William Haggas is very much the man of the moment in the training ranks. His runners have been in exceptional form of late and he looks set to send a powerful team to Royal Ascot in two weeks time. We have previewed his best chances for the week alongside FansBet who are offering a 200% Welcome Bonus Up To £200.
Baaeed (Queen Anne Stakes, Tuesday 2.30pm) 1/3
Very little more needs to be said about BAAEED. But let’s do it anyway, because racing needs horses to be very excited about.
Unbeaten records are so rare in racing. It is why Frankel’s perfect 14/14 record is so revered because it only takes the slightest thing to go wrong once and it can go up in smoke. Indeed, even he nearly lost it at Royal Ascot when Tom Queally pressed for home early in the 2011 St James’s Palace Stakes.
Similarly, horses regularly are not fully tuned up for their debuts. Sea The Stars was not unbeaten, as he won every race apart from his first, when green. Baaeed’s task at maintaining his streak may look straightforward given his dominance in the Lockinge Stakes recently. But it should not be taken for granted that he has managed seven wins in seven starts so far.
There is the mouthwatering prospect of him going up in trip and challenging the best middle distance horses over 1m2f. However, so powerful, so otherworldly did he look at Newbury that we must relish his ability over 1m for now.
Haggis could not wish for a better horse to go into the first race of Royal Ascot with. The Queen Anne Stakes is at his mercy and a magic eighth in a row should be his.
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Maljoom (St James’s Palace Stakes, Tuesday, 4.20pm) 15/2
Another horse who may be going to Royal Ascot unbeaten for Haggas is MALJOOM, who will be doing so in a very similar style to Baaeed from a year ago.
Baaeed was not forward enough to make the St James’s Palace Stakes, only making his debut in June last year, but Maljoom could well be. He began racing life as recently as March, in a Doncaster novice over 7f, which he won well.
Indeed all of his wins have been by between 1-1½ lengths, but he has gone up through the classes in his three starts. He claimed a Kempton conditions race before a European adventure in the German 2000 Guineas at Cologne.
That race bears Group 2 status and he and the runner-up pulled well clear of their rivals that day. Although he would still have a fair bit to find on the bare form with 2000 Guineas principals Coroebus and Native Trail, it was a strong performance for a yard still set to go into Royal Ascot in flying form.
It should also be noted that Haggas could also run recent Sandown Listed scorer My Propsero, who beat the Queen’s well-regarded Reach For The Moon in the Heron Stakes recently. He would add further depth to the squad here.
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Addeybb (Prince Of Wales’s Stakes, Wednesday, 3.40pm) 14/1
He may be an elder statesman now, but ADDEYBB was still a Group 1 winner as recently as last April.
That came in one of his journeys to Australia, where he is a three-time Group 1 hero. However, his only top tier success on these shores came over course and distance, when he powered through soft conditions in the 2020 Champion Stakes.
He has been campaigned very sporadically since he came back from Australia last spring, running just three times. He was a valiant second to St Mark’s Basilica in last year’s Eclipse before performing below his best in last season’s Champion Stakes and on return in the Group 3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes behind the new favourite for this race, Bay Bridge.
Soft ground may still be key to his successes, especially nowadays. However, there is a chance he will be more readily tuned up for this race and an on-song Addeybb would still go close.
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Boosala (Royal Hunt Cup, Wednesday, 5.00pm) 14/1
Very lightly-raced for his age, the five-year-old BOOSALA has only made eight starts in his career after two fairly lengthy layoffs in his earlier days.
He raced twice at two, winning both in good style at Windsor and York in 2019. However, he was then on the sidelines for 519 days before a credible comeback at Wolverhampton in December 2020. Another 280 days off the track followed.
The son of Dawn Approach may have been well-held on his second return, but he subsequently won well at Doncaster off a mark of 97 over 7f and has gone down by a nose in his two handicap starts since. His mark of 105 still looks manageable if things go right.
He was extremely unlucky not to win at Chester last time, where many a loser tells a hard luck story. Going up just 1lb for that run may underestimate him and Ascot’s straight 1m in a big-field handicap might be his dream scenario.
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Sea Silk Road (Ribblesdale Stakes, Thursday, 3.40pm) 8/1
SEA SILK ROAD is one of only a few towards the top of the market who will not be running in the Oaks at Epsom and that could easily give her an edge in terms of freshness.
The filly is one of a number of horses who have carried Sunderland Holdings’ colours with distinction in recent weeks. After being down the field on her only run as a two-year-old, Sea Silk Road has looked a different prospect at three.
She kicked clear in excellent style at Nottingham at the start of May, then turned up at Goodwood in Listed company two weeks later. On soft ground for the first time, she battled very likeably over 1m2f to win by half-a-length from Godolphin’s Eternal Pearl.
As a daughter of Sea The Stars, the step up to 1m4f in the Ribblesdale should be firmly in her favour and she looks to be versatile regarding ground as well. Even if she faces some of the Oaks participants, she may prove she has quality beyond their reach.
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Tiber Flow (Commonwealth Cup, Friday, 3.05pm) 16/1
Five starts have produced four wins for TIBER FLOW, whose only defeat came by just a short head at Newcastle recently.
Haggis’ charge got going late as a two-year-old, winning back in December, before following up under a winners’ penalty just after the turn of the year. Running in the winter necessitated him beginning life on the all-weather, where he also won at Southwell off a mark of 89 on his handicap debut in March.
That could prove to be his last handicap start for quite some time. The aforementioned defeat at Newcastle came on All-Weather Championships Day, where he lost the three-year-old conditions race over 6f to El Caballo. He failed only by a matter of strides.
On turf for the first time, he won in Listed company at Newbury, this time prevailing by a short-head. He could easily step forward on that run, and it seems ridiculous he is over twice the price of Newcastle conqueror El Caballo given the margin between them that day.
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Al Aasy (Hardwicke Stakes, Saturday, 3.40pm) 8/1
AL AASY is a very talented horse when putting everything together, but even if he is on his best behaviour, he may face a significant challenge in the Hardwicke Stakes.
That is because St Leger and Irish Derby winner Hurricane Lane may be in attendance, which would at least give juice to Al Aasy’s price. The five-year-old looked set for the very top at the beginning of last season when he won a pair of Group 3s at Newbury in fine style.
However, after being turned over in the Group 1 Coronation Cup when cruising into contention before gradually losing his form thereafter. His return gave hope that he was back to his best though, when he won comfortably over course and distance earlier this month.
He should be able to compete towards the front end once again. Beating a two-time Classic winner will take some doing, but he may be among the most capable set to line up.
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Sacred (Platinum Jubilee Stakes, Saturday, 4.20pm) 12/1
She is slightly enigmatic, and has not been seen since last August, but SACRED could prove Group 1 quality over sprint trips.
She won two Group races over 7f having placed in three Group 2s as a two-year-old between 5f-6f. Her two disappointments came at Newmarket, despite a win in the Nell Gwyn there in between, but she has only ever finished first or second elsewhere.
One of her juvenile runner-up finishes came in the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot in 2020, with only American raider Campanelle finishing in front of her. She can clearly go at the track and a fast pace should suit her perfectly.
Sacred has won on both her seasonal reappearances, so there is little doubt about her fitness. As a daughter of Exceed and Excel, sprinting should still be her game, despite wins at closer to 1m and with few British stars in this scene, she could be a leading home prospect against the international opposition.
All the racecards and tips for Royal Ascot festival are not published here on GG: Royal Ascot Wednesday Tips
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