Chester’s annual May meeting kicks off on Wednesday. It looks set to be a profitable start to favourite backers, although with the racing looking more open towards the end of the day, there are also some juicy prices among our later selections. Find out who we are siding with, alongside bet365‘s new customer offer of Bet £10 Get £50 In Free Bets.
Star Of Lady M (1.30 Chester) 7/4
David O’Meara won this in 2019 and can do so again with STAR OF LADY M, who has made a faultless start to her career so far.
She defeated Zephina on debut, despite David Evans’ filly having had the benefit of a run. However, what was more impressive was her defeat of Brockelsby runner-up Primrose Ridge in the same race. That horse has since got off the mark at Beverley by a winning margin of seven lengths.
Under a 4lb winners’ penalty, Star Of Lady M followed up in comfortable fashion at Ripon, sprinting away to score by 3½ lengths. That demonstrated a nice trend of improvement from her first to her second start.
The only slight worry is that both wins have come on what was officially soft ground, but that should not be a necessity for her. Crucially for Chester, she is drawn in stall two, which should be ideal.
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Live In The Dream (2.05 Chester) 7/4
Another who is tricky to oppose, LIVE IN THE DREAM may only have met his ideal conditions for the first time at Sandown most recently.
He won by 3¾ lengths over 5f, but it was the first time he had ground quicker than soft over the minimum trip. Otherwise, he had run either on the all-weather or rain-soaked ground, or over 6½f on good-to-firm, as was the case when seventh at York last term.
That he is up 8lb is no concern as he beat what looked to be a decent field at the Surrey track last month. Ryan Moore is also a bold and exciting booking by Adam West for Wednesday’s contest.
His only run at this track saw him finish fourth last term, but he was drawn in stall eight in a nine-runner field that day. In the much friendlier stall two here, this prominent racer can get a track position to suit him and should take all the beating.
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Above The Curve (2.40 Chester) 7/4
The further you go at Chester, the less the draw has an effect. While it is ultimately still beneficial to be drawn closer to the inside, there is longer for those out wide to pick their way through.
Intriguingly, the top five in the ten-strong Cheshire Oaks market are drawn in the widest five stalls. As such, there is virtually no disadvantage for ABOVE THE CURVE who looked just that when getting off the mark most recently.
While the likes of Hello Jumeirah and Night Battle have potential following their maiden victories, Joseph O’Brien’s filly did the business very stylishly at Leopardstown at the beginning of April. That came after a promising debut at the same track last season.
There appears little reason why the extra furlong-and-a-half will compromise her chances and she can enhance her Classic claims.
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New London (3.10 Chester) 4/11
Just the four runners show up for this year’s Chester Vase. Let’s hope that is not a reflection of how many will chance their arm in the Derby next month.
Perhaps it is simply a reflection of Godolphin’s dominance that most are running scared of challenging NEW LONDON here. He is the ante-post favourite for the St Leger, as well as one of the most prominent in the Derby betting.
He did well to win his only start as a two-year-old at Newmarket last season. Doing so on soft ground on debut was impressive for one as young as he was, suggesting stamina could easily prove his strong suit. However, he clearly has substantial class too, as he beat a useful Godolphin rival in Aldous Huxley when reappearing last month. That 2 1/4 -length success threatened big things.
The danger could come from a pace perspective, as the small field could ensure this is run at a crawl. Ryan Moore will no doubt have a game plan on Aidan O’Brien’s Changingoftheguard, but he is unlikely to have the quality to match the selection.
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Buckshaw Village (3.40 Chester) 6/1
The first race in which the favourite is opposed, as BUCKSHAW VILLAGE looks the best play in this handicap.
Habitually a hold-up horse, those tactics may have to be tinkered at Chester, but he has the draw to be flexible in stall four. Franny Norton is the man to settle him under any kind of ride here, as he has ridden more winners at Chester than on any other turf track.
Richard Fahey’s colt made a slow start to this season, finishing well adrift of Pocket The Profit at Pontefract. That came on soft ground though, and he has since run much more promisingly at Ripon, staying on strongly over 5f having been outpaced. He is 1lb lower for that race.
That should mean this 6f trip is more to his liking. He may have yet to win in six starts, but he went very close twice as a two-year-old and this might be the day for him on this declining mark.
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Asean Legend (4.15 Chester) 4/1
The two Godolphin horses both made good impressions on their first starts this season. That said, both of them are far from guaranteed to stay this extended 1m2½f trip on breeding and might be worth taking on.
ASEAN LEGEND was second on all three starts for Hugo Palmer as a juvenile. None of his margins of defeat were greater than 1¼ lengths, including a neck at Haydock and a short head at Kempton. Each was over roughly 1m and he saw out his races very strongly.
He has since transferred to William Haggas’ yard and could not be in better hands based on recent form. Similarly, he is by Australia, ensuring he has more of a stout, staying pedigree to his name.
He has raced just behind the pace on his trio of appearances to date. That running style should be perfect for this course and he should at least go close once again.
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Paws For Thought (4.45 Chester) 15/2
PAWS FOR THOUGHT is already a course and distance winner and may just have needed revitalising before being competitive once again.
The gelding lost his form after winning on return last term, ultimately falling 10lb in the handicap from a mark of 94 to 84. The latter is what he returns off here, after changing hands from Tom Dascombe’s to Donald McCain.
McCain’s is not a name particularly associated with the flat, but he had a fantastic jumps season just gone. Similarly, jockey Paul Mulrennan has got off to a fantastic start to the flat jockeys’ championship after a treble at Thirsk on Saturday.
Despite his form slacking, Paws For Thought still ran two good races at Chester last term, one over 6f, and the other despite a poor draw in stall eight. He is in stall six here, from which he won at the track at the start of last season and is worth supporting.
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Chester Day One Selections
Star Of Lady M (1.30 Chester) 7/4
Live In The Dream (2.05 Chester) 7/4
Above The Curve (2.40 Chester) 7/4
New London (3.10 Chester) 4/11
Buckshaw Village (3.40 Chester) 6/1
Asean Legend (4.15 Chester) 4/1
Paws For Thought (4.45 Chester) 15/2
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