1.50pm Newbury - Group 3 Aston Park Stakes
Considering Desert Hero ran over a trip that was on the short side for him at Sandown last time, he still ran with so much credit, only just getting denied in the closing stages. That was in the Group 3 Gordon Richard Stakes over 1m2f, which was also his first run of the season, and what a run it was to just get beaten in the closing stages by a head by Okeechobee.
He came on in leaps and bounds last season, winning the King George V Stakes at Royal Ascot before going on to land a Group 3 at Goodwood, and then coming 3rd in the St Leger at Doncaster only beaten by a little over 3 lengths in the end.
I feel he could be a real Group performer this season, and now stepping back up in trip to 1m4f this Saturday, he is definitely the one they all have to beat. I think the St Leger 3rd will in time become good form, and with everything in his favour on Saturday afternoon, I just can not see him getting beaten, now fit and ready to rumble.
- Selection - Desert Hero (6/4)
2.05pm Newmarket - JenningsBet Handicap
The Richard Hannon horses have been a little on and off so far this season, but given how Love Billy Boy ran at the Guineas meeting last time, I would say there is a nice pot there for him to take soon.
As a 2yo the Hannon horse was raced a fair few times, running on six different occasions, winning on debut before putting in some decent efforts in some competitive Handicap contests, which includes a 3rd placed effort in the very valuable Sales contest at York.
He has had two runs so far this season, coming 8th on his seasonal debut over 6 furlongs, and although it may look like a poor run, he was actually only beaten by just over 3 lengths in the end, before going on to probably put in a career-best last time when coming 2nd over 7 furlongs at Newmarket, only just headed in the closing stages.
He looked the winner with a few yards to go last time, and was just denied in the closing stages, and although he has a 4lb rise in the weights for that and a step up in class, he is running well now the cobwebs have been blown away. I think he could land this contest then maybe go on and progress as the season advances.
- Selection - Love Billy Boy (5/1)
2.25pm Newbury - Listed Carnarvon Stakes
I think this is a really smart contest on paper, with some very nice young sprinting types doing battle over the 6-furlong trip, in what is usually a Commonwealth Cup trial ready for Royal Ascot next month.
James's Delight has really improved this season, landing a very nice handicap last time, and he is obviously riding the crest of a wave at the moment for the Clive Cox team, but I just can't give up on one of my favourites in training at the moment Relief Rally.
Obviously it was a cautious attempt in the Fred Darling Stakes over 7 furlongs last time which was her first attempt at the trip, and although she was beaten and probably didn't particularly like the trip, she still managed to come 4th. Back down to the 6-furlong trip where she won the Group 2 Lowther Stakes last season will more than suit her here, and she is also down in class and running in a Listed contest for the very first time.
She was impressive over 5 furlongs as a 2yo last season, winning the Super Sprint at Newbury, a Group 2 as well as a very unlucky 2nd placed effort in the Queen Mary at Royal Ascot, rattling home late in the day and only just denied on the line.
There could be question marks on whether she has trained on, and this race on Saturday will be a good indication on that, but given the fact the trip wasn't to suit last time and it was her first run of the season, I think there is still ability there.
The William Haggas horse is the highest rated in the field, gets the usual fillies’ allowance and if she is back on song, she will be very hard to beat here on Saturday.
- Selection - Relief Rally (4/1)
2.40pm Newmarket - Trust A Trader Handicap
A very competitive field but also a very decent prize up for grabs, which is probably the reason we have a big field of 15 runners. I think fitness could come to the forefront here, and with that in mind Gorak is the one I want to side with for Charlie Fellows and Callum Sheppard.
A dual winner in the early stages of last season, he once won off the mark of 73, before going on to raise all the way up to a by far career-high mark of 105 after some very good runs in some decent contests. Rated 95 now, he is 10lb lower in the weights than that highest mark, but is 12lb higher in the weights from his last win which was off the mark of 83 at Haydock in a class 3 contest.
He came 4th in a decent contest last time out, which would have set him up nicely for this race on Saturday, and the one thing to note is the 2nd and 3rd horses from that race at Newmarket have come out and won, while the 5th-placed runner Northern Express was only just beaten in a valuable York handicap on Thursday. With that run under his belt 30 days ago, I think he will be primed and ready to go for this on Saturday.
- Selection - Gorak (6/1)
3.00pm Newbury - London Gold Cup Handicap
I am all over King's Gambit here for Harry Charlton, who has had a good start to the new turf season, and although his horses might not be firing at the moment, it is the previous record in this race that really catches the eye for me.
Although the horses were then trained by his father Roger Charlton at the time, they have won the contest three times since 2015, and the one that sticks out is Time Test, who arrived into this race with a similar profile to King's Gambit this time.
The horse was fairly well beaten on racecourse debut at Newbury when coming 8th out of 9 runners, but he clearly came on for the run when landing a maiden contest by three quarters of a length in the end. His last run of the season came in a pretty decent novice contest, where he came 2nd, only beaten by a head, running on well in the final strides, so this first attempt at 1m2f on Saturday will more than suit this horse.
William Buick is booked to ride, and whenever he is booked up outside of the boys in blue, that is a huge eye-catcher for me, as he will bid to land back-to-back Champion Jockey titles this season.
The yard’s record in this race is a huge plus, and their unexposed 3yo could easily take a nice step forward now upped in trip, I think he could be a Group potential horse in a Handicap here on Saturday.
- Selection - King's Gambit (9/2)
3.15pm Newmarket - JenningsBet Handicap
I am taking a slight risk with this selection here, but I just like her profile in terms of the fact she is very unexposed so could clearly improve on her current mark of 84. That horse is Hopeful for Andrew Balding, who has only had four career runs so far, during that she was off the track for a little while seemingly due to injuries, but she showed there is still some ability there when winning on her first run for over 440 days at Newcastle back in January.
She was then a shade disappointing the next time at Newcastle but that could be down to the bounce factor from the fact she hadn't run for a fair while before the winning effort the time before. She showed a very likeable attitude in defeat last time at Redcar, where she was sent off the 13/8 favourite, and although beaten into 2nd, she ran on well in the closing stages and showed that there is still some fire left in her belly despite her troubled career.
If she can reproduce that effort here on Saturday, I think she could be a little below her rating of 84. Kevin Stott is back onboard after riding her last time, and that for me is another eye-catching jockey booking, as I feel Kevin is very underrated in the weighing room.
- Selection - Hopeful (4/1)
3.35pm - Group 1 Lockinge Stakes
This is a really fascinating contest for the feature race of the day, as we get to see Big Rock do battle with star mare Inspiral, who is going out once again this season as a 5yo.
Now obviously Big Rock is a high class animal, his Queen Elizabeth Stakes win at Ascot on Champions Day last season was scintillating, a performance of the highest class, but I just feel he will be seen to better effect on ground conditions that are a little softer underfoot, just like he showed on Champions’ Day last October.
As good as the French horses are, I am not a fan of them when they come over with a real hype on proper good summer ground, and with that in mind, as well as giving Inspiral the usual mares’ allowance, I think that might just be enough to sway me to the side of the Gosden star mare. Plus she has also got the beating of Big Rock previously in his own back yard last season.
It has been well documented that the Gosden horses are not firing on all cylinders this season, and the fact that Inspiral is now a 5yo and is the "older" legs, she might come on for the run, but if you go back to both of her most recent seasonal reappearances, they were at Royal Ascot in Group 1 contests.
She was a phenomenal winner of the Coronation Stakes at the Royal meeting back in 2022, which was her first run in 252 days at the time, so clearly overcame the break. And although she was only coming up against the mares that day, she absolutely blew them away with a brilliant performance.
Last year she wasn't seen until Royal Ascot once again where she came 2nd in the Queen Anne Stakes, only beaten by a head in the end, which was not that bad of a run in truth.
The fact that John and Thady have decided to give her a prep run before Ascot could be a slight cause for concern given the fact she has gone straight there previously, but they will know she is a year older now so might need the run to make it a productive season. I don't think she runs as badly fresh as people think, and the fact the better ground conditions are much more in her favour compared to the French horse, that could see her in good stead here.
She comes up against a few race-fit rivals who could be the ones to win this, but I just feel with the mares’ allowance on her side, and if she is tuned up ready to go, she will be the one they all have to beat.
It really is a fascinating contest, and the more you think about it the more it becomes a real head-scratcher. However, as mentioned, I think the fact they have kept Inspiral in training, and pitched her into Group 1 company for the first run of the season suggest she is still showing plenty at home. No matter the result, I just can't wait to see her out once again this weekend, as she is definitely a firm favourite of mine.
- Selection - Inspiral (2/1)
All prices are from Planet Sport Bet and are subject to change
All previews and tips provided by @ Jake Russell