‘Summer’ is forecast to shine at Newmarket today!
Mick Channon-trained Summer Icon will be no surprise if she causes one in the opening Maiden Fillies’ Stakes over seven furlongs of ‘soft’ ground; official BHA rating of 79 indicates an obvious chance and it’s confirmed by my time-handicap, which has been consistent this month with a clutch of good-priced winners.
Normally you wouldn’t expect such a rating to be good enough at the famous grade one HQ racetrack but, significantly, Channon always has his runners fit enough to do themselves justice; heavy rains for months have left turf surfaces in a parlous state.
Newmarket has never been so demanding, ground conditions on the first two days have contributed to several extremely disappointing efforts from fancied horses from ‘fashionable’ yards; therefore Channon is just the man to take advantage with this Sixties Icon filly, placed in three of seven outings apparently in good form.
Jadaayil is forecast favourite but Charles Hills’ horses appear to be needing a run and so do others from the Lambourn area; a shallow race therefore and on the ‘process of elimination’ theory Summer Icon can be expected to fill one of three places for each-way punters under champion jockey, Silvestre de Souza.
Running in tandem will be another seven-race fixture at ‘soft’ ripon where RonnieBaird is also worth chzancing at decent odds in the Maiden Stakes over a mile.
Purchased out of Hughie Palmer’s yard by Kristin Stubbs last Autumn at the sales Ronnie Baird shaped well last month on Tapeta before ‘blowing up’ in the closing stages; this finale is a weak race and again we’re targeting one of three places.
Best of the day should be Paddy Power, clear ‘best-in’ for a Maiden Stakes over five furlongs of Chelmsford polytrack tonight; if Richard Fahey’s charge doesn’t win this...!
Selections
Newmarket, 9.10 Summer Icon;
Ripon, 1.30 Ronnie Baird;
Chelmsford, 5.10 Paddy Power (nap).