DARK DEED IN ESHER
LISTEN to your dark side and plunge on Stoute’s DARK DEED (8.05) to be the good guy at Sandown.
Stoute’s Dansili colt made a promising debut when beaten a head and a neck over a mile at Kempton in November running on well at the death.
He returned at Leicester last month and despite pulling hard in a slow pace, ran on strongly for Moore to finish second to favourite Storm The Stars.
Settling better at home and working well in a hood, he should take all the beating with his Leicester pipe-opener under his belt.
INDY (5.10) can go well in the feature mile handicap at Ayr. An impressive winner on his debut at Doncaster as a two-year-old, things haven’t quite gone to plan for him in four runs since.
Quietly fancied for the Spring Mile back at Donny in March, Graham Gibbons probably made too much use of him and he faded into mid div behind Alan King’s Chatez.
Under a more astute ride he can take advantage of today’s mark.
■ American Pharoah will stand at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud in Kentucky when he retires from racing. Winner of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, the Bob Bafferttrained colt will shoot for a place in the history books when he lines up in the final leg of the triple crown, the Belmont Stakes, on June 6.
■ Aidan O’Brien, who already has a record-breaking seven winners to his name in the Coronation Cup, has Tapestry as his sole representative in the Group One middle-distance showpiece for older horses at Epsom on June 6.
■ Cirrus Des Aigles is one of just seven left in the Prix d’Ispahan following the first forfeit stage for the Longchamp contest on Sunday.
■ Godolphin have bought into the partnership that owns Dante runner-up Jack Hobbs, who will race in the royal blue colours of Sheikh Mohammed’s operation and remain with trainer Johnny Gosden.