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Racing Newmarket set to host a spectacular card

ONCE again some tremendous racing this weekend as the sport continues to catch up with the big events of the season and the July Cup at Newmarket (3.35) leads the way.

I was going to plump for Richard Hannon’s Threat, but the recent rains have literally put a dampener on things and even if the going dries out to good to soft I much prefer the claims of Golden Jubilee winner HELLO YOUMZAIN.

That success at the Royal Ascot meeting arguably wasn’t as good as his Sprint Cup win at Haydock Park, but there are still reasons to believe that he may well step up on those runs this season.

Firstly, we forget he is relatively lightly raced for a horse of his age with only the nine starts to date, all but one of them over this six furlongs trip, and secondly, from a physical point of view, the son of Kodiac was always going to improve with age given his rather gangly physique as a younger horse.

At the time of writing a top-price of 5/1 makes him almost an each-way bet to nothing and with several of his rivals much better suited to a sound surface, his Haydock win came on soft ground, it wouldn’t surprise me if the older horse was pushing Golden Horde for market leadership come the start of this famous Group One event.

I fancy that the old boy Brando, form figures in this race of 327, will relish this more forgiving surface than the one he encountered in the Abernant Stakes and he could well be placed again at around 25/1, while the aforementioned Golden Horde is the more obvious danger to the selection and is priced accordingly. Last year’s Stewards cup hero, Khaadem, would have been in my tree but for the recent heavy rain.

Just 35 minutes later comes the hustle and bustle of the Bunbury Cup Handicap over seven furlongs where surprisingly older more exposed horses have a really good record in.

The weather forecast suggests we will get a dry Friday night and a warmer Saturday so there should be no excuses for any of the entries and I strongly fancy a huge run from the Clive Cox-trained WISE COUNSEL.

This four-year-old is only just reaching his peak with three wins from nine starts and looked to be crying out for a return to this trip when running strongly over six furlongs when third of nine to Lyzbeth in a Listed race at Goodwood.

With the sting taken out of the ground there is plenty in his favour here and he gets the nod over the likes of Motakhayyel, Mutamaasik and Sir Busker.

Elsewhere on the card, SEVENTH KINGDOM looks a hugely exciting prospect and he can make it two from two in the Superlative Stakes at 3.00 and SURF DANCER is taken to defy top-weight in the Bet365 Mile Handicap at 1.50.

Similar to Newmarket, Ascot dries out very quickly and I suspect we could have ground on the fast side of good come racing this afternoon.

That kind of surface will suit BLESS HIM down to the ground in the Summer Mile Stakes at 3.15. The 2017 Britannia Stakes hero, David Simcock’s charge ended last year with wins off 92 and 97, in the latter contest beating no less a horse than Lord North and we all know what he has gone on to achieve this season.

The more the ground dries out the better for him and at a juicy double-figure price he may be able to turn over the likes of market leader and unlucky in running Queen Anne Seventh Mohaather and Duke of Hazzard.

STAG HORN (nap) looks one of the bankers of the day in the three-year-old two mile finale at 4.25, while I shall be investing each-way on ARECIBO in the five furlong cavalry charge due off at 3.50.

The Group Three Meld Stakes is the highlight at Leopardstown and affords a good chance to the very progressive PATRICK SARSFIELD (nb) to make it four career wins from six starts following a strong finishing handicap success off a mark of 101. He deserves this step up in class and any further rain would only enhance his chances here.

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