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Horse racing tips: ‘She's improving and there is more to come' – Templegate's big NAP goes at Chester

Horse racing tips: ‘She's improving and there is more to come' – Templegate's big NAP goes at Chester

The Sun4 days ago
TEMPLEGATE is in red-hot form Sunday's racing confident of smashing the bookies once more.
Back a horse by clicking their odds below.
PRINCESS RASCAL (2.10 Chester, nap)
After a promising Salisbury win, she stepped up markedly again at Windsor, only losing out narrowly to a thriving filly but pulling clear of the rest. She shapes as though this extra quarter-mile will suit and she handles slow ground. Big chance.
KASSAYA (3.52 Chester, nb)
Classy filly with an explosive turn of foot and a top pedigree. She returned from 13 months off with a taking win in a strong Sandown handicap, clocking a good speed figure and finishing full of running.
Has been found a good chance on handicap debut. He ran a strong second at Salisbury last time, stays this trip well and has the best recent form in a modest field.
Templegate's tips
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In terms of trends, Hamilton only managed to go quicker at one street circuit – Singapore – and his biggest advantage of 0.881 seconds in Hungary came about as a result of Russell not fuelling his car up enough in changeable conditions. On the flip side, Russell's biggest advantage of two seconds was in the unpredictable wind and rain of Brazil, which wet-weather master Hamilton bafflingly failed to adapt to. Overall, Hamilton's average deficit over the course of the season was 0.209 seconds in qualifying to his teammate. The seven-time champion, who we should not forget holds the record for the most number of F1 pole positions, at 104, also failed to make the top-10 Q3 stage of qualifying seven times, compared to just twice for Russell, a driver nicknamed 'Mr Saturday' from early on in his career due to his impressive qualifying lap times. All in all, it makes for pretty grim reading. Many assumed Hamilton's sights were already set on a fresh challenge at Ferrari, and that played a part, particularly in the latter months. However, this season, not much has changed. Bold indicates races where Hamilton went quicker Note 1: If one driver did not make it to Q3, lap times were taken from the qualifying session in which said driver was eliminated, for consistency reasons (e.g. changable weather conditions) Note 2: Sprint race times not included *Hamilton did not complete a lap in Q3. Therefore, lap times were taken from Q2, despite both finishing in the top-10. 2025 season – Ferrari Over the 14 races so far this season, Charles Leclerc leads the Ferrari head-to-head qualifying stakes 10-4. First point to be made: Leclerc is viewed as one of the quickest drivers over one lap in the sport. His pole position record speaks to that. While the Monegasque has claimed eight race victories, that figure is dwarfed by his 27 pole positions. 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But in F1 spiel, it's significant. But crucially, with a view to the future, not disastrous. The future It's plain as day that Hamilton's qualifying lap times need to improve if he is to stand any chance of reviving his old self. It's simply not feasible to expect prosperous, consistent results at the top of the leaderboard when you're starting in the middle of the pack. Charging through several cars to make up positions? Once in a while, perhaps. But not on the regular. The good news is that Hamilton is not naïve. He knows this is nothing new. It was after qualifying on Saturday that Hamilton described himself as 'useless.' Further back, in Qatar last year post-qualifying, he simply said: 'I'm just slow.' The despondency has been long-lasting. Reasons for optimism? As witnessed in Silverstone last year, when presented with a strong starting position, his prowess in grands prix is unwavering. In addition, an average deficit of two-tenths, while sizable, is not humungous. And, slowly but surely, Hamilton can work away at closing the gap. It's also clear, given his Mercedes troubles last year, that this is not just a Ferrari issue. Of course, the team need to find a sweet spot for Hamilton in this capricious car. But the patterns are unignorable, regardless of the team. So, while the outlook may look decidedly dreary, with question marks over whether Hamilton still has 'it', the challenge the 40-year-old faces in qualifying s not insurmountable. And if he's going to stand any chance of a title tilt next year – with dreams of No 8, surpassing Schumacher – he has to make Saturdays his primary focus for vast improvement.

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