Today's ITV Racing Tips: Friday's York Ebor Festival Best Bets

It’s Friday on the Knavesmire and that can only mean one thing — Day 3 of the Ebor Festival and another cracking afternoon of ITV Racing from York. We’ve got the stayers strutting their stuff in the Lonsdale Cup, the juvenile stars lining up in the Gimcrack, and the speedballs hurtling down the track in the Nunthorpe. It’s a card stacked with quality and intrigue, and I’ve gone in with three bets that look tailor-made for the occasion.

14:25 York - Lonsdale Cup

The Lonsdale has a history of producing a proper staying performance, and in recent years it’s been a stepping stone for Gold Cup horses to strut their stuff on the Knavesmire. That’s why I can’t look past TRAWLERMAN this time. He’s the type of stayer you don’t come across very often: not flashy, not quirky, just brutally consistent when stamina becomes the only currency. His win in the Ascot Gold Cup showed exactly what he is — a grinder with a bit of class, who refuses to fold when it gets attritional.

Sandown before that was a perfect prep; he stalked Coltrane, matched strides, and then pulled away when others wilted. That form looks even stronger now given how those around him have run since. People sometimes underestimate just how relentless Trawlerman is in the closing stages of these marathon races — he doesn’t hit a wall, he simply keeps rolling while others tie up. And at York, on a galloping track where rhythm is king, that’s an enormous advantage.

The opposition? Sure, there are up-and-comers trying to bridge the gap, but they’ve all got to prove they can sustain this sort of gallop over two miles against a proven Group 1 operator. Al Qareem is honest but doesn’t quite have the gears. and Sweet William is admirable and definitely classy, but more inconsistent than his stablemate in royal blue. When you stack them up, Trawlerman brings the blend of stamina, class, and battle-hardened form that makes him very difficult to oppose. He’s my banker of the day.

15:00 York - Gimcrack Stakes

The Gimcrack is often where you separate the genuine Group performers from the flashy juveniles who have just been beating up small fields, and this year’s renewal has the look of a proper test. My eye is drawn to DO OR DO NOT, who’s been knocking on the door in all the big juvenile sprints without quite getting his head in front. The key point here: he’s danced every dance, hasn’t shirked a challenge, and yet he’s shaped like a horse who has one more gear to find when it clicks. Today, with first-time cheekpieces, could be that day.

Take his Coventry run at Ascot: he was travelling well until the closing stages when the lack of focus seemed to cost him a length or two. Then in the July Stakes, he was right there against some of the best two-year-olds we’ve seen all season, only to flatten out slightly when asked for maximum effort. And in the Vintage at Goodwood, on ground that didn’t help, he was still finishing off his race like a colt with a future. None of those runs scream “he’s limited” — instead they scream “he’s talented but still learning the job.”

The addition of cheekpieces is absolutely fascinating. Connections clearly feel he’s got the raw ability but just needs sharpening up in the heat of battle. If that small tweak unlocks just a smidgen more focus, it could easily make the difference in a Group 2 like this. The 6f trip at York is also perfect: a long straight where he can travel, sit handy, and then launch when asked. He doesn’t need to lead, he doesn’t need favours — he just needs a fair pace and a gap.

Against him, there are some progressive types, but none with his body of evidence at this level. I’d much rather back the colt who’s been right there with the best and still has scope to improve than one who’s been mopping up novices. For me, Do Or Do Not looks primed to land his big one.