22nd September: Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes (Newbury)

A total of 38 entries are still engaged in the Group Two Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes at Newbury which takes place on day two of the Dubai Duty Free International Weekend, Saturday, September 22.

The six-furlong contest for two-year-olds boasts an excellent roll of honour with Ribchester (2015) and champion sprinter Harry Angel (2016) among the recent winners.

Aidan O'Brien has yet to win the Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes. Britain's and Ireland's champion trainer still has six entries including Land Force, winner of the Richmond Stakes at Goodwood, and the Coventry Stakes third Sergei Prokofiev.

Louis Treize (Richard Spencer), who was an eye-catching winner on the All-Weather at Newcastle, is an interesting contender.

Heartwarming (Clive Cox), one of several fillies among the entries, warmed up for the Mill Reef Stakes by running in the Listed Byerley Stud Stakes over five furlongs at Newbury where she finished a promising second.

Heartwarming's trainer Clive Cox, who won the Mill Reef Stakes with Harry Angel, also has the July Stakes runner-up Konchek in the field.

The winning most British trainer of all time, Mark Johnston, has two contenders to go with, notably Royal Ascot scorer Main Edition and Marie’s Diamond for the Middleham Park syndicate.

The impressive Goodwood nursery handicap victor Don Armado (Stuart Williams) is also expected to contest the race.

 

22nd September: William Hill Gold Cup (Ayr)

Royal Ascot winner Bacchus and last year's July Stakes scorer Cardsharp are the most prominent names in next Saturday’s Ayr Gold Cup. 

The Brian Meehan-trained Bacchus was last seen finishing down the field behind Polydream in the Prix Maurice de Gheest.

Cardsharp is the joint top-rated runner with Bacchus. He won the Listed Cathedral Stakes at Salisbury in June and is quoted at 33/1 for the Scottish contest.

Godolphin, who have never lifted the 6f contest, have three entries in the form of Top Score, Brian The Snail and the more fancied Culturati who ran well at York last time.

Having won the Great St Wilfrid Handicap at Ripon four weeks ago, the David Baron-trained Gunmetal is bidding for another big Saturday handicap win at Ayr.

Gunmetal won at both Thirsk and Newmarket in the spring and finished third at the Curragh in the Scurry Handicap in July. He is clearly in good heart and 16/1 seems like a decent each-way bet at this stage.

Red-hot trainer of the moment, Andrew Balding, who sent out last year's winner Donjuan Triumphant to win the rescheduled race at Haydock, saddles Stone Of Destiny, while the 2016 runner-up, Growl, is among a number of entries  from the two-time winning trainer Richard Fahey.

The Dean Ivory team are also mulling an Ayr Gold Cup run for Flaming Spear.

The six-year-old picked up a 5lb penalty for winning a valuable £100,000 Goodwood handicap, but he is still 1lb well in after a 6lb rise from the handicapper.

The Prix De La Foret is still an option for the horse but punters are confident he will be heading to Scotland and there is plenty of money for him at 12/1.

 

29th September: Cambridgeshire Handicap (Newmarket)

The Kieswetter family’s 2017 Sun Met champion Whisky Baron (W.Haggas) has been allotted top weight for the race but there are some doubts about his participation.

Whisky Baron (9st 10lb) is one of three leading fancies for Haggas alongside Alfarris and Seniority.

Other well known names in the line up include Zhui Feng, successful in the 2017 Royal Hunt Cup, and the Brian Meehan-trained Spark Plug, the winner of this race two years ago.

David Menuisier has the fast-improving Danceteria as his main candidate. Danceteria has won his last three starts, all mile and a quarter handicaps on Newmarket’s July Course.

Menuisier’s other two entries, History Writer and Dragons Voice, would both need to pick up penalties in order for them to get into the handicap proper and take their places.

Andrew Balding’s Pivoine won a couple of autumn handicaps last term for Sir Michael Stoute and bolted up at the Ebor Festival last month.

John Gosden’s Stylehunter has also been well touted for the race and is a well-supported 12/1 chance in the horse racing betting.

 

29th September: Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes (Newmarket)

Signora Cabello and Pretty Pollyanna are all set for a rematch in the Cheveley Park Stakes at the end of the month.

Signora Cabello has won four of her five starts for John Quinn, including Group Two victories in the Queen Mary at Royal Ascot and the Prix Robert Papin at Maisons-Laffitte.

In the Prix Morny at Deauville she was narrowly beaten by the Michael Bell-trained Pretty Pollyanna when the pair of them made it a British trained 1-2.

The John Gosden-trained Angel’s Hideaway is hoping to put misfortune behind her in this contest.

She went to York for the Lowther on the back of a convincing victory in the Princess Margaret Stakes at Ascot but she was checked in her run at critical time and was eased down by Frankie Dettori.

The winner of the Lowther Stakes that day was Aidan O’Brien’s Fairyland who reopposes and is an 8/1 chance.

 

*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*

Steven is a sports and horse racing enthusiast and is a member of the Horseracing Writers and Photographers Association (HWPA) in the United Kingdom.

He is a regular visitor to Paris Longchamp for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and a lifelong fan of the Aintree Grand National, a subject he writes about 52 weeks of the year. Last year he reached the impressive milestone of attending the last 30 renewals of the Grand National.