FOUR WINNING NAPS IN A ROW: Daqman’s naps are unbeaten this week. His run continued yesterday with his fourth winning nap in a row through Gimme Five (WON 6-4) at Wolverhampton last night.
THAT’S 11 FROM THE LAST 15: That gives him a total of 11 best bets up from the last 15, with seven consecutive winning bankers within the sequence of 111114123131111. His last four naps:
WON 9-4 GEORDAN MURPHY
WON 8-13 SHAKOPEE (banker)
WON 3-10 SARSTED (banker)
WON 6-4 GIMME FIVE
11-1 SCORER WAS ‘LOGICAL’ BET: It was a terrific night for Daqman at Wolverhampton, with bets in three races bringing in 32 points profit. As well as Gimme Five, he named Geological (WON 11-1).
67-29 FLAT LEAD OVER PRICEWISE: After last Saturday’s Cesarewitch winner, Big Easy (WON 10-1), Daqman starts the big Newmarket-Ascot weekend leading Pricewise on the Flat 67-29 (and 106 to 41 overall). Check out today’s 4.0 and 4.35.
GET A HEAD START WITH THAWAANY
2.25 Newmarket (Cornwallis Stakes) Some fair animals have won this – including Hot Streak last year – two of them for Mick Channon, who has had a good season.
He runs Moonraker here but Ryan Moore, the colt’s rider all summer (three races in a row), switches to Squats, leaving Richard Hughes with a substitute role.
Squats has two verdicts over Profitable but Strath Burn beat that one at Newbury and Rosie’s Premiere beat him at Haydock, yet was behind Moonraker at York. Four of them, including Squats, were involved in a blanket finish at Ayr.
When they’re all on top of each other like this – the market agrees at 5.4 the field on BETDAQ early mouse – it’s often best to look for something unexposed. That would be Air Of Mystery at 17.0, as I write. Strath Burn the danger.
2.55 Newmarket (Middle Park Stakes) Dark Angel, Dream Ahead and Astaire have won this in the last seven seasons.
Aidan O’Brien, twice successful in the decade, saddles The Warrior in blinkers for the first time but, on form, it’s hard to see past Ivawood, who beat Jungle Cat and Muhaarar in the July Stakes, then won the Richmond, though both races were on a sound surface.
Muhaarar, a winner on soft in the Spring, reversed the form with Jungle Cat in winning the Gimcrack at York, and Kool Kompany (has beaten Cappella Sansevero twice) scored in very soft terrain in the Robert Papin at Maisons.
Ivawood simply can’t be backed at odds on with the going such an equaliser, and the BETDAQ market is so punter-friendly (103% orange) that I can dabble against him with 8.4 Muhaarar and 10.5 Kool Kompany.
3.25 Newmarket (Fillies’ Mile) The race which produced Height Of Fashion and Oh So Sharp, had another heyday (1995-2002), when Bosra Sham, Reams Of Verse and Soviet Song emerged.
Winners in the last decade have not been superstars, but have managed one Breeders Cup as a two-year-old, plus one Coronation Stakes and one Ribblesdale as three-year-olds.
I lumped on Jim Bolger’s Lucida in the Rockfel on today’s course after her Moyglare second and she didn’t let this column down. Her sire, Shamardal, gets plenty of soft-ground winners.
There are two other Irish challengers for a race they’ve won only once (Listen 2007) in the decade: May Hill winner Agnes Stewart (Edward Lynam) is 5lb better than the Galileo colt Together Forever (Aidan O’Brien) on a line through Jack Naylor.
Richard Hannon has supplemented Marsh Hawk, impressive at a lower level, as the main English resistance. But lazy Lucida – she needs some stoking up – looked a 1,000 Guineas filly the way she won the Rockfel.
4.0 Newmarket (Dewhurst Stakes) Hannon, himself, appears to have a 2,000 contender in Estidhkaar, who has already beaten Belardo and, as the pick at of the East Everleigh legion, is a formidable favourite.
Winners of this are a catalogue of champions: Nijinsky, Mill Reef, Grundy, The Minstrel, Zafonic, Rock Of Gibraltar, New Approach, Frankel, Dawn Approach. Mouth-watering stuff but this looks sub-standard.
Estidhkaar is currently twice the price of Ivawood on his path to glory for the first colts’ Classic next Spring and needs something dramatic today, with his Champagne runner-up War Envoy yet to win a ace since his maiden, and Aktabantay, whom he beat earlier, also proving only Group 3.
Maftool has been consistent at that level, while Smugglers Cove has been kept to Listed at best. Has that ‘could be anything’ look for Ballydoyle but his sire has produced nothing of note in this part of the world.
Kodi Bear finished close to sizzling The Wow Signal in the Coventry at Royal Ascot and had Muhaarar (see Middle Park above) behind him on his latest start.
Breeding wise, Kodiac (Kodi Bear) has got the stunning Tiggy Wiggy this season. Dark Angel (Estidhkaar) is better known for sprinters, and Hard Spun (Maftool) for fast-ground American winners.
Very tricky stuff but improver Kodi Bear is overpriced at 9.0 this morning, particularly if Muhaarar goes well in the Middle Park.
4.35 Newmarket (Challenge Stakes) Three-year-olds, not represented last year, were previously 112111 and have half the declared field this time around, though there doesn’t seem much depth to them.
It’s hard to see them foiling French raider Thawaany, who beat Fiesolana (last year’s winner of this) when a half-length off Garswood in a Group 1 at Deauville in August, or the home four-year-old Breton Rock, the Hungerford winner.
Al Thakhira seems to have the best chance among the Classic generation on her third to Kiyoshi at Doncaster with Muteela and Joyeuse behind.
Thawaany looks greatly favoured by the conditions of the race, only a couple of pounds above the three-year-olds, and by the ground. The family Head can do no wrong this year.
CLOUD TO CLEAR UP AT CHELTENHAM
Music to the ears for some. The words Cheltenham, Neptune, Pertemps herald the end of the Flat, or almost, and ring the bell for the start of the winter game. It’s all happeningin the Cotswolds today.
Paul Nicholls is there; Philip Hobbs, Nicky Henderson, Gordon Elliott from Ireland. But man of the moment – without his jockey –s Jonjo O’Neill with a stunning four out of four on Wednesday and… yesterday.
3.15 Cheltenham But it’s time to brush up on your jumps stats and facts, and you’ll find that none of Jonjo’s Pertemps Final winners in March won their qualifier, and only one of them was placed in the Pertemps series of races routed to the festival.
And there are other trainers in form in the qualifier today (3.15): Anthony Honeyball, Dan Skelton, ‘Shark’ Hanlon, Tim Vaughan, Gordon Elliott, Hobbs and Harry Fry.
Noticeably, all bar the last two named have runners here below 11st., and four of the last five winners came from within the ratings parameter 126 to 132 (that’s 10st 1lb to 10st 6lb today).
That puts the spotlight on Clara Mc Cloud, a consistent youngster of the age that has won two of the last three of these. The sunshine breaks through with offers of 13.0 on BETDAQ this morning.
Her form reads as though she needs a strong pace and some cut in the ground, which she hasn’t had since finishing fourth in the Ladbrokes (Grade C) Hurdle at the Galway Festival.
DAQMAN’S BETS (each to win 20 points)
BET 4.3pts win STRATH BURN, and 1.25pts win and place AIR OF MYSTERY (2.25 Newmarket)
BET 2.7pts win MUHAARAR and 2pts win KOOL KOMPANY (2.55 Newmarket)
BET 1.6pts win and place CLARA MC CLOUD (3.15 Cheltenham)
BET 10.5pts win LUCIDA (3.25 Newmarket)
BET 2.5pts win KODI BEAR (4.00 Newmarket)
BET 7.5pts win (nap) THAWAANY (4.35 Newmarket)
NEW !!!
You can now follow BETDAQ updates on Google+
For further details – CLICK HERE
£30 FREE BET
Did you know that as well as checking the realtime prices on BETDAQ below – you can also log into your account and place your bets directly into BETDAQ from BETDAQ TIPS.
