There are eight British and Irish race meetings to choose from for the Placepot on Saturday. Joe Napier turns to Goodwood in his attempt to land it this week.
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Leg 1: 1.30pm
Leg 1 Selections: (8) Blue Prince, (10) Kingdom Of Riches
This is a brutally difficult opener to call and it’s worth hedging with a duo in order to get to race two. The first name to focus on is BLUE PRINCE, who is easily the most exposed in the line-up yet could be one who is about to find his form. He was third from a distinctly inopportune track position when upped to 7f at York last time out, taking his form in handicaps this year to 132303. Broadly he has continued to be competitive and there may be improvement left in him over this trip.
At a bigger price, another to have on side is KINGDOM OF RICHES. Ralph Beckett’s charge has run on soft ground the last thrice, but never equalled his victory second time out at Leicester last term on good to firm. With little rain expected before tomorrow, good ground or faster should prevail in Sussex and he may well prove better than his mark of 88 in those conditions.
Leg 2: 2.05pm
Leg 2 Selections: (4) Francophone
This might not be an overly strong renewal of the Listed Height Of Fashion Stakes, so while there are some doubts about how strong the Musidora form at York was, FRANCOPHONE still gets the verdict to at least make the top three.
She looked to have improved from her juvenile form when winning cosily at Southwell over 1m at the end of April. The daughter of Study Of Man was then handily placed in York’s Group 3, ultimately being outbattled by Secret Satire, but holding off the rest for second. How that form bares out is up for scrutiny, but it is still the strongest in this race over the trip and there are few obvious candidates to improve beyond her if she maintains or improves upon it.
Leg 3: 2.35pm
Leg 3 Selections: (3) Countess Ciara, (11) Raveena
A 6f fillies’ maiden is next up, with three of the 13 having the benefit of a run. However, unless one of those improves substantially for their experience, it looks worth entrusting a pair of newcomers instead.
Archie Watson has started to strike with his two-year-olds, with both of his juvenile winners coming in the last couple of weeks. Both of those were debutants and COUNTESS CIARA is bred to be a forthcoming type who could be another to make a winning start for her yard.
Jack Channon, on the other hand, does not often strike at the first attempt with his juveniles, though RAVEENA may be as likely as any to break that trend. She is a half-sister to Group-winning sprinter Tiber Flow, who won on his first three career starts, and useful handicapper Godwinson, who was placed on debut. Being by Too Darn Hot, Raveena should prove as useful a two-year-old as either of that pair, as well as having enough pace to perform well here over 6f.
Leg 4: 3.10pm
Leg 4 Selections: (5) Get Shirty
True Legend and Vaguely Royal posted good runner-up efforts on their most recent starts, the former behind a handicap blot. However, they might bump into a revivified GET SHIRTY here, who is now dangerously well-handicapped and has been trending back towards his best.
He was rated 110 at his peak, off which he finished fifth in the Ebor, after racking up a hat-trick of handicaps at Hamilton, Royal Ascot and York in the summer of 2022. He is winless since, and last season was a disaster, but he has been beaten just 3½ lengths combined over his last two starts at Ripon and back at Hamilton. He is now down to a mark of 92 and returns to 1m6f here, which probably remains his optimum trip and it looks like he will be winning sooner rather than later.
Leg 5: 3.45pm
Leg 5 Selections: (7) Space Legend
Meydaan has already competed at this level when third behind Derby second favourite Ambiente Friendly in the Lingfield Trial. He was beaten 7½ lengths though, making him eminently beatable at this level. His three closest market rivals all won maidens in likeable fashion most recently, with SPACE LEGEND preferred as the alternative ahead of Royal Power and Lyric.
A runner-up on debut at Chelmsford in December, William Haggas’ charge scored by 5 ½ lengths at Leicester on his reappearance. That track has a habit of overemphasising winning margins, but he nevertheless pulled 20 lengths clear of the third, while the runner-up got significantly closer to winning next time out. He has not raced on good ground yet, but there is no real reason in his pedigree why he shouldn’t cope with it. He has the potential for this level of racing.
Leg 6: 4.20pm
Leg 6 Selections: (2) Crystal Flyer
The best form in this fillies’ novice to end the Placepot belongs to CRYSTAL FLYER and it is strong enough to believe she can hold off some attractive looking newcomers. She was a fairly distant third on debut, but more than held her own against some serious opposition at Sandown.
Her fourth-placed effort there saw her finish just half-a-length behind Musidora winner Secret Satire, staying on well to the line. Her placing did not seem to flatter her, and if building on that seasonal return, she could prove difficult to surpass.
Placepot Selections For Goodwood On Saturday 25th May
Countess Ciara
Space Legend
Crystal FlyerLooking For More Racing Info? Check Out Our Racecards & Top Tips Sections
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