Horse Racing Betting Tips: Sea set to be top of the class in Yorkshire Oaks
IN TERMS of quality, it’s hard to argue that there is a better contest all week than this afternoon’s Darley Yorkshire Oaks (3.35pm).
This event has been dominated by the Classic generation in recent years, with three-year-olds winning eight of the previous 12 renewals.
Enable was just 1/4 12 months ago, and she won like the top-class filly she is before going on to land the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in equally impressive style.
We probably won’t see a performance as dominant this year, although it looks like one of the most exciting and competitive Yorkshire Oaks in recent years.
The locals will undoubtedly be cheering for the hugely popular Laurens, who is trained in North Yorkshire by Karl Burke.
An absolute credit to connections, she has won 1m2f Group Ones in France on her last two starts, most recently the Prix de Diane (French Oaks) at Chantilly in June.
Part of her charm has been the gutsy, battling nature of her victories – her two French successes have been by a neck and a short-head, while she has never finished out of the first two in seven career starts.
This uncomplicated daughter of Siyouni is immensely tough and will be very hard to beat this afternoon, but she’s unproven over 1m4f, which has to be a worry.
Although there’s every chance she will cope with the extra two furlongs, it’s a question mark and she is reluctantly passed over at 7/2 with Betway.
William Haggas is a proud Yorkshireman and loves nothing more than a winner at this meeting, which means so much to people from the county.
He’s yet to win this race but looks to have a brilliant chance with SEA OF CLASS who was so impressive when coming from last to first to win the Irish Oaks in July.
On her first start over 1m4f, James Doyle settled her out the back and came with a withering run to collar Forever Together right on the line without having to pick up his stick.
It was widely acclaimed as one of the great rides of recent years and proved that the daughter of Sea The Stars has no problem with the trip.
She has been brilliantly handled by her trainer, who resisted the temptation of running her in the Investec Oaks and is now reaping the rewards.
Sea Of Class is improving quickly and if she wins this, you’d expect connections to have a crack at the Arc in early October, a race in which three-year-old fillies have such a good record.
Last year’s runner-up Coronet is respected, as are the Irish fillies Magic Wand and Eziyra, but Sea Of Class could be pretty special and she should be backed at 11/8.
Richard Hannon has won the last two runnings of the valuable Goffs UK Premier Yearling Stakes (2.25pm) and he saddles four in his bid to land the hat-trick.
The most interesting contender for me is MASARU who comes here on the back of an emphatic Windsor maiden win on debut in June.
We obviously don’t know how good he is yet, but the horse he beat there has since landed a nursery at Sandown.
Masaru is entered in the Group One Middle Park Stakes and looks fair value at 7/1 to land this massive pot.
POINTERS
Masaru e/w 2.25pm York
Sea Of Class 3.35pm York