Dante Stakes Day At York

Shady McCoy ran an absolute cracker for us on Saturday, and hopefully some of you snapped up the 50/1 that was widely available up until the opening show. He was a touch unlucky having to switch a couple of times to thread his way through the field, and he ended up a fast finishing 4th. 

Instant Attraction loves to get his toe in.

He has a bit in hand off his current mark and he is one to keep an eye on in the coming weeks. Rain at York means conditions will be testing, and an ability to handle soft ground will be key. The Dante is the big race on Thursday, and you can read my thoughts on an interesting card below.

Race 1

Union Rose is a gelding that has been good to me in the past, and Ron Harris’ 5yo son of Stimulation looks to be back down to a workable mark. This lad loves to get his toe in, and though he was well beaten on his seasonal comeback he has generally needed a run to put him straight after a break. Oisin Murphy has been booked and he has 6 wins and 17 top 4 finishes from 62 rides for Ron Harris.

For a horse of his ability it is amazing that he has only won two races, and his last triumph came over course and distance back in 2015 off a mark of 89. He is only 4lb higher here off 93 and as he showed with a close 2nd off 95 last July he can be competitive off that rating. He has a good draw in stall 4, he will love the ground and Harris has his horses in good form. At odds of 33/1 he is the each way suggestion in a wide open looking handicap.

STEVOS’ SELECTION: UNION ROSE E/W @ 33/1

Race 2

Only five fillies go to post for the Group 2 Hambleton Stakes and the soft ground should be ideal for the John Gosden trained The Black Princess. This filly has had just six career starts since making a winning debut on her sole 2yo start and she signed off on her 3yo season with a 10 f Listed win on very soft ground at Saint-Cloud.

She returned to France for her seasonal comeback at Chantilly in a 10f Group 3 and she showed she could handle good ground too with another victory. She has yet to finish outside the first three, her two runs on ground with soft in the description have resulted in a win a second and a third (group 2), and at odds of 7/1 she represents decent value in what looks a pretty open race.

STEVOS’ SELECTION: THE BLACK PRINCESS @ 7/1 NB

Race 3

I think Contrapposto is well overpriced for this contest and you can read why at Mybettingbonus.

STEVOS’ SELECTION: CONTRAPPOSTO E/W @ 40/1

Race 4

This Listed 8f handicap looks a very tricky puzzle to solve, but one horse that looks well overpriced with soft ground likely is the Jedd O’Keefe trained Instant Attraction. This 4 time winner hasn’t got his head in front for quite a while (June 2015) but he has run some cracking races in defeat and there were plenty of positives to be gleaned from his comeback run in the Lincoln.

He was beaten just 3L off a mark of 99 and the handicapper has generously dropped him to 97 after that fine effort. The ground really is the key to this son of Tagula, and the 6yo was narrowly beaten off 99 by Examiner at Epsom back in June. He has placed form at York, he has a lovely draw in stall 7 and the ground has come right for him. At odds of 22/1 with Paddy Power he is a confident each way selection.

STEVOS’ SELECTION: INSTANT ATTRACTION @ 22/1 NAP

Race 5

Brian The Snail is a shade of odds on for this Listed contest, but I reckon it could be worth taking him on with the highly promising Ardad. This 3yo son of Kodiac won handsomely in a Listed race his only run on soft, and he took the Group 2 Flying Childers at Doncaster last year on good.

Brian The Snail has been highly touted and remains unbeaten after three starts. He has won on soft, a Novice’s heat at Catterick last season, and he won cosily in a class 3 handicap at Yarmouth on his seasonal reappearance off a mark of 93. He was hiked to 102 after that run, but that still leaves him with 6lbs to find with the favourite. He gets 5lb from the Gosden horse, but that might not be enough and I prefer the chances of Ardad at odds of 5/2.

STEVOS’ SELECTION ARDAD @ 5/2

Race 6

No strong fancy for this maiden and it is one to watch with a view to the future.

Race 7

No bet for me in this stayers’ race either.