Falmouth Stakes Tips: Dream To Down January At Newmarket On Friday

Group 1 action takes place on day two of Newmarket's July Meeting and the fillies and mares will do battle in a mouth-watering renewal of the Falmouth Stakes at 3:35pm on Friday 11th July, 2025. Steve Chambers takes a look at the all all form and picks out his selection for what should be an enthralling contest.

Aidan O'Brien has only tasted victory in the Falmouth Stakes on two separate occasions, but the master of Ballydoyle will fancy his chances of claiming a third victory and will unleash the exciting filly January, who is a prominent figure in the betting. A really smart juvenile last season, she was second to subsequent 1000 Guineas winner Desert Flower in the Fillies' Mile at Newmarket at the back end of last season. Things have been less fruitful this season having failed to land any sort of blow when eighth in the Irish 1000 Guineas at the Curragh, before finishing third in the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot. She certainly improved on her second start last time out, and taking on older horses here, where she gain a pull in the weights, then she has to be considered a huge player in a competitive renewal.

Only out the first two in one of her 11 career starts, CINDERELLA'S DREAM is a real model of consistency and the globetrotting daughter of Shamardal is looking to build on her second placed finish in the Duke Of Cambridge Stakes at the Royal meeting last month. Prior to that effort she was an authoritative winner of the Dahlia Stakes at Newmarket, so a return to Flat HQ should see her blossom again and she will certainly be a notable thorn in the side of January, and is challenging for favouritism, at the time of writing.

However, Cinderellla's Dream will face an old adversary in the shape of John & Thady Gosden's Crimson Advocate, who produced a career best to win the aforementioned Duke Of Cambridge Stakes at Ascot last month, where she got the better of Cinderella's Dream. The pair are set to serve up another cracking battle in this contest, but Cinderella's Dream is 3lbs better off, so the Godolphin team will fancy their chances of reversing the form of their Royal encounter.

Well fancied for this race 12 months ago, Running Lion failed to land any sort of blow and was last of the seven runners, however, is back for a second crack at the contest and is second shot fired by the Gosden gun. Last year's Duke Of Cambridge winner has struggled to reach those dizzy heights in recent times, but showed when second in a Listed event at Haydock back in May and when fourth in this year's Duke Of Cambridge that she's not completely out of it, if producing her best. She was last of five in the Dahlia Stakes won by Cinderella's Dream at the start of campaign, so she will need to improve on what she's shown this week, but she is certainly not one without a chance of meeting the frame.

A shock 28/1 winner of last season's 1000 Guineas, has often flattered to deceive at the highest level since and she was another that was dispatched with aplomb by Elmalka in the Dahlia Stakes at Newmarket, before she was last seen finishing fourth in the Prix d'Ispahan. She is one that could prefer a little more cut in the ground, so Roger Varian's charge is going to find this all a bit too much.

With only three runs on her CV, Elwateen is one that could improve and having finished an excellent fourth in the 1000 Guineas she then went on to finish seventh in the Oaks at Epsom. Dropping back down in trip for this contest, Saeed bin Suroor's charge should relish the drop down to a mile, but whether or not she can down some proven top class fillies and mares is up for question, and she needs a huge career best.

Seventh in the Irish 1000 Guineas, Donnacha O'Brien's Atsila is up against it here and is entitled to be a huge price, while the recent German 1000 Guineas winner Lady Ilze completes the line-up, but she will contend with much faster conditions here and is going to face a huge test in a race that can see the blue of Godolphin reign and Cinderella's Dream can strike gold again.