Young Rascal overcame trouble to win his stakes debut in Wednesday’s Group 3 Chester Vase at Chester Racecourse in England, a key prep for the English Derby at Epsom Racecourse on June 2.
Young Rascal (10-3) raced in traffic in the final quarter-mile under jockey James Doyle, but found sufficient running room to reach the front with more than a sixteenth of a mile remaining. Young Rascal won the $136,000 Chester Vase by a half-length over 12-1 Dee Ex Bee.
Hunting Horn, third in the Group 3 Classic Trial at Sandown Park on April 27, will be a lukewarm favorite to give trainer Aidan O’Brien and jockey Ryan Moore a sixth successive win in Wednesday’s Group 3 Chester Vase at Chester Racecourse in England.
The $136,000 Chester Vase is run at about 1 1/2 miles on turf and is a key prep for the English Derby at Epsom Racecourse on June 2.
HAPPY VALLEY SELECTIONS
(Wednesday, May 9)
Brett Davis
R1: 1-8-2-12
R2: 8-9-5-6
R3: 7-11-1-6
R4: 2-1-6-4
R5: 5-4-1-3
R6: 10-12-6-3
R7: 9-12-4-1
R8: 1-2-10-3
Best Bet - R2: #8 Beaut Beaut
Longshot - R4: #6 Spinning Dancer
Best Play - R4: Q/QP 1,2,6
Fast Most Furious has the recent win, but Storm Signal has the better weight assignment when the two meet in Wednesday’s Shan Pui River Handicap, the eighth race at Happy Valley Racecourse in Hong Kong.
Within the race, there is the ongoing battle for leading rider between Joao Moreira, who leads with 104 victories, and Zac Purton, who is second with 95 wins. Moreira rides Storm Signal, while Purton rides Fast Most Furious in the six-furlong turf race.
HAPPY VALLEY SELECTIONS
(Wednesday, May 9, 2018)
RACE 1: #2 Kiwi Sunrise, #1 Formula Galore, #7 Paddington, #10 Golden Deer
RACE 2: #7 Seventy Seventy, #6 Buoyant Boy, #8 Beaut Beaut, #11 Oriental Elite
RACE 3: #1 Go Go Win, #9 Polymer Luck, #6 Ultimate Dream, #7 You Have My Word
RACE 4: #2 Kiram, #3 Multigogo, #12 Association Fans, #5 Happy And Healthy
RACE 5: #1 Starlight, #5 Harrier Jet, #4 Encore Boy, #8 Mr Picasso
Exultant, third in the Group 1 Irish 2,000 Guineas in 2017, won his first group stakes in Hong Kong in Sunday’s Group 3 Queen Mother Memorial Cup at 1 1/2 miles on turf at Sha Tin.
Exultant, ridden by Zac Purton, justified his 1-2 price with a six-length win over Prawn Baba in the Memorial Cup, a handicap. Exultant carried 121 pounds, six more than Prawn Baba. Trained by Tony Cruz, Exultant closed from the back of the field of seven to take the lead with a quarter-mile remaining.
Keiai Nautique, a colt by Deep Impact, won his first stakes in Sunday’s Group 1 NHK Mile for 3-year-olds on turf at Tokyo Racecourse in Japan.
Keiai Nautique benefited when race favorite Tower of London stumbled at the start and raced in traffic before finishing 12th in the field of 15.
Experience counts for something.
Billesdon Brook made her 10th start in Sunday’s Group 1 English 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket, England, to equal the highest number of career races among the 15 3-year-old fillies in the $744,600 race.
Billesdon Brook was ignored - until she took the lead in the final furlong. Ridden by Sean Levey, Billesdon Brook scored a massive upset in the 1000 Guineas at a mile on turf, winning by 1 3/4 lengths over Laurens, who led for much of the final half-mile.
Saxon Warrior probably wants to run farther than a mile, but a mile was just fine Saturday at Newmarket, where Saxon Warrior powered home 1 1/2 lengths best in the Group 1 English 2000 Guineas.
Nineteen-year-old Donnacha O’Brien rode his first classic winner and became the second son of trainer Aidan O’Brien to win the Guineas, following his older brother, Joseph. Aidan O’Brien watched his ninth Guineas win unfold from Kentucky, where he traveled Thursday to oversee Mendelssohn’s final preparations for another classic race Saturday, the Kentucky Derby.
SHA TIN SELECTIONS
(Sunday, May 6)
Brett Davis
R1: 4-3-5-2
R2: 1-3-2-5
R3: 3-2-10-6
R4: 4-3-1-6
R5: 4-3-2-10
R6: 5-2-1-12
R7: 12-9-4-5
R8: 5-13-11-3
R9: 6-2-5-7
R10: 3-13-7-11
R11: 3-6-10-14
Best Bet - R6: 5 Fire And Gold
Longshot - R5: #3 Keep Going
Best Play - R6: Q/Qp 1,2,5