Horse Racing Tips Saturday 3rd August – Glorious Goodwood Day 5

GLORIOUS GOODWOOD DAY 5 TIPS – HOT SNAP CAN TURN UP THE HEAT ON SKY LANTERN IN THE NASSAU

The main event in terms of prestige at Glorious Goodwood on Saturday is the Markel Insurance Nassau Stakes, and there’s little doubt that Sky Lantern is the class act in this Group 1 contest for fillies and mares.

Given that she’s a 1000 Guineas and Coronation Stakes winner, the standout 5/2 on offer with William Hill about the daughter of Red Clubs will do for many punters. However, the forgotten horse is HOT SNAP who is too good to miss at 9/1 with Sky Bet in my opinion.

She failed to land a blow when ninth behind Sky Lantern in the first fillies’ Classic of the season at Newmarket in May, but she looked a filly right out of the top drawer when readily brushing that rival aside in the Nell Gwyn on the Rowley Mile a month earlier.

No specific injury problems or such like have been put forward following her below par display in the Guineas, but she clearly wasn’t on-song on that occasion. Whatever the issue was, connections have given her a nice break since Newmarket.

Judged on pedigree there is cause for optimism that she’ll cope with the step up to 1¼m, while the easier surface on the Sussex Downs compared to that which she encountered in the Guineas will help. Indeed, she’s by Pivotal whose progeny relish cut in the ground.

If she is back to the level of her Nell Gwyn victory, she ought to be capable of going mighty close this weekend. Hot Snap’s only had three starts, so remains with plenty of potential and, therefore, I recommend keeping the faith with Lady Cecil’s filly.

The Sir Michael Stoute-trained Integral is upped markedly in class here, but she’s 2-2 and possesses plenty of scope for improvement, while Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Just The Judge and Oaks runner-up Secret Gesture are other that merit close consideration.

Whereas the Nassau is the most prestigious race of the day, there’s no doubt that the most frenetic betting heat will be the Robins Farm Racing Stewards’ Cup. There are few sprint handicaps more competitive than the Stewards’ Cup, but I have little hesitation in nominating RACY as the most likely winner.

Like many horses before him, the six-year-old has been galvanised by the switch to Brian Ellison’s yard. He joined the Yorkshire-based handler after bagging a Brighton claimer at the end of May and has finished runner-up in red-hot handicaps in two of his three starts since joining Ellison.

I am convinced he would have scored at Ascot last time had he not encountered traffic problems at a crucial stage and, under the circumstances, the gelding did mighty well to be beaten just half-a-length by Masamah in that 19-runner event. He is able to race off the same mark here and make plenty of appeal from a handy draw.

The progressive Tropics is respected in his hat-trick bid, but he will need to take another step forward if he’s to defy a 6lb penalty here. Tropics immediate victim at Windsor last time, Rex Imperator, would have been high on the list but for his high draw, a remark which also applies to Ryan Moore’s mount Shropshire.

The biggest threats could be posed by Wokingham hero York Glory and Hawkeyethenoo. The latter needs luck in running owing to his hold-up style, but further rain will aid his cause and he’s on a workable mark, so should be competitive if getting the breaks.

In the two additional Glorious Goodwood races televised on Channel 4, the upwardly mobile PICTURE DEALER is taken to shrug off his penalty in the Robins Farm Racing Stewards’ Sprint Stakes, while ROYAL SKIES, who struggled upped to 2m in Group 3 company at Royal Ascot, could be hard to catch back down in trip and class in the RAC Stakes.

There are also two races broadcast from Newmarket by C4, the first of which is the 32red.com Handicap. It’s not a race I’d advise getting too heavily financially involved in, but LORD ASHLEY is appealing, as the form his solid third-placed effort behind Majestic Moon at York last month was franked when that winner went in again at Goodwood during the week.

The 32red Fillies’ Nursery Handicap, meanwhile, looks mighty competitive. Musicora is most interesting of Richard Hannon’s trio, the hat-trick seeking Excel’s Beauty and Princess Rose are all major players, but the vote goes to J WONDER who landed a potentially very decent maiden on debut at Newbury and looks sure to do even better still with that experience under her belt.

Tips:

Goodwood
2.05 Picture Dealer
2.40 Royal Skies
3.15 Hot Snap
3.50 Racy

Newmarket
2.20 Lord Ashley
2.55 J Wonder