ITV Racing Tips: Three To Back At Newmarket On Cambridgeshire Day

Two Group Ones and the small matter of finding the Cambridgeshire winner should keep racing fans suitably occupied on Saturday, with Newmarket taking centre stage on ITV and Haydock supplying the supporting action. Billy Grimshaw has picked out three bets on the Rowley Mile, beginning with the Royal Lodge before tackling the Cheveley Park and the afternoon's big handicap...

13:55 Newmarket – Royal Lodge Stakes

There are a few unbeaten records being put on the line here and Burning Up could be very good, but at the prices I narrowly prefer FIRST LAW for Charlie Appleby. Neither has done anything wrong in two starts, although I think the Godolphin colt has already answered slightly more of the questions we need answering.

He won his maiden at Sandown on good to firm before following up in Listed company at Haydock on heavy ground. That is a fairly dramatic change of conditions for a young horse to take in his stride and, with Newmarket currently good with good to firm places, we at least know he doesn't need the mud to start flying.

The Haydock victory was only by three-quarters of a length from Rocket Boy, so I am not about to dress it up as a demolition job. Nevertheless, that rival had already finished a close third behind Quest For Stars at Salisbury and gives the form a reasonably solid look. Winning narrowly against something useful can tell us more than winning easily against horses who cannot go with you.

Haffner is the obvious headache. His official rating of 110 puts him ahead of these and his York win would give him a serious chance, but seventh of eight in the National Stakes only thirteen days ago is a fairly substantial blot to overlook. He also has the extra furlong to prove. Ryan Moore could make those concerns look rather silly, but I would sooner side with the improving colt whose latest run encourages me.

Burning Up commands respect, while Quicken Away is entitled to progress again from his Goodwood maiden success. At 10/3, though, the combination of proven mile form, ground versatility and another potential step forward makes the Appleby runner a fair win bet.

14:27 Newmarket – Cheveley Park Stakes

Sun Goddess has been collecting big prizes at a rate that suggests someone has told her they are about to stop handing them out. Her Moyglare success was emphatic and there is every chance she simply proves too good again, but I don't think the gap between these fillies over six furlongs is as wide as the market suggests.

At 9/2, LIBERTANGO is the one I want onside.

George Boughey's filly has already beaten Sun Goddess by a length in the Albany and finished just three-quarters of a length behind Senorita Bonita in the Duchess of Cambridge. Those results do not freeze the pecking order for the rest of the season, of course. Both rivals have since won at the highest level and could have improved past her. They do, however, make it difficult for me to accept that she is comfortably the third-best option.

Her own latest appearance brought a Lowther win at York, where she beat Star Of State by half a length on good to soft. Three wins and a second from four starts is hardly the record of a filly standing still, and she has had a decent break since that August success.

Senorita Bonita is a considerable danger after winning the Morny by four lengths. I certainly wouldn't dismiss her as a soft-ground specialist given she beat the selection on good to firm in July. This is a proper race, with three fillies bringing persuasive claims, and my preference is very much about the odds.

The favourite also drops back from seven furlongs just thirteen days after the Moyglare. That may prove no inconvenience whatsoever, but I would rather take the bigger price about a fresh, proven six-furlong performer than assume another busy fortnight makes no difference. Billy Loughnane knows his filly well and she looks a perfectly reasonable win bet.

15:40 Newmarket – Cambridgeshire Handicap

Gavriel has the sort of profile that makes punters start muttering about Group horses in handicaps, and there is a perfectly good chance they are right. A lightly raced Gosden three-year-old arriving off an Ascot win is an obvious candidate for this, but with 28 declared I would prefer something at a bigger price.

The one I have landed on is ERZINDJAN, who looks a fair each-way proposition at 10/1.

He was fourth in this race last year, leading home his side of the track, and returned to win over this course and distance in May. That success came from a mark of 99 and he runs here off 100. We don't need to invent some enormous improvement to make him competitive; a return to his spring level would do very nicely.

His latest effort at York was poor, finishing twelfth after a slow start, and I wouldn't attempt to polish that into something it wasn't. His previous sixth in the Royal Hunt Cup was much more encouraging, though, and returning to a track where he has already shown his effectiveness is a substantial positive.

The draw in 25 also appeals. Indalo is immediately alongside in 26 and Gavriel is in 28, so he is at least housed near a couple of the runners I most respect. That doesn't guarantee this will be the right part of the course, but I am happy with the starting position.

At eight he is hardly a fashionable improver, and anyone backing him needs to accept that a younger horse could have more up its sleeve. Still, the handicapper has given him a chance, Billy Loughnane takes over and his course record makes considerably more appeal than that latest form figure. With the extra places worth shopping around for, he is my each-way play in a typically awkward renewal.