Shanghai Grace aims for lucky 7 at Chelmsford
SHANGHAI GRACE enters ‘last-chance saloon’ in the Novice Stakes over seven furlongs of Chelmsford tonight and drinks will be on trainer Charles Hills if this consistent, hitherto luckless, Kyllachy colt makes it seventh time lucky under Richard Kingscote.
‘Kingy’ replaced so-called ‘stable jockey’, Callum Shepherd, over a similar course and distance at Lingfield 15 days ago when Shanghai Grace produced his worst run to date under a disapppointing ride; it certainly wasn’t my decision to switch jockeys, I’m all for helping thoroughbreds by insisting on routine and jockey association but the racing family Hills knows better!
It’s like ‘musical jockeys’ with ‘Faringdon’ rides but Charles needs to get sorted and have a decent season, or else he’ll starting to sink, rapidly, in a fiercely competitive environment.
In a slowly-run race Shanghai Grace was hemmed in on the rails, tracking the leader, but had nowhere to go until entering the straight where the ‘big dash’ at the Surrey venue invariably ends up with a frenetic ‘exciting’ finish and often freak results. Not much excitement in unnecessary defeat!
Eventually a gap came and Shanghai Grace challenged but hadn’t got the sprinting legs and went down by a length into third.
This time Kingscote will be instructed to set sail from the gate on Shanghai Grace and sort out the wheat from the chaff, at least that, hopefully, will be conveyed to his partner beforehand in no uncertain terms.
Too often when one mentions ‘make all’ it is countered by we’ll ‘give it a chance’ which means to be prominent but, negativity gives others a ‘chance’ and, inevitably, unsuccessful sequences build; it never happened to my own runners.
Jockeys always knew what I wanted with clear positive orders; the buck stopped at me and resulted in more than sixty winners in a twenty-year(s) spell; serious betting was at issue and will be today.
Recent, penalised, Mark Johnston-trained winner, Mustadun, should make the market and pre-race betting will centre round William Haggas-trained newcomer, Moftris, but he’ll need to be above average to cope with front-running Shanghai Grace; this is my bet of the week and I’d like to be in the paddock!
Half an hour later another vexing performer, White Coat, attempts to retrieve recent losses in a fourteen-runner Novice Stakes over a mile under Keiren O’Neill, now attached to the John Gosden stable with Rav Havlin recovering form yet another serious injury sustained last month.
‘Big John’ never wastes a race and is explicit when issuing orders; expect top-rated White Coat to force the pace and expose inexperienced rivals.
Interesting to note Hayley Turner rides once-raced Dusty Damsel. ‘Daily Earner’ is currently based in Dubai but apart from one tremendous ride last week when judging a strong pace superbly on a rank outsider she hasn’t been seen; collared in the last strides by another Godolphin runner was our Hayley and beaten a neck. Women in Dubai, eh?
Better off campaigning in France with a ‘fillies’ allowance methinks but the thirty six-year-old knows what she is doing; still one of the best on this planet!
Oisin Murphy is booked for Antonia Clare at Lingfield in the five-runner Maiden Stakes over six furlongs, this is it!
Lingfield, 4.25 Antonia Clara (e.w); Chelmsford, 5.30 Shanghai Grace (e.w); 6.00 White Coat (e.w).