Sir Michael Stoute’s Snow Sky won the Derby Trial at Lingfield at the weekend and earns a quote of 16/1 with BetVictor for classic success at Epsom, bidding to give the trainer his 6th win in the race and first since Workforce romping home under Ryan Moore in 2010.
Monday means evening racing at Windsor and Stoute can savour further success with his Cheveley Park filly Russian Heroine (5.50) in the opening five furlong maiden. She is a half-sister to the smart pair of Safina and Russian Realm and wouldn’t need to be out of the ordinary to win a race of this calibre; the stable tasting success with a similar type Provenance in the week at Kempton.
Stoute and Moore can double up with Stampede (6.50) in the famous silks of Highclere Thoroughbred Racing. The High Chaparral colt makes his debut handicap after three promising runs in maidens, the latter an eye-catching fourth behind Heisman at Kempton.
He looked like a potential stayer than day, making stealthy progress late on and the step up to a mile and a quarter should suit further and Ryan Moore likely to make full use of his plumb draw in stall one.
The feature is the Royal Windsor Listed Stakes with the trio of Ocean Tempest, Fencing and Baltic Knight all taking each other on after meeting in Paradise Stakes a fortnight ago at Ascot. Godolphin’s Out of Bounds (7.20) is taken to spoil the party however for Saeed Bin Suroor and Silvestre Da Sousa. He has an excellent record fresh including an impressive defeat of Gatewood last season at Doncaster and can provide further success for the boys in blue.
Alan Swinbank’s string continue in excellent form and his 3-y-o Deep Resolve (1.40) can continue the stable’s fine form in the amateur riders’ handicap in the opener at Doncaster. The 3-y-o made a winning reappearance at Southwell before building on that further when third behind the well punted Innocent Touch at Redcar on ground less than ideal.
The gelding is now stepped up to a mile and a half and progress further with leading amateur Simon Walker in the plate, two wins from three rides on Town Moor over the last 12 months.
Chris Wall’s runners don’t normally start firing until they are sent handicapping and his Ballyshonagh (2.10) looks a very interesting runner in the ten furlongs fillies’ handicap after running in a trio of maidens on the all-weather last autumn. George Baker takes the ride fresh off the back of his win aboard Gabrial’s lad in the Victoria Cup and the filly looks the ideal type to improve and likely to be fine on any ground.
The feature seven furlong handicap can go to Kevin Ryan’s progressive Equity Risk (3.50) who made stealthy headway handicapping last season and is entitled to build on that further as a 4-y-o. He has an excellent record fresh and looks sure to go well; Jamie Spencer booked to ride and drawn in stall two. Foxtrot Romeo was second in an Irish Guineas in his prime with Bryan Smart and is a very interesting runner from a mark of 90 for Marco Botti and apprentice Mark Monaghan taking off a further 5lb.
The duo of Spencer and Ryan can seal a double with Derbyshire (5.35) in the finale, previously touted as one of the yard’s best juveniles last term and disappointing at York, Ayr and Nottingham respectively.
He was punted like a good thing on debut at York in an excellent maiden before being found out by soft ground thereafter. He pulled too hard in his races last term and it is hoped that a gelding operation has (ironically enough) made a man out of him. He looks potentially chucked in from a mark of 64.
For all the latest odds head to BetVictor.com
