Andy Holding's Sunday Racing Tips

Admittedly, this is a drop in grade for previous impressive C&D winner, Hathiq, but he’s been beaten out of sight in his last two starts, and for that reason he has to be taken on at the front end of the market.

TIDE OF TIME (best price 11-2) arrives here in fairly fine fettle and looks one of the likelier ones to capitalise, even more so considering he could end up being favourably positioned thanks to his high draw next to the stands’ side rail. Always prominent before running out a convincing winner of a competitive five-furlong handicap at Down Royal two starts ago, Edward Lynam’s gelding made a bold fist of trying to repeat the dose in a much better race at the Curragh last time out. Leading a smart field down to the furlong pole, the son of Choisir just ran out of gas in the latter stages but now dropping back down to his optimum distance, he should make his presence felt over today’s flatter track.

The other to catch the eye at the prices is SUN SIGN (best price 11-1) who showed up well in what turned out to be a hot maiden at the Curragh on Friday. Well found in the market beforehand – like several of her rivals – Denise Foster’s gelding travelled well in customary fashion down to the furlong pole and when asked to go and win her race inside the distance, she ran on in game fashion all the way to the line only to find the well-supported Hiella just too good. Moreover, the speed figure was very good for the grade of race and now proven that a well-run affair on soft ground is no issue, the daughter of Sharmardal is likely to take high rank.

You’d say the style of French racing wouldn’t necessarily be suitable for ROMANISED (NAP) (best price 3-1), but with stable mate, Success Days, presumably in the field to ensure there’s no hanging around, Ken Condon’s colt is strongly fancied to land the second Group 1 prize of his career.

Winner of last season’s Irish 2000 Guineas, the son of Holy Roman Emperor couldn’t exactly be described as prolific since, but at the same time, he’s run some big races in defeat, including the one in the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot two starts ago. Dropped out from his high draw, the four-year-old found himself with plenty to do at halfway, but in making up a good deal of ground in the final two furlongs, he ran on strongest of all to finish a never-nearer fourth. Indeed, there’s an argument to be made he might have won with a clearer run.

Racing back over seven-furlongs at the Curragh last time out, he returned to winning ways with arguably one of his career-best performances, swooping fast and late to run down some of the best specialist around over that distance. In doing so, Romanised knocked out some incredibly good final sectionals (ran last three furlongs in 33.8 compared to 6f handicap winner Verhoyan’s 35.2) and considering those numbers were achieved off the back of a searching end-to-end gallop, the effort deserves a tremendous amount of merit. Looking at those who’ve run out of the race so far, Hey Gaman ran perfectly well at Goodwood, and Gordon Lord Byron did his bit for the form with another solid display back over the same track two days ago.

Clearly in the form of his life based on recent evidence, this likeable and fairly reliable sort seems a better horse to the one that finished a slightly disappointing fifth in this race last year and providing the ground at the French track rides no worse than good-to-soft (set to be a dry day looking at local forecast), he has a fine chance of gaining a much-deserved success at this level.

LORTON (best price 8-1) was a late scratch at Haydock on Thursday due to the fast ground, but with the rain falling in the last 48 hours to aid her cause, she rates a viable each-way alternative to the short-priced favourite, Aplomb.

Held up in her run and slightly unlucky at Ripon two starts ago, Julie Camacho’s filly was one of several who got hung up out to dry down the unfavourable middle of the track at Newmarket last time out and, as a result, could never really get competitive. On both occasions, however, she did keep on well enough in the closing stages to suggest she’s holding her form together nicely and with form figures of 122 when the ground has been good-to-soft or worse, the daughter of Sepoy has her ideal conditions this afternoon to run to maximum capacity.

CRACKING NAME (best price 8-1) can be a little bit in and out, but she often comes good at today’s venue and following three runs that should ensure she arrives here cherry-ripe, David Marnane’s mare has a decent chance of winning this race for the second year in succession. The daughter of Famous Name took three runs last season before she struck at Cork, so her latest performance when a creditable fifth from a bad draw at Chester should be viewed as par for the course. A winner over today’s C&D back in August 2017, the five-year-old repeated the dose twelve months on with a smooth victory over a competitive field similar to today’s and having proven herself on soft ground in the past, the locally-trained mare has all her home comforts in place to perform to her best.