The Ayr Gold Cup meeting is already underway, but steps up a level on Friday with two Listed races and the Bronze Cup, for the third division of horses seeking to make the Gold Cup field.
Andrew Mount has two tips for the big field sprint handicap on Friday, as well as two others on the card at Ayr.
Ayr Racing Tips (Friday 18 September 2026)
It is Bronze Cup day at Ayr on Friday, and Andrew Mount has has four top tips at the Scottish track, including two in the big handicap.
3.40 Ayr – Righthere Rightnow (0.5pt e/w – 9/1 bet365, 17/2 Hills, 8/1 general) & Territorial Knight (0.5pt e/w – 22/1 Coral, Ladbrokes, 16/1 general)
Owner Phil Cunningham has made no secret of his ambition to win the Ayr Gold, Silver and Bronze Cups this week and Righthere Rightnow can get the ball rolling in the Bronze Cup this afternoon. The four-year-old is a good statistical fit for this race – nine of the last ten winners were second or lower in the weights, aged three to five, prepped in a handicap of Class 2-4 level and had raced within the past six weeks. Backing all 102 qualifiers across the past ten renewals returned a profit of £21.50 at SP (+£55.73 at Betfair SP after 2% commission, expected wins = 4.70, A/E = 1.91). Seven of the winners also ridden patiently in their prep race as the son of Kodiac was and blindly backing all 61 qualifiers returned a profit of £36.00 at SP. His fifth place to stablemate Candy in last season’s Silver Cup is the key piece of form – he had current Gold Cup favourite Binhareer behind him that day whose mark has since gone up from 90 to 103, while runner-up Sondad has since been raised from 92 to 108. Righthere Rightnow on the other hand lines up off 80 today, 6lb lower than for last year, and Saffie Osborne, in double winning form here yesterday, is back on board.
I also want to back another of the system qualifiers mentioned above – last year’s fifth Territorial Knight. The four-year-old sat a little too closer to the early pace than ideal that day and cam be forgiven his latest Haydock defeat (ninth of 14) as he was drawn well away from the favoured stands’ side rail. Since his racecourse debut, his sprint record on good or softer going, in fields of 10+ runners and below Listed level, stands at 2131255259 (2-10).
4.15 Ayr – Empirestateofmind (1pt win – 8/1 general)
Empirestateofmind performs best after a recent run (20 days or sooner) on genuinely good or softer ground (based on race times, not the official going). His record under such conditions reads 1111012203313121949 (9-19) for a profit of £24.66 at SP (+£33.68 at Betfair SP after 2% commission, expected wins = 3.23, A/E = 2.48). Two of those runs came in today’s Class 5 grade and he won both, albeit back in 2021.John and Sean Quinn’s gelding is well into the veteran stage but this is easier than the York handicap he contested 12 days ago and his two runs here have produced a win and a narrow second.
4.45 Ayr- Filly Eilish (1pt win – 6/1 best with bet365 but double that on Betfair and likely to drift)
Ivan Furtado and Jason Hart had a 7-1 winner and 12-1 third when joining forces at Ayr yesterday and Filly Eilish looks interesting for the in-form pair in division two of this 1m Class 5 handicap. The three-year-old has improved for wind surgery and the cut back to 1m this term, overcoming her stall 1 draw at Southwell in late July before a pair of fifth places over the same track and trip. Both defeats were excusable as she raced on the far side of the track when the stands’ side bias was in play. She lacks experience on slow turf but it should hold no fears on breeding and improvement looks likely now that Jason Hart takes over from Silvestre De Sousa.
Andrew Mount’s Best Bets Today
3.40 Ayr – Righthere Rightnow (0.5pt e/w – 9/1 bet365, 17/2 Hills, 8/1 general) & Territorial Knight (0.5pt e/w – 22/1 Coral, Ladbrokes, 16/1 general)
4.15 Ayr – Empirestateofmind (1pt win – 8/1 general)
4.45 Ayr – Filly Eilish (1pt win – 6/1 best with bet365 but double that on Betfair and likely to drift)
Andrew Mount’s Horse Racing Tips – Friday 18 September
FAQs: Today’s Racing Tips
What are today’s racing tips?
Andrew Mount provides his best bets at Ayr.
Which racecourses run on Friday 18 September?
Ayr, Newbury, Newton Abbot and Wolverhampton.
Who is Andrew Mount?
Andrew Mount is a professional tipster with over a decade of experience following UK and Irish racing. He combines form study, market moves and trainer intelligence to identify value bets each day, and shares his tips daily on X as @TrendHorses.
When were today’s tips published?
Today’s tips were published at 7.40am on Monday 14 September 2026.
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