
Stressfree victory proves enjoyable for O'Meara
But Danny Tudhope timed it to perfection on the 11-2 shot to win by a neck and the Duke of Edinburgh Handicap now beckons.
O'Meara said: 'He wasn't winning out of turn, he's been very consistent. He's got a lot of ability, but he's often the bridesmaid. We sent him hurdling through the winter, more to toughen him up than anything.
'He was given an excellent ride. I'm never confident with him as he's often come out second best, but to be fair he did nothing wrong today.
'He could go for the mile-and-a-half handicap at Ascot and possibly the Ebor later, why not, he might stay that far, he keeps a little bit back.'
The big summer showpiece could also be on the cards for Mick Appleby's Kodi Lion (5-1) following a clear-cut win in the Betfred Supports Jack Berry House Reverence Handicap.
Bought out of Ed Walker's yard for 90,000 guineas, he will need to step up in trip should he go following a length win over six furlongs, but he does have form over seven.
'It's quite emotional, my dad died four years ago today so he's definitely looking down,' said Liz Cash, who owns the horse together with her mother.
'If he goes up enough in the weights we'll look at the seven-furlong race (Buckingham Palace) at Ascot.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Scottish Sun
17 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Templegate's tips: ‘Impressive' 33-1 York Ebor outsider screams value plus 14-1 and 10-1 ante-post picks
It's one of the best festivals all year YOR WELCOME Templegate's tips: 'Impressive' 33-1 York Ebor outsider screams value plus 14-1 and 10-1 ante-post picks Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TEMPLEGATE has been in cracking form this season and can't wait to get stuck into the awesome four-day Ebor Festival at York. Here, he picks out three ante-post punts he's more than happy to back now in the hope of hoovering up maximum value. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Paddy Twomey does exceptionally well with the ammo he has and Templegate likes one of his Ebor runners at an each-way price Credit: Sportsfile The racing, which will be shown live on ITV1, kicks off on Wednesday with the blockbuster Juddmonte International - where we have a surprise runner supplemented for £85,000. And the big race of the week is Saturday's Ebor handicap - which is where our man's first pick runs… Templegate's York Ebor ante-post tips EBOR (Sat) Trainer Paddy Twomey has done us a couple of favours already this season (Carmers was a lovely Royal Ascot winner for us) and looks to have a solid each-way chance with LA ISLA MUJERES in the Ebor. This Lope De Vega mare is number 18 in the entries so will get a run and has been operating in Listed and Group races with some success since leaving Ralph Beckett's yard in 2024 to cross the Irish Sea. She was an impressive Roscommon winner this time last year and looked in good nick when coming back from eight months off for a close-up second at Down Royal last time. She saw out two miles there but has more than enough pace for this shorter trip where stamina is always an asset anyway. She's hovering around the 33-1 mark which looks too big for a mare that still has potential to improve at the age of five and Twomey is an excellent target trainer. She has some more fancy entries like the Irish St Leger later this season so must be showing plenty at home. They will all have to shift to beat last year's unlucky fifth Hipop De Loire who is 7-2 favourite for Willie Mullins but my hope has plenty going for her each-way. NUNTHORPE (Fri) JM JUNGLE looks a very fair 14-1 for the Nunthorpe on the back of his excellent victory in the Group 2 King George at Glorious Goodwood. This was a clear career best for John and Sean Quinn's five-year-old who enjoyed the quick ground and hit the line really strongly despite winning by only a neck. It's no secret that the current sprinting division is full of horses that are more slow boat than Usain Bolt and the Nunthorpe looks ripe for an upset. JM Jungle's last five visits to York have produced a big handicap win and four places in hot company, all over this trip. There's every chance he'll keep that good run going. JUDDMONTE INTERNATIONAL (Wed) FRENCH raider DARYZ is an interesting contender and looks a big price at 10-1 in a couple of places, with some bookies offering just 7s. This exciting son of Sea The Stars has yet to taste defeat in four outings and took the step up into Group 2 company in his stride at St Cloud last time. Although he's won with some juice in the ground, connections are adamant he wants a quick surface and that's likely to be served up at York. Francis-Henri Grafford knows what he's doing with a talented horse and this improving three-year-old gets weight from his older rivals and can be backed now with three places still on offer. Connections have confirmed him as a planned runner and he could be facing less than the current eight rivals on the day. FREE BETS - GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chases their losses Doesn't gamble if they're upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – Gamble Aware – Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.


Spectator
a day ago
- Spectator
The unorthodox appeal of the Shergar Cup
With DJs and MCs inviting the crowd to dance on the parade-ring steps as if they were on a beach in Ibiza, and hectoring them into shouting 'Yay' or 'Neigh' to racing quiz answers, Ascot was a different place last Saturday – Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup day. Grimacing traditionalists would have been stamping on their Panamas. But the traditionalists don't come. Shergar Cup day, a series of team races between groups of three jockeys representing Europe, Asia, Great Britain and Ireland and the Rest of the World, is aimed at a different crowd and it simply doesn't matter that it's as artificial as a plastic Gruffalo. It's an informal bouncy event which attracts a younger, less racing-fixated audience. Yes, some of them come for the post-racing concert, but on Saturday plenty flocked eagerly to the stands to engage in the contests on the track. Taking place in the void between Glorious Goodwood and York's Ebor meeting, the Shergar Cup has earned its position in the racing calendar. Part of its appeal is the chance to view the styles of leading international jockeys not other-wise seen in Britain. This year the Rest of the World team included two superstars from the red-hot crucible that is Hong Kong racing: Hugh Bowman and Karis Teetan. The Silver Saddle for the most points earned went to Bowman. He names as his hero one of mine: his fellow Australian Darren Beadman who quit the saddle when he found God, but went back to riding after being urged by the 12-times Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Bart Cummings to take a second opinion. As he rode on, the realistic Beadman noted: 'Nowhere in the Bible does it say that gambling is wrong. It says you have to be a wise steward of your money. People say that alcohol is a sin but what was the first miracle that Jesus performed? He turned water into wine.' The other member of the Rest of the World team was America's Katie Davis, who walked the course beforehand in her bare feet. On grass, she said, 'I like to ground myself, dig my heel in and really feel what it's like'– not a practice I suspect that many British jockeys will follow at Catterick in November. Davis took phone-coaching about riding Ascot from her hero Frankie Dettori, whom India's Suraj Narredu on the Asian team named as his idol too. Having won the Stayers race on Fireblade, Narredu – cheered on by 15 members of his family and an Indian TV crew – entered the spirit of the occasion by performing a Dettori flying dismount. Had he ever done that before, I asked him. 'No, that was the first time I've ever attempted anything like it. But I didn't do too badly did I?' You'd give him seven out of ten for execution, ten for effort for trying at all. Narredu was unlucky in the opening sprint when the blindfold remained entangled with his slow-starting mount for 50 yards, wrecking their chances. All credit to him for not letting that affect his confidence as in the two-mile second race he timed his challenge perfectly on Fireblade to win the Ride of the Day award. But then he has ridden more than 2,000 winners back home. It was the Asians, on the card for the first time – replacing what used to be the Ladies team – who won the day, and nothing I suspect would have delighted Ascot more. Racing director Nick Smith, who's done so much to make the course a key hub of high-class international racing, was delighted at the Indian influx and the attraction of two top Japanese riders in Mirai Iwata and Ryusei Sakai: 'Stimulating interest in Asia is crucial.' He's clear about the Shergar Cup being 'a bit of fun, a one-off' – and admits that in early days the marketing probably irritated the racing media by overdoing things: 'It was never going to be the Ryder Cup.' There are, mind you, a number of people who'd like to see the Ladies team reinstated to encourage female racegoers. Women riders didn't always like the distinction and have certainly proved they are as good as the men. But given what the Lionesses have done for women's football, could there ever be a change of heart? 'It was an oddity to have three teams based on regions and one on gender,' says Nick. 'But it is up to what the public wants. Nothing is for ever.' It has to be said, though, that there was some criticism by trainers this year of the overall standard of riding. To maintain appeal, the sponsors may need to attract some rather better-known names for the Europe team than this year's representation of Per-Anders Graberg from Sweden, Dario Di Tocco from Italy and Delphine Santiago from France. My own apologies, meanwhile, to two popular British veterans, Jimmy Quinn and Franny Norton. A laptop blooper in the latest Turf column had them retiring not in their fifties, as they did, but in their seventies.


Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Scottish Sun
Aidan O'Brien ‘very sweet' on little-known horse who's halved in price for £500,000 Ebor at York
His last run was an eyecatcher LONDON CALLING Aidan O'Brien 'very sweet' on little-known horse who's halved in price for £500,000 Ebor at York Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) AIDAN O'BRIEN is 'very sweet' on a little-known horse who's halved in price for the £500,000 Ebor at York. The blockbuster 1m6f handicap is the feature race of the Ebor meeting and will be run live on ITV1 on Saturday week. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 London City, the grey in the blue and orange silks seen here finishing behind Group 1 winner Al Riffa, has halved in price for the Ebor and Aidan O'Brien is said to be 'very sweet' on the four-year-old's chances in the big York handicap worth £500,000 Credit: Inpho Willie Mullins currently has the 7-2 favourite in the shape of recent Galway winner Hipop De Loire. But as good as Mullins is at targeting Flat races with his dual purpose stars, no one can match O'Brien. That being said, it's the Group races he gobbles up. O'Brien has won the Ebor only once, when three-year-old Mediterranean held on under Mick Kinane to win at 16-1 24 years ago. He's drawn a blank since then, with Mullins winning it twice and fellow Irish jumps trainers Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead getting involved too. Mullins has a strong hand this year with Ethical Diamond also short in the betting. But one who is continually being clipped is O'Brien's London City, who has been slashed from 20-1 to as short as 10s. A son of Justify, the four-year-old colt is out of O'Brien's multiple Group 1-winning mare Winter. He already has a win at York to his name, winning a Class 3 handicap over 1m4f on the Knavesmire in May last year. A disappointing run at Listed level the following month came before a 372-day break. London City was again down the field in a big handicap at the Curragh in June but caught the eye at Group 2 level when last seen. In the rear throughout under Ronan Whelan, the 33-1 grey was miles out of it at the weights but gained some ground late on to finish sixth in a 1m6f race won by Group 1 winner Al Riffa. London City is set to carry 9st8lb in the Ebor - 2lb less than Hipop De Loire - and looks open to any amount of improvement. Indeed, a recent Sporting Life article said O'Brien was 'very sweet' on his chances during a recent yard visit. Sky Bet Ebor odds via Sky Bet 3-1 Hipop De Loire 8-1 French Master, Ethical Diamond 11-1 London City 14-1 Shadow Dance 20-1 French Duke, Aeronautic, Mr Percy, Dancing In Paris, Nurburgring 25-1 bar FREE BETS - GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chases their losses Doesn't gamble if they're upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – Gamble Aware – Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.