Taking aim at the Goodwood Festival - Day 4....

Thursday, 31st July 2025

Taking aim at the Goodwood Festival - Day 4….

Day 3 selections here….

In ATC today….

…. I swing the bat in all the big handicaps on Day 4 at Goodwood….

I’m on ZINC WHITE in the 1.20 – up at 12s….

…. and I’m on LATTAM at 20s in the 2.30….

That’s the summary….

…. you’ll find all my reasoning below – as per usual….

Oh…. and if you’re looking for the standout place terms on offer – you’ll find them in the Bet Box below….

Read on….

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The weather forecast says underfoot conditions are set to ease at Goodwood today – and into tomorrow….

You can never tell for sure how much rain is going to fall….

…. different forecasts predict different things and none are wholly dependable….

…. but there’s plenty of the wet stuff around – some of it potentially heavy….

…. and clerk of course Ed Arkell says this morning: “I'm very certain we'll get at least 5mm….”

ZINC WHITE will certainly appreciate an easy surface in tomorrow’s Coral Goodwood Handicap (1.20) – and I’m backing him at the general 12s….

He’s a fragile animal – lightly raced and off the track twice previously for breaks of 561 & 678 days….

…. but he ran well on return at Goodwood in June, making some nice progress before tiring late on – but still hitting the line well enough…..

…. and I can discount his run last time at Beverley where he finished third of three – because the ground wouldn’t have been right for him….

He needs it soft – like he had it at Chester back in May 2023 when putting a decent field to the sword in a handicap over the extended 2m2f trip….

He was rated 84 that day – a pound more than he’s rated tomorrow – and it didn’t look like another quarter mile would bother him in the slightest….

Had he been carrying more weight tomorrow then I think Jim Crowley would have been on him….

…. but he can’t do 8-4 so Silvestre De Sousa gets the nod – which is interesting in and of itself….

De Sousa has done 8-4 just three times in over 700 rides in the last 12-months….

Of course, it might just be that he really needs the riding fee – but I see it as a big positive that he’s prepared to boil down to take the assignment….

LATTAM at the general 20s is the pick for the Golden Mile (2.30) – I think things are falling into place for him….

He’s not been seen for 125 days – since running down the field in the Lincoln on day one of the season….

…. but I’m not worried about that because the two best performances of his career – when second in the 2024 editions of the Lincoln and the Balmoral – were both produced of breaks of 100+ days….

Both those performances were produced on soft ground too – so the forecast rain is a real boost to his chances…..

I also like a mark of 95 – which he’s well-capable of out-running tomorrow….

You could argue that his best work has come on a straight mile….

…. and that he flopped in the 2023 renewal of this race – off the same mark he runs off tomorrow….

But let’s not forget that he was backed into favouritism that day….

…. or that he lost ground at the start, ran a bit keen, and was short of room and hampered behind a wall of horses when trying to make a move….

I’m not saying he was going to win – not at all – just that it wasn’t his day….

…. and that he’s a big price off the same mark with conditions to suit tomorrow….

Perhaps stall 14 isn’t the best in a race that’s been won from stall 5 or lower in seven of the last 10 years….

…. but it’s been won out of stalls 18 and 21 the last two years – and who ever really knows how it’s going to pan out in these big fields….

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Now, just to recap….

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That’s all for today….

I’ll be back tomorrow with picks for Day 5 at Goodwood….

Meantime – contact me at – nick.pullen@spapublishinggroup.co.uk

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

Stay tuned….

Against the Crowd