Horse Racing Betting Tips: Go with Gosden and Dettori to strike again in Cheshire Oaks
IT IS not just the Chester Vase that Aidan O’Brien has a great record in, he has had his fair share of success in this afternoon’s Arkle Finance Cheshire Oaks (2.25pm) as well.
A total of six wins, including three of the last four, means he is now just one away from Barry Hills who took this prize seven times between 1974 and 2005.
Last year, he saddled a one-two with Ryan Moore’s mount Magic Wand getting the better of stablemate Forever Together, who went on to reverse the form in the Investec Oaks at Epsom the following month.
O’Brien and Moore combine this time with Second Thoughts, but there has to be a worry about the daughter of War Front getting home, especially if the rain arrives.
She is yet to race over further than seven furlongs, so is faced with an extra four and a half furlongs this afternoon and I think she will be better over shorter trips in the future.
John Gosden and Frankie Dettori won this race two years ago with the brilliant Enable and although it’s highly unlikely there is anything of her calibre in this year’s renewal, I can see FANNY LOGAN running a big race.
The daughter of Sea The Stars lost out narrowly to stablemate Mehdaayih, who reopposes today, in a Yarmouth maiden last October.
She was very well backed to win a 1m2f novice contest at Wetherby last month on her reappearance where she got the job done well.
Her future lies over middle distances and it’s interesting that Dettori rides her rather than Mehdaayih.
Admittedly, he may not have had the choice, but there doesn’t seem to be much between them and Fanny Logan is perhaps a little more unexposed.
At 13/2 in a few places, she looks worth backing each-way to give Gosden his third win in the race.
Ralph Beckett has done well with fillies over the years and his horses are in great form so you have to respect his Manuela De Vega, who was unbeaten in two starts as a two-year-old.
The only real negative with her is that her Listed win at Pontefract in October means she has to carry a 3lb penalty this afternoon.
Stamina shouldn’t be a problem for the daughter of Lope De Vega, who is a sister to Isabel De Urbina, although some of her relatives have done better over a mile so it isn’t guaranteed.
Grace And Danger is worth a mention coming here on the back of a decent win in a fillies’ maiden at Nottingham in October on soft ground.
Andrew Balding does well at Chester and this filly should cope if conditions deteriorate, although she will obviously need to step up to be winning it.
The opening Stellar Group Lily Agnes Stakes (1.50pm) looks a trappy affair.
In the past decade, only twice has the winner come from a stall higher than five so we can normally put a line through those drawn out wide.
Show Me Show Me, the Brocklesby winner, and Electric Ladyland are both unbeaten, but will break from stalls eight and 10 respectively, while the former also has to carry a penalty.
David O’Meara’s GREAT DAME (stall three) won well at Ripon last month and her stablemate who she beat that day came out and landed a Beverley novice on Monday so the form has been franked.
From a good draw she looks a fair bet around the 5/1 mark.
POINTERS
Great Dame 1.50pm Chester
Fanny Logan e/w 2.25pm Chester