Doctor Phoenix would be 13lb better off in a handicap, however his trainer is excited by his potential and that's why he may be prepared to overlook the weight disadvantage. As Solar Impulse is still only 5 he is open to further improvement however Paul Nicholls was saying about 12 days ago that he was "a bit behind the others at present". He has had a breathing operation and will need the run and I personally think the stable are a bit confused as to what his ideal conditions are as he 's back over 2m here on soft against two horses that have a race fitness edge - the cheek pieces are also re employed. The Tizzard stable had the runaway winner in this race last season in Third Intention as I was there and I remember it being a particularly "bad day at the office"for Sam Twiston Davies - so Kings Lad could hand out some more punishment on going that he will like as Doctor Phoenix will try to make this a test.

1.55 - Marracudja had a breathing operation over the summer. After his run at Doncaster last December he was put away. He duly rewarded patience when he made a comfortable winning return at Wincanton on 25th October in a Class 4 national hunt novices hurdle. He then followed up that win at the same course in a Class 3 national hunt novices hurdle over 2m on soft winning by a comfortable 9 lengths He.jumps well, possesses speed and a flat track probably suits, that said he probably doesn't want it too soft so the going may be going against him. He is progressing well and the stable are looking forward to his 2m chasing career already. - NON RUNNER

2.30 - Silsol ran 4 times last season winning twice at Newbury and Ffos Las on soft and heavy so he should have no trouble with conditions here. He is the highest rated hurdler Nicholls has sent chasing this year and the stable think there is more scope for progress in this code, particularly on soft ground. There are no frills with this horse he is solid and dependable and jumps well and the plan has always been to campaign him in the north as the stable are high in the novice chase department. He won on his return at Carlisle beating a couple of good horses and he should have come on a bit for the run. However he faces two decent rivals here in Minella Rocco and Private Malone but Silsol's race fitness should give him the edge on going he likes.

Bets 

Squire Trelawney 0.50 points ew @ 11/2 with Bet365, BetVictor and William Hill
Silsol 1 point win @ 7/4 with several bookmakers
Baratineur 0.50 points ew @ 7/1 with several bookmakers

Piling On The Pressure!

A very sad day for racing yesterday with the passing of Pat Eddery who wass one of the best jockeys that I have been fortunate to watch in my lifetime.
A strong jockey he was someone, as a punter, you could have every confidence in to deliver the goods and as a role model he was a racing icon you could aspire to be - he will be greatly missed by many.
He rode in some great races - not least the Bustino(Mercer) v Grundy(Eddery) match which is probably best remembered through the words of another legend Sir Peter O'Sullivan :
"As they race towards the furlong pole it's Bustino and Grundy together, then comes Dahlia and On My Way. Bustino on the far side, Grundy on the near side. The 3yo and the 4yo as they race into the final 150 yards and it's Grundy going on from Bustino and Dahlia and On My Way. Bustino is fighting his way back but Grundy is holding him and as they come to the line Grundy wins it!".

There was no change on the luck front yesterday - I ignored the two Skelton runners at Lingfield and they both won ! - albeit the second of those Arthamint was disqualified because David England, his jockey, weighed in 1.5lbs light. The explanation was that he had gone down to the start early and must have sweated it off - but that said he won well in this small field and he is a winner without a penalty.

Onto today and Bangor with just the two runners for Dan Skelton.
Paul Nicholls had several entered up at Exeter but they have presumably been taken out because of the heavy going.

Bangor - Soft, going stick 6.1 - will probably remain so as showers forecast in the area.
2.00 - What A Good Night would have won three on the trot last season but for falling when well clear at Southwell. His dam was an unraced half sister to 2003 Hennessy winner Strong Flow(OR140). He sounds a bit of a character that needs strong handling but  he is an improving sort. That said he's been let down by his jumping on occasions not least last time out when he fell at the last with the race at his mercy. He's gone up 7lb since that race and therefore he is now 16lb higher than his last win which seems a bit harsh. He also steps up two classes here to Class 2 which is the highest grade he has ever run in and that will no doubt put more pressure on his jumping ability. The stable are testing the water, it would seem, but he has race fitness on most of the the field which paid with the stables Rock Of Leon yesterday. His price is currently between 5/1 and 15/2 so there is a range of thought as to what his prospects are.
4.00 - Mister Kalanisi is returning from a long break and is probably best watched.

No Bets today

Form or Luck!!

Whilst I appreciate there is a large element of form to horse racing it sometimes falls down to just luck.
I've been putting up bets on the Nicholls and Skelton stables over the last few weeks but things haven't been going too well and that has been compounded over the last few days.
On Saturday I went for Nicholls All Yours only for a deluge of rain to hit the track and for the stables mud loving Irving, who was said to need the run, bounding clear to win. I also went for Skeltons Upepito only for him to fall when seemingly going better than anything.
Yesterday, as a result of that, I did't bother with either of Nicholls runners, although I gave them a good write up, and what happens they both win!!.....when your lucks in its in.

Not to be deterred by mere luck we are back into the fray today as Nick Skelton has five runners. He did have one yesterday but I left it alone as he made little mention of it in several stable tours.

Dan Skelton
Huntingdon - The going has dried up overnight from Soft to Soft - good to soft in places.
1.10 - Herons Heir won a 7 runner bumper in Ireland on his first run and on the back of that was thrown straight into a Listed bumper at Ascot finishing 7th of 9. His next and final run was in a novice hurdle at Newbury when he finished 5th behind Cole Harden but the trainer readily admitted that it was his fault that the horse didn't perform to his capabilities in either race. He drops back to 2m here, which could be his ideal trip, and he must be settling better now as the stable haven't reached for any head gear. Dan Skelton has, a lot of time for this horse and although he's been off for 664 days he could figure prominently against the likes of Camborne and Younevercall and he's worth an ew.

2.10 - Calculated Risk has come from John Quinn's stable and is probably best watched on his stable debut. Having owned a share in Lil Rockerfeller when he was with Middleham Park I am keen to see how he gets on after his promising run last time out as the going and track should be perfect for him.

2.40 - Notnowsam joined the yard earlier in the year from Noel Quinlan and was quickly off the mark at Warwick - being well placed to win a Class 4 Novice Handicap Chase over 2m on Good to Soft. He jumped well that day and won in a respectable time. Having only run 11 races under rules and still being a 4yo he is open to improvement. He returned over fences at Wetherby 4 weeks ago finishing 2nd to Oliver's Gold when he was headed with a 150 yards to go for which he has gone up 2lb to 124c. There are no cheekpieces employed today and the easier going should suit and he has a favourites chance of winning.

Lingfield
1.00 - Rock Of Leon ran three times over the jumps last season winning first time out at Fontwell when scraping home after idling having looked set to win by further. He was tried in a Grade 2 next time out at Haydock but he wasn't up to it. The stable think there is definitely more to come and he was pitched straight into a handicap hurdle off 124h first time out this season at Stratford when he finished 5th of 11 after being unable to quicken between the last two hurdles. The heavy going may be more than he cares for but he has won on soft. He's been dropped 1lb and whilst he has a fitness advantage on a lot of the field he dropped away tamely last time and may need to come down a bit further in the handicap to find a winning opportunity.

3.30 - Arthamint won a maiden bumper at Ludlow last December but then never progressed from there in 3 runs. He returned at Ludlow a few weeks ago where he finished 6th after pulling hard. He is said to be more of a chasing prospect but the stable will look to try and win a hurdle. He has had a breathing operation but it hasn't had any significant effect to his form. He's gone up 2lb for finishing 2nd in a Class 5 last time at Uttoxeter when he kept on to take that position in the last 100 yards. He's not one of the stable stars and although I may be wrong I cant see him winning.

Bets
Notnowsam 1 point win @ 11/4 Coral, William Hill and Betvictor
Herons Heir 0.50 points ew @ 8/1 with most firms

I will be having a look at the Paddy Power Chase later this afternoon and I think there is one that's worth a decent ew punt. Plus there's Exeter, Ayr and Bangor tomorrow to look forward to.

Good Luck - we certainly need it !!

Disappointing Weekend ???

I went to Aintree on Saturday and whilst not winning a retirement fortune I did manage to pick up some information once having paid the extortionate £25 to get in!!

It was great to see Bobs Worth and Simonsig dominating the finish of the Class 2 Betfair Hurdle but not so great that there was no depth of entry to make this race more than a "run out" for the Henderson duo - there was after all £18,768.00 to the winner!!
That was compounded by there being not one northern entry - surely someone had something in that rating band that they could have run - it was penalty kick waiting to happen!
After the race I offered my congratulations to Nicky as he couldn't have hoped for a better result. It was clear afterwards that Simonsig wont be contesting a 3m chase any time soon and that was confirmed by Henderson, although had he had a bit more company on the way round he may have been able to reserve more energy for the finish. He had been off  the track for 970 days and you also have to take into account that this was still only his tenth race under rules and off those ten he has only had three races over fences which culminated in his Arkle win in 2013.
Bobs Worth now heads for the Hennessy, although there will be a jockey issue as Nico de Boinville will ride Coneygree.

Venetia Williams was at the track and she enjoyed success through the mare Pepite Rose in the Class 2 Handicap chase over 2m 4f who ran away with the event. It was a top weight carrying effort by the only mare in the line up and this was her "Gold Cup" it would seem. Upepito though was yet to be asked a serious question and the large weight concession would surely have told up the straight and compensation awaits for him.

Broxbourne had been targeted at the mares hurdle on the Wincanton card but missed that to run at Aintree instead and the tip should have been taken, albeit Henderson had warned previously that soft ground wouldn't help her cause - but trainers "what do they know". She didn't appear to mind the soft going and she too won well whilst the stables Caracci Apache, who looked great in the paddock, suffered a mid race injury in his contest.

I'm partial to having a bet in a bumper and I particularly like the festival one. There were some nice lookers on Saturday namely Golden Investment and The Fresh Prince and they should pay their way as the season progresses and once they jump a fence - but they all played second fiddle to the more experienced Mahlerdramatic.

There is a lot to look forward to this week with Cheltenhams three day Open meeting commencing on Friday and the word "soft" looks odds on to figure in the going description. Tomorrow I will try and come up with a couple of long price ew selections for the Paddy Power Gold Cup and Greatwood Hurdle.

Onto today and there are a couple of entries for Paul Nicholls at Carlisle. Dan Skelton withdrew both his runners yesterday as I don't think his horses are running consistently at present. 

Paul Nicholls
Carlisle
The going is heavy, soft in places and the rain continues to pummel the north and I would imagine this very stiff track will take no prisoners today and some odd results may ensue.

1.45 - Silsol ran 4 times last season winning twice at Newbury and Ffos Las on soft and heavy so he should have no trouble with conditions today or staying the distance. Paul Nicholls says he may need the run but he said that last year and he came out and won  - a bit like Irving on Saturday! I believe he is the highest rated hurdler Nicholls sends chasing this year and the stable think there is more scope for progress in this code, particularly on soft ground. There are no frills with this horse he is solid and dependable and jumps well and the plan has always been to come north as the stable are high in the novice chase department. He is up against two similar types here in Seeyouatmidnight and Maximiser and it will be no walk in the park. In addition Sam Twiston Davies may be low on confidence at present as he has only ridden 6 winners in the last 14 days all of which were fav.

2.50 - Salubrious was a Grade 1 performer over hurdles and won the Martin Pipe at the festival in 2013 off a mark of 141h. That said Nicholls wasn't overly impressed with his initial handicap rating of 153c following his Fontwell win on his sole chase start prior to injury last season and that has now been reduced to 148c. He is said to be in good form but given the injury, today's attritional going and the fact that he hasn't run for 402 days you couldn't back him with any confidence and Blakemount's previous run out may swing the balance in his favour.

It's All Go !!

We went very close to a decent place punt with Crockery at Chepstow on Wednesday but unfortunately it wasn't to be.

Just a couple of runners for the Dan Skelton stable tomorrow and none for team Nicholls now until Saturday. Things seem to have slowed down a bit with the Skelton horses as they are not firing as good as they were a couple of weeks ago but that said they had a winner yesterday in Willows Saviour who was returning from a long lay off.

Towcester
1.20 - Toby Lerone returns to the fray in a novices hurdle over 2m 4f 217y. He was 4th in a handicap hurdle here on his third start last season off the same mark so I wouldn't expect too much. He was 2nd to Broadway Buffalo in the Tommy Whittle at Haydock and BB went on to finish 2nd to Cause Of Causes off an 8lb higher mark in the National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham. Toby Lerone missed the cut in the Irish National. He is a lover of soft ground and staying is his forte and I would imagine this is a prelude to other targets as his chase rating is 128c. The early season plan would be to contest a race at Ascot the week before Christmas as he seems to perform better at right handed tracks. There is no head gear on for this and as the going is good he may be tapped for a bit of toe.

2.55 - Beautiful Gem has been given time to mature hence the 565 days off. Although she finished 6th of 8 to Blaklion she has not set the world alight in her two previous runs and it looks as though she will ultimately end up chasing.

There are no bets tomorrow.

That Monday Morning Feeling !

Well although I didn't put up a selection on Saturday I steered you towards two winners in Adrakhan at 9/4 and Work In Progress 8/11F both trained by Dan Skelton. When I updated the blog on Saturday the latter was at least available at 7/4 so it gets us back in a positive state of mind.

I'm not sure Paul Nicholls is in a positive state of mind at the moment as since Abidjan and Simon Squirrel won his results have been 273B2PP84115476124P3. The three winners were each a little bit fortunate in that the main rivals fell in two of the contests and in the other there was a dubious reverse in placings by the Stewards. Nicholls will be hoping his fortunes take an upturn as we approach November as he now says the plan has always been to have them ready for then and he has plenty entered up this week at Exeter and Cheltenham.

I would imagine the mood is a bit different over in Warwickshire where Dan Skelton form figures read 4F343370434127215122135P221. That's five wins and six seconds from 16 runners since 14th October so he is really moving into top gear. He set himself a target of 50 winners last season and picked up 73 and this season the stable have ambitions to train a 100 winners. They only have ten runners entered up to this Friday at Cheltenham, several of which we haven't seen so far this season so it will be interesting to see how they get on.

Neither stable has any runners today and I will post a further blog later on when I know which horses have been declared for tomorrow.

Looking Ahead

The Prix De L'Abbaye is a race I've often missed seeing on television as it's usually run before 1.00pm BST.... but not this year. This years running takes place at 3.40pm and it will be the race after the Arc which has been moved forward to 2.55pm.
Twenty Four horses remain in the line up of which only TWO are French and the fav Mecca's Angel will be in receipt of 4lb from the colts.
Paddy Power have actually pushed her out to 100/30 from 3/1 - (so time to invest some more if you can) - but it looks as though they have intentionally skewed the market in order to try and get their own Sole Power closer to the head as they have him at 4/1 (7's with Ladbrokes) - unfortunately guys the price wont make him go any faster !
My each way selection Maarek has been cut into 14's from 20s by Paddy Power but you can still get 16's with Coral, Skybet and 888Sport.

Rangali, one of the two French runners is interesting, he was 2nd beaten a head by Move In Time in last years race when he was a 3yo. Total Gallery was the last 3yo winner in 2009 and prior to that it was Carmine Lake in 1997. 
Rangali went off at 16/1 last year and was a length clear with a 100 yards to go before being pipped on the line and the chances are his season will have been geared towards running well here once again. There is however a bit of confusion between the bookmakers as to what price he should be - he is generally 20/1, but Ladbrokes and others have him at 16's, whilst Coral stick their neck out at 33's.

As of yesterday the going remained Good to Soft, although officials expect it to be Good by Sunday.
Hopefully we will have some quotes from connections over the coming days and I will do another post then.

RANGALI - 0.25 point each way @ 33/1 with Coral

Prix de l'abbaye

Sunday sees this years running of the main French Group 1 sprint race the Prix de l'abbaye at Longchamp.

Last season Move In Time was successful for David O'Meara in a time of 56.42s and become the 28th British trained winner of the race in 40 odd years and his own record at the track now reads 2211.
His latest win came on 13th September in the Group 3 Qatar Prix Du Petit Convert at the expense of Gengis and old rival Mirza (1051573) in 2nd and 3rd in a time of 57.30s. The previous years running of that race saw Mirza beat Move In Time by half a length in a faster run race (55.68s) on going described as Good.

The going is often given as very soft/heavy at Longchamp although the times never seem to reflect that - unless the distance is slightly shorter than 5f.

This year there are the usual number of British contenders to take on their French counterparts and although the draw often plays a big part in this race it may be wise to have a bet now and then have another look nearer the time.

Mecca's Angel would appear to have an outstanding chance  for Michael Dods. She ran at the course back in May in the Group 3 Prix Du Saint George and won by a comfortable 2 lengths on going described as Good to Soft in a time of 55.24s, she was drawn in stall 11 and Maarek the 2013 Prix de l'abbaye winner finished in 4th.

The last horse to win from a double figure draw was Marchand D'or in 2008 - stall 20 so Mecca's Angel comfortable win from stall 11 in May looks even better with that in mind.

Her Jockey as usual will be Paul Mulrennan who recently spoke to Attheraces about her chances "She's in great condition and I'm really looking forward to it. They're calling the ground soft at the moment and hopefully it stays like that. The ground should be perfect for her, you've got to remember she broke the track record out there on good ground. As long as it's good or good to soft and as long as there's no jar we'll be going there next week and we couldn't be happier with her - we all saw how good she was at York. Her coat is great, her weight is good and she was jumping out of her skin. It's hard to believe she only won a Group One a few weeks ago, all credit to Michael, he's been keeping a lid on her."

At a best price of 3/1 with several bookmakers she looks well worth a bet to follow up her Group 1 Nunthorpe win on what is likely to be her favoured going.

An outsider could be 2013 winner Maarek who finished with a rattle behind Mecca's Angel in  May and this Pivotal gelding is also well served by going on the soft side. Granted a reasonable draw the 20/1 currently quoted by Paddy Power could be too high.

Mecca's Angel - 1 point win
Maarek - 0.5 point each way

Next Up !

After the big meeting at Ayr with it's Gold, Silver and Bronze cups the next big race on the British sprint calendar is the the Coral Sprint Trophy at York on Saturday 10th 0ctober 2015 at which the cup races run at Ayr usually have a say in the outcome. 
Spinatrix has been at the top of the handicap with a mark of 105 for the last two years - winning last year. 
Here are a few more facts to wet your appetite over the coming weeks :

Draw Record last 7 years :
2014 : 9, 4, 16, 6 ( 19 ran) Good to Soft - Connor Beasley (3) - Winning Time : 1m 13.26s
2013 : 4, 13, 3, 14 (19) Good - P J McDonald
2012 : 14, 8, 9, 20 (14) Soft
2011 : 19, 6, 10, 18 (20) Good
2010 : 15, 8, 2, 4 (20) Soft
2009 : 9, 13, 17, 4 (20) Good
2008 : No Race
Age of Winner : 6, 6, 8, 3, 5, 4
Weight of Winner : 9.7 (2014)
Result :
2014 : 1st Spinatrix, 2nd Highland Acclaim, 3rd Another Wise Kid, 4th Rene Mathis
2013 : 1st Mass Rally, 2nd Seeking Magic, Hallelujah, 4th Jimmy Styles
2012 : 1st Regal Parade, 2nd Louis The Pious, 3rd Sirius Prospect, 4th Misplaced Fortune
2011 : 1st Sirius Prospect, 2nd Kaldoun Kingdom, 3rd Racy, 4th Sioux Rising
2010 : 1st Fathsta, 2nd Damien, 3rd Irish Heartbeat, 4th Parisian Pyramid
2009 : 1st Kaldoun Kingdom, 2nd Cheveton, 3rd Hitchens, 4th Green Manalishi
2008 : No Race
2014 Racing Post Analysis
A typically competitive heat and, having originally split into two groups, the whole field merged within 2f of the start and came more or less centre to stands´ side.
SPINATRIX was fifth in this last year off the same mark, but the ground was softer this time around and that proved the key to her defying top weight. She´s been in good form lately and the Wentworth Stakes, in which she was third last year, was mentioned as a possible short-term target.
Highland Acclaim gets plenty of credit for coming from off the pace to challenge in a race where it paid to race handily. His rider did pick up a nine-day ban for overuse of the whip, however.

Pre Race Comments:
Spinatrix - "Spinatrix is in good form and the ground is coming right. She ran a cracker at Ripon, but this is competitive and she has a tough job at the weights".
Another Wise Kid - "It's a tough competitive race but he has run really well all year and was unlucky in the Great St Wilfrid at Ripon".

Post Race Comments:
Spinatrix - "I was pleased when I saw the only other speed horses were drawn well away from Spinatrix. I said to Connor go forward and do your own thing. We might go for the Wentworth Stakes at Doncaster, and there´s a Listed race at Fontainebleau on November 20. She has not had a lot of racing this year because of the ground".