York tips: Newsboy's picks and 1-2-3 for every race on Thursday on ITV
There is no better way to get prepared for the historic York Ebor Festival than follow ace tipster Newsboy. Over the next four days he will be providing in-depth analysis of every race in his not-to-be-missed column.
The day two Thursday card has the Yorkshire Oaks at the Group 1 feature but a disappointing field of four runners appears to provide dual Oaks winner Minnie Hauk with a straightforward task. The Sky Bet Lowther Stakes is the main support race.
1.50 Sky Bet Lowther Stakes
STAYA is fancied to make it third time lucky at Group level. George Scott's daughter of Havana Grey did everything right on her debut when galloping to a cosy two-length call in a fillies' novice stakes at Yarmouth in May.
That victory earned her a crack at the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot, where Staya ran above her 16-1 to take fifth, beaten just under two lengths at the line, behind True Love.
A drop in class to Listed company then did the trick 16 days later as my selection and Callum Shepherd justified 5-4 favouritism by a head from Military Code on what proved to be her final start at five furlongs.
Moving up to six for the Group 3 Princess Margaret Stakes on Ascot's King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes undercard last time out, Staya produced a personal best with a one-length second to Fitzella.
Even that may not tell the whole story as the grey made her ground from the back of the 10-runner field while the winner made all the running.
There is more to come on the fifth outing of her career and Staya is well capable of making her presence felt back at this Group 2 level. America Queen and Royal Fixation are also fillies of prodigious promise, while Argentine Tango won't go down without a fight.
NEWSBOY'S 1-2-3: 1 STAYA, 2 AMERICA QUEEN, 3 ARGENTINE TANGO
2.25 Harry's Half Million By Goffs
ANTHELIA has already won nearly 30 times her purchase price - and she isn't done with yet.
Rod Millman did yet another shrewd piece of business when he bought Supremacy's daughter for £6,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale last August - he got two-thirds of the money back when Anthelia made a winning debut at Bath in April.
She defied a penalty to double up at Salisbury a month later and then completed the hat-trick when stepping up to Listed class to beat First Legion by one length for the National Stakes at Sandown Park 25 days later.
A first try at today's six-furlong trip brought a first career defeat as Anthelia came home in fifth, a couple of lengths behind winner Argentine Tango, in the Listed Empress Fillies' Stakes at Newmarket on her penultimate outing.
But Lewis Edmunds' partner was back in business in the Weatherbys Super Sprint over the minimum trip at Newbury last time, battling on bravely to the finish to hold Havana Hurricane by a short head.
Although she suffered her only defeat at today's distance, six furlongs should not be an issue for Anthelia and another good account is on the cards.
Richard Hannon's record in this race makes Super Sprint sixth Raakeb of interest, with Front Line Fury and Song Of The Clyde others to throw into the mix.
NEWSBOY'S 1-2-3: 1 ANTHELIA, 2 RAAKEB, 3 FRONT LINE FURY
3.00 Clipper Handicap
APIARIST is worth making a beeline for. The bad news for backers of the Kevin Ryan-saddled four-year-old is that, while he has an impressive 3-6 all-weather strike-rate, Apiarist has collected just once from 15 attempts on turf.
But the good news is that his sole victory on the natural surface came at York, and he also made the frame on his other three visits to the Knavesmire.
Among those defeats came an excellent fourth in the three-year-old handicap, run over this course and distance, at last year's Ebor Festival when, anchored at the back of the field from a wide draw, my selection motored home to be beaten three and a half lengths at the line behind Treasure Time.
Having captured handicaps at Newcastle, Chelmsford City and Southwell during the winter Apiarist didn't cut much ice when 10th in the Lincoln at Doncaster on his return.
But he ran better in Royal Ascot's Buckingham Palace Handicap than his eight-of-27 finishing position might have you believe and also came home well, after being messed about at the start, to finish fourth at the Galway Festival 18 days ago.
Back at York, Tom Eaves' partner is expected to reward each-way support - at the least. Bullet Point is due a change of luck and is feared most, ahead of Leadman and Old Cock.
NEWSBOY'S 1-2-3: 1 APIARIST, 2 BULLET POINT, 3 LEADMAN
3.35 Pertemps Network Yorkshire Oaks
MINNIE HAUK is deservedly a hot favourite to bag a third Oaks - and Group 1 prize - on the bounce.
Frankel's daughter, a €1.85m purchase as a yearling, kept it low key with a couple of starts during her two-year-old season, bettering a full-of-promise second at Cork in October with a half-length beating of Subsonic in a one-mile fillies' maiden at Leopardstown 18 days later.
But Minnie Hauk's career has gone to a new level - the highest level - at three. On the back of a 200-day absence, my selection was given the chance to prove her Epsom credentials in the Listed Cheshire Oaks at Chester in May.
As Aidan O'Brien mopped up one trial after another, Ryan Moore's mount put into the Ballydoyle pot with a one-length beating of Secret Of Love to earn her place in the Classic line-up.
Sent off the 9-2 second choice for the Oaks - 1,000 Guineas heroine Desert Flower led the market - Minnie Hauk passed her toughest test with flying colours, getting the better of a battle with stable-companion Whirl by a neck.
Her follow-up in the Irish equivalent at the Curragh last month was routine rather than spectacular as the 2-11 hotpot ground to a length-and-a-quarter supremacy from Wemightakedlongway.
As the only Group 1 winner in the three-runner line-up, Minnie Hauk is a class above - and it will be the shock of the meeting if she loses.
Lancashire Oaks heroine Estrange is taken for the silver medal, with Oaks eighth Qilin Queen preferred to Garden Of Eden for the final place on the podium.
Free £2 Shop Bet with William Hill inside your Mirror every day of the York Ebor Festival
THE big guns are being readied and loaded to fire at York's Ebor Festival which starts on Wednesday August 20, 2025- and your Mirror is bringing you everything you need to celebrate the final flourish of the racing season including FREE shop bets from William Hill. Don't miss your paper every day of the festival, from Wednesday August 20 until Saturday August 23, 2025, to get your hands on packed pullouts, free £2 shop bets, and insight from the racing team you trust. Find out more here.
4.10 British EBF & Sir Henry Cecil Galtres Stakes
LADY VIVIAN didn't shine at Royal Ascot - but it's early days to be writing her off.
Too green to do herself justice at Lingfield Park last November when making her racecourse debut, Ralph Beckett's daughter of Camelot finished a return-to-action second at Southwell in February before going one better at the Rolleston course a month later.
That victory earned Lady Vivian a British Horseracing Authority mark of 80 and she proved ahead of that assessment at Chester's May meeting, making all the running to hold Way Of Stars by one length.
Wathnan Racing then recruited my selection for Royal Ascot and Lady Vivian took on 10 rivals for the Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes.
Sent off at 11-1, James Doyle's partner came home a so-so seventh, unable to land a blow in the straight and beaten just over seven lengths, behind Garden Of Eden. But there are reasons to expect a more prominent showing today from a filly who is far from fully exposed.
For a start, this Listed contest represents two steps down the class ladder, and the form of the Beckett stable - unusually quiet during Royal Ascot - is now red-hot with a strike-rate above one in five during the past two weeks.
Rainbows Edge is the clubhouse leader in terms of form and commands respect, along with fellow royal runner Aeolian and Alice Monet.
NEWSBOY'S 1-2-3: 1 LADY VIVIAN, 2 RAINBOWS EDGE, 3 AEOLIAN
4.45 Mews Hotel Ossett EBF Stallions Nursery Handicap
AMAZING JOURNEY did enough at the Qatar Goodwood Festival to be of definite interest this afternoon.
There was plenty of encouragement to be gleaned from his debut when the son of Starspangledbanner finished fourth at Chelmsford City at the beginning of June - and he duly went three places better in a novice stakes at Chepstow 22 days later.
Jamie Osborne then sent his colt for a six-furlong nursery at York, and Amazing Journey defied an opening handicap mark of 76 to beat Son Of Sarabi by half a length.
But the South Downs have been the scene of many a hard-luck story and so it proved as the youngster and Osborne's daughter Saffie sought the hat-trick in a similar event over seven three weeks ago.
Amazing Journey had anything but, shuffled back to ninth passing the furlong pole but flying home once in the Clare to take fifth behind Sir Albert.
A 1lb nudge up the weights is neither here nor there for Amazing Journey, who still has untapped potential to draw upon as he steps onto a racecourse for the fifth time.
In a field of two-year-olds whose best days lie ahead of them, Daydreama, Peel Park and Champion Island all merit a second glance.
5.20 British EBF Fillies' Handicap
PERFECT PART is nearer the bottom of the betting list than the top - but don't let that put you off.
Brian Ellison's daughter of Mehmas, who marked her racecourse bow with a 125-1 skinner in Beverley's Hilary Needler Stakes in June 2024, ran above her 50-1 odds when fifth to Celandine in the Group 2 Lowther Stakes at this fixture 12 months ago.
And she took the eye back here for a 14-runner handicap over this afternoon's seven-furlong trip in May, having to wait for a gap before coming home with gusto to take fourth to Rare Change.
A 22-1 Listed-race fourth at Musselburgh two starts ago was no disgrace and Perfect Part then filled the same placing at Chester - the first three were all prominently ridden - on her latest outing.
A British Horseracing Authority mark of 94 - the same as for her last visit to the Knavesmire - looks within reach for Cam Hardie's mount.
In an open finale, Dance In The Storm, Maybe Not and Ormolulu are capable of having a say in proceedings.
NEWSBOY'S 1-2-3: 1 PERFECT PART, 2 DANCE IN THE STORM, 3 ORMOLULU
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rhyl Journal
34 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
Minnie Hauk at concert pitch for Yorkshire Oaks date
Aidan O'Brien's Frankel filly has been outstanding so far this season, collecting three successive Oaks titles starting with the Listed Cheshire contest, before adding Classic strikes in both the Epsom and Curragh editions. Now she turns her attention to the Knavesmire, with only three rivals opting to take her on in the mile-and-a-half Group One – including Ribblesdale-winning stablemate Garden Of Eden. 'This was always the obvious place to bring Minnie Hauk after the Curragh and she seems in good form since then,' said O'Brien. 'The trip and ground are perfect for her and since the Irish Oaks everything has gone well with her. 'Garden Of Eden won the Ribblesdale and then we sent her for the German Oaks but that didn't work out. 'She was drawn very badly and she just never really got into it, it never happened.' Ed Walker's Qilin Queen was eighth behind Minnie Hauk in the Oaks at Epsom, the only real blip in a consistent career thus far that includes a Group Two success in the Prix de Malleret at ParisLongchamp last time out. 'Qilin Queen is a lovely filly who has done nothing wrong in her career,' the trainer said. 'The Oaks was the only bad run in her career and I think you can put that down to the soft ground and she probably wasn't that happy on the track. 'However, on top of the ground she's really not put a foot wrong and we know she stays the trip well. 'She will have to step forward significantly to challenge this lot, but she's entitled to.' David O'Meara's Estrange is the other British-trained entrant, a striking grey who has won both starts this season when taking the Lester Piggott Fillies' Stakes and then the Lancashire Oaks. She steps up to the top level, although connections are prepared to make a late call on her participation on the Knavesmire, eager to ensure an easier surface for the four-year-old. 'We'll have a chat to connections tonight and see what they think,' said O'Meara at York on Wednesday. 'I walked it on Monday and I thought they had put plenty of water on and it felt good to soft. The (slow) times (today) could be a little bit of headwind affecting them as much as anything else but I thought they had watered very well.'
Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
William Buick dedicates £1.3million race victory to racing friend following sudden death
Duncan Pearce, who was 55, was due to attend the York Ebor Festival and have dinner with Buick on the day he won the Juddmonte International on Ombudsman Top jockey William Buick dedicated victory in one of Britain's richest horse races on Wednesday to a racing friend who died suddenly last week. In the £1.3 million Juddmote International, Buick had the chance to avenge the defeat of Royal Ascot winner Ombudsman in the Coral-Eclipse Stakes by the Aidan O'Brien-trained Delacroix. Ombudsman's trainers John and Thady Gosden hatched a new plan which involved supplementing the also Godolphin-owned Birr Castle, trained in France by Andre Fabre, to make the running for the 7-4 favourite. For a moment the race looked set to live up to its reputation as the 'graveyard of champions' as the 150-1 Birr Castle, under Robert Havlin, raced into a 20 lengths lead at halfway. The pursuers gradually reduced the margin but he clung on until a furlong out, where Ombudsman swept past to score by three and a half lengths from Delacroix. Birr Castle held on for third, but the winning rider's first thoughts were for his friend Duncan Pearce. Buick said: 'We lost our dear friend Duncan last week. Duncan loved his racing. He was meant to be here this week. I was supposed to have dinner with him tonight. He passed away suddenly. His partner Sarah is being very brave at the moment. He would have been very proud to be here. This is for him. 'Duncan would always come here for the Ebor meeting. He was friends with a lot of people here who would know him. He was only 55. It was very sad and very sudden.' John Gosden admitted that there was a moment when he feared another of his stars would be beaten by the pacemaker, as top miler Field Of Gold experienced in the Sussex Stakes last month won by 150-1 Qirat. "I thought with two furlongs to run Andre had won the race!,' he said. 'You don't often see that, he's run a huge race to be third. I did say to William that if he'd sat four lengths off the pacemaker he'd have won by ten lengths but there we go.' He continued: "What happened was the Japanese jockey was with Rab (Havlin on Birr Castle) but then he kept taking back and let Rab slip the field. Past the two marker, he was still six lengths in front. William said when he let him (Ombudsman) go, he absolutely flew and went from second gear to fifth gear in the blink of an eye." Ombudsman had finished a neck behind Delacroix in the Eclipse last time out, but Gosden felt that race was perhaps not run to suit. He said: "The Eclipse was a muddling race and we'll leave it at that. Full marks to Delacroix, but in an evenly-run race we were the superior horse today. "The two obvious races for him are the Irish Champion and Ascot for Champions Day. It will be Sheikh Mohammed's decision if he stays in training but he is a sportsman. "William thinks he'll stay a mile and a half but I think why change things? Were he to go for the Arc, we'd need one of the rare occasions with a fast-ground Arc - which do happen occasionally."
Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Value Scope: Each way horseracing tips from Steve Jones for Thursday at York on ITV
Our each way experts reckons there is plenty of value to be found among the card for day two of the Ebor Festival at York and has four selections Sit back and enjoy the Journey on the second day of York's Ebor Festival. AMAZING JOURNEY (4.45) won a Chepstow novice race before making a successful handicap debut when a smooth winner at this track in July. Both of those races were over 6f and he might well have completed the hat-trick when upped to 7f for the first time at Goodwood. He was just starting to wind up his challenge when he ran into traffic and he couldn't quicken on the testing ground when the gaps appeared. There looks to be lots of pace in the race and that should set things up for Jamie Osborne's youngster. Have 1pt each-way at 10-1. Sky Bet is paying out on six places. Earlier on the card, SONG OF THE CLYDE (2.25) is an interesting runner in the Harry's Half Million By Goffs sales race. He did well to overcome trouble coming out of the stalls to win a Chester maiden in June. His second to smart all-the-way winner Egoli at Newbury last month was another good effort and we certainly haven't seen the best of him. He will attempt to give his trainer Clive Cox his third successive victory in this valuable race. Have 1pt each-way at 11-1. Sky Bet is going five places. Free £2 Shop Bet with William Hill inside your Mirror every day of the York Ebor Festival THE big guns are being readied and loaded to fire at York's Ebor Festival which starts on Wednesday August 20, 2025- and your Mirror is bringing you everything you need to celebrate the final flourish of the racing season including FREE shop bets from William Hill. Don't miss your paper every day of the festival, from Wednesday August 20 until Saturday August 23, 2025, to get your hands on packed pullouts, free £2 shop bets, and insight from the racing team you trust. Find out more here. NORTHERN EXPRESS (3.00) has plenty of form around York and he looks overpriced in the Clipper Handicap. Like many of Michael Dods' team, he wasn't at his best earlier in the season but he gave it a good go from the front when attempting to win the competitive International Handicap for the second year running at Ascot last month. He couldn't quite see it out in a race run at a sound pace and this easier track over slightly further should allow him to get into a nice rhythm on the lead. Have 1pt each-way at 18-1. Sky Bet is offering six places. ROGUE SENSATION (5.20) is worth chancing in the final race. She ran well in a Haydock Listed race on her return to action and she seemed to appreciate the 7f distance when runner-up at Chester three weeks ago. Ed Bethell's filly didn't get the clearest of runs and this more conventional track should also help. Her trainer has really hit form in the last few weeks. Have 1pt each-way at 20-1. Most bookies are paying out on five places.
