Newmarket 1.15, Group Three Darley Stakes, 1m 1f
The action on the main card of the Future Champions meeting kicks off, a little oddly, with an all-aged race over the nine-furlong course, but it has significance for the trainersâ championship as Andrew Balding trains no fewer than three of the five runners.
A 1-2-3 would add a very useful ã85k to his prize money haul, and while High Stock is the 14-1 outsider of the field, his other two runners, The Lost King and Humidity, head the market at around 7-4 and 11-4 respectively.
They arrive on the Rowley Mile with very different profiles: The Lost King, a four-year-old, has 10 races to his name already this year having started his campaign on the all-weather back in January, while Humidity is unraced since finishing a one-length second to Bow Echo, this yearâÂÂs 2,000 Guineas winner, in a Group Two here last September.
I plumped for Humidity to pick up where he left off last year, but the market seems keener on The Lost KingâÂÂs chance at the moment, while Boiling Point, who defied top weight to win the Cambridgeshire Handicap over track and trip last season, is also popular at around 7-2.
Hello from Newmarket, the HQ of Flat racing, on day two of the Future Champions meeting, when the Dewhurst Stakes â the British seasonâÂÂs most valuable and prestigious contest for two-year-olds â will take centre-stage, ably supported by a couple more juvenile events that often highlight a star of the future. Add the historic Cesarewitch Handicap and an ongoing, ever-tightening race for the trainersâ title to the mix and there is a fascinating afternoon in store.
Much of the narrative involves head-to-heads: Desert Castle versus Darkness Falls in the Dewhurst (3.00); Rock Montreal versus Sergei Diaghilev in the Autumn Stakes (2.25); and of course, Andrew Balding versus Aidan OâÂÂBrien â the trainer of Darkness Falls and Sergei Diaghilev â in the trainersâ championship. Balding boosted his lead in the race to more than ã300k yesterday, but OâÂÂBrien will be aiming to put a big dent in that this afternoon, just seven days before the money-drenched Champions Day card at Ascot next weekend.
Dawn Rising â with Ryan Moore booked to ride for Joseph OâÂÂBrien â was second behind Beylerbeyi in last yearâÂÂs Cesarewitch and the pair of them are currently trading as 13-2 favourites for this yearâÂÂs renewal of a race that dates back to 1839.
The ITV cameras are also on the Knavesmire, where York concludes its season with a typically competitive card, and tips for the televised card are here (with a headline that may well prove to be much better than the actual picks deserve).
WeâÂÂre off and running here at Newmarket at 1.15 with the Group Three Darley Stakes, and I hope youâÂÂll be along for the ride on what is always an intriguing and informative afternoon at the track.