ITV Racing Tips: Tips For Saturday 16th May At Newbury & Newmarket

Saturday's ITV action comes from Newbury and Newmarket with the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes the highlight at 2:35pm. Joe Napier has studied the cards and found four bets including one in the feature. 

14:35 Newbury - BOYLE Sports Lockinge Stakes (Group 1)

Charlie Appleby desperately needs a winner, meaning that Notable Speech is available at odds miles too big for the Lockinge. He is one of the more underrated talents in recent seasons. When the five-year-old puts it all together, he is very difficult to beat, as evidenced when he stormed away with the Breeders' Cup Mile at Del Mar in November. He met too much trouble in running in Europe last season, which possibly cost him victory at Royal Ascot and Deauville. In this race, he was unlucky with the draw, ultimately losing to two horses down the centre when he was drawn closest to the near-side. As it happens, his greatest misfortune had not occurred yet, but did at Keeneland in April when completely luckless in the USA's Maker's Mark Mile Stakes. Nevertheless, he demonstrated he still has plenty of his 2000 Guineas winning ability and that run should have him more fit to fire in this contest. With a better draw in stall 3, he is overpriced to win and even returns each-way at current odds.

14:50 Newmarket - Read Meg Nicholls' Blog At betmgm.co.uk Handicap

Andrew Balding's horses are proving tricky to beat at present, but on their recent form here, Silver Ghost could well overturn running with Golden Redemption. There was only half-a-length between them when second and third to Billyjoh. Golden Redemption was slightly hampered by the winner, but the first two home raced up the more advantageous part of the track. Silver Ghost, meanwhile, was closer to the far rail, which may have blunted his finish slightly. He now meets the runner-up on 3lb better terms, which is substantial given how little ground was between them. The selection is only 4lb above his last winning mark from last summer now despite running consistent races the last thrice. In that time, he has dropped 4lb and with the handicapper giving him that chance, he may now strike.

15:10 Newbury - Highclere Castle Gin Carnarvon Stakes (Listed)

This is judgement day for Albert Einstein, but race conditions should ensure he passes the test. Well-held over 7f the last twice, the drop back to 6f has looked the move since the start of the campaign. He actually ran respectably here over 7f in the Greenham takes. The early shoots of that form are positive enough and he was only three-quarters-of-a-length behind Group 1 winner Zavateri that day. Given he is almost certainly a more natural sprinter, there are few excuses for him not to win here as he has a fitness edge over main market rival Royal Fixation and gets 5lb from out-of-form Charlie Appleby's Wise Approach. Anything but success is unacceptable. Fortunately, he should be accepted into the winners' enclosure.

15:45 Newbury - Trade Nation London Gold Cup Handicap

The absence of My Love Is King has opened the London Gold Cup up significantly. It is possible that even if the Gosden runner had competed that Al Azd may have proven too progressive. The son of Dubawi was too raw as a juvenile, but he began 2026 strongly. Three successive seconds did include a turnover at 30/100, but after getting off the mark at Southwell, he relished the return to turf at Doncaster, cruising through from the back of the field to win by a little under four lengths on handicap debut. He has gone up 7lb for that success, which came over 1m4f and he will have to cope with the drop back to 1m2f, over which he kept finishing as the runner-up. It looked like he had turned a corner at Doncaster though and he can keep improving to win this notoriously competitive contest.