The pick of the prices on Day 1 at Glorious Goodwood....

Monday, 31st July 2023

The pick of the prices on Day 1 at Glorious Goodwood….

Tomorrow is Day 1 at Goodwood….

…. and right now the ground is on the easy side of good (outright soft in places)….

We’ve go two handicaps to shoot at….

…. the Coral Handicap (1.40) – where 15 go to post over the 5f trip….

…. and the Chesterfield Cup (2.50) – where 16 got at it over the 10f trip….

Let’s get to it….

• In the Coral Handicap – 1.40….

I’m opening the shoulders and taking a proper swing of the bat in the opener….

…. EXISTENT is an attractive each-way proposition at the 16s….

A quick flip through his record suggests (to me at least) that he’s spent the last year or so pretty much over-matched (though he was a neck 2nd to Khaadem in last season’s G3 Palace House Stakes) in Group races….

… but he’s dropped a few pounds to a mark of 100 on the back of those vain labours….

…. and the last twice he’s been back in the handicap division – which gives him a much better chance of landing a pot….

Forget his last run at Ascot….

…. where he reared up as the stalls opened and lost 6 to 8 lengths on the field – with the winner making all. Stuart Williams’s horse never had a chance that day….

But the time before – also at Ascot – was much more promising….

…. he made up good ground late on from the rear in a race where the principals had been doing their work well in advance of him….

Opponents that day included Vintage Clarets & Raasel (who produced a career best on this track in last season’s G2 King George Qatar Stakes – also a neck behind Khaadem)….  

They weren’t so very far ahead of him at the finish – but they reoppose tomorrow at much shorter prices….

The bugbear is the switch about in headgear. The tongue-tie and the visor come off. The hood (first time) and the cheekpieces (2nd time) go on….

It’s not often you see this level of adjustment from one race to another. And it’s hard to know what the thinking is. But I don’t see it as a wild roll of the dice – the type of which you tend to see with horses that simply aren’t showing anything….

For me it’s a tweak designed to avoid what happened in the stalls last time and/or to squeeze out that bit more from the horse. On that basis – at the price – I can live with it and let the chips fall where they may….

• In the Chesterfield Cup – 2.50….

I wouldn’t argue with anybody backing Sir Mark Prescott’s Eagle’s Way….

…. any improvement he can find following his return at Yarmouth last week – assuming the quick turnaround isn’t an issue – would surely see him in the mix at the business end of the race….

But – at the prices – my preference is for Alan King’s PARADIAS at the general 14s….

He won a decent race at Sandown back in June off 90 – the form of which has worked out very nicely in the meantime….

Next time – back at Sandown – on the face of it he failed to back up off a 5lb higher mark….

…. but I’m not so sure….

He was pulling hard under Hollie Doyle – out wide and towards the rear early doors….

…. but the pair made a big move mid-race – perhaps through necessity because he was so keen….

They seemed to be going okay in the straight –  Doyle going so far as to check on her outside for dangers….

…. but I think the combination of a slow early pace, ground covered out wide, the exertion required for the big move mid-race, and a bit of a sprint finish ultimately did for the pair….

The bottom line is the race was a messy affair for Paradias – and I think he’s a better horse than the finishing position and the visual impression late on reflect….

…. and off a quicker pace tomorrow he can run a bigger race than his price suggests….

That’s all for today.

I’ll be back tomorrow with my handicap picks for Day 2 at Glorious Goodwood….

Meantime – contact me direct at – nick.pullen@oxonpress.co.uk  

And remember – win, lose, or draw – enjoy the racing….

Stay tuned.

Against the Crowd