The York Dante Festival is over, but the competitive Group action continues with the Newbury Lockinge Stakes Day on Saturday.
York has treated us kindly so far this week. We’ve had two winners at 6/4 (2pt NAP) and 11/2, and we came very close to landing another 2pt NAP with Harry’s Girl in the opener.
Hopefully, we can round off the week in a good fashion at Newbury.
Newbury Lockinge Stakes Day
12:50 Newbury – Al Aasy @ 3/1 with William Hill – 1pt Win
I’ve really become a fan of Al Aasy over the last season and a half, and on his return to Newbury, I think he can win the Group 3 Aston Park Stakes.
He’s won four times at the track, and the latest came in August 2024 on good to firm ground, so the conditions of the contest are right up his street.
The eight-year-old gelding by SEA THE STARS looked to be right at his best last season, and I was quite surprised when he won the Group 3 Gordon Richards Stakes last time out because, well, I thought the old boy might need his first run of the season over a slightly shorter distance.
Ancient Wisdom, the runner-up, had the benefit of race fitness that day, as did Royal Champion, the fourth. Furthermore, although she improved for fitness, See The Fire (fifth) has franked the form by winning the Group 2 Middleton Fillies’ Stakes.
Yes, he has a penalty to carry, but it’s only a 3lb penalty because he is a Group 3 specialist, and he had to carry the same penalty when smashing Al Qareem in last season’s Group 3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes.
The William Haggas yard is in decent form currently (32% strike rate), so he is my fancy in the race.
1:25 Newbury – Ides Of March @ 6/4 with Betfred – 2pt Win
Yes, he’s short, but I think there’s a lot to like about Ides Of March in the Listed Carnarvon Stakes.
He’s the type of horse that could be seen back at the Breeders’ Cup later this season, because he does love quick ground.
The son of Wootton Bassett won on good to firm at the Curragh in August before finishing a solid seventh in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint two starts later on firm ground.
That may not seem like a good result, but he was positioned right out the back of the field under Frankie Dettori and stayed on for pressure even when the win was out of his reach.
Arizona Blaze (2nd), Big Mojo (4th), and Whistlejacket (5th) have all won Group/Listed races this season, so that has provided a nice form boost.
The Listed race Whistlejacket won at the start of the year included IDES OF MARCH, and he nearly stole it from the front under Wayne Lordan. Considering that it was his first start of the season, and it came on soft ground, the performance can be upgraded.
Other bits of his juvenile season form look good now, none more so than his third to stablemate The Lion In Winter over seven furlongs at the Curragh in July. They actually sent Ides Of March off as the favourite that day, and Ryan Moore chose him too. That says enough to suggest what they thought of him last year.
All in, I think this is a winnable race.
3:10 Newbury – Qilin Queen @ 6/1 with William Hill (3 places) – 1pt EW
Qilin Queen has seen her form receive multiple boosts over the last few weeks, and she has a lovely racing attitude, so I’m backing her to win the Listed Childwickbury Stud Fillies’ Trial Stakes.
After her Salisbury success in August, she went to Haydock for the Listed Ascendant Stakes against the boys and finished second to Charlie Fellowes’ Luther
Luther has since finished a good fourth in the French 2000 Guineas, and Eternal Elixir (102), Hawksbill (95), and Linwood (93) all set a good standard from last year’s Ascendant Stakes.
The Pinatubo three-year-old started this season well by finishing third in the Listed Pretty Polly Stakes at Newmarket on her first start at 10 furlongs. Life Is Beautiful, the third, chased home yesterday’s Listed Sky Bet Fillies’ Stakes winner Kon Tiki at Kempton, so collaterally, the form of this year’s Pretty Polly doesn’t look too bad.
This is a natural Epsom Oaks Trial, and she does have an entry for the next British Classic, as do Likealot and Ecstatic. This is a competitive potential stepping stone to Epsom, but Qilin Queen has a nice profile.
