Millar's Method: Beautifully-bred filly can return with a bang in Hopeful Stakes

If a short-priced play isn't your idea of a good bet, especially on a competitive day of racing, make sure you have a second look at Ross Millar's selections.

2.45 Newmarket - 6f sales race

I enjoy trying to pick apart sales races, mainly because the unorthodox race conditions mean the weight each horse carries is down to their purchase price at auction and not their official rating.

Although this field just contains two-year-olds, many of these arrive here with a good number of runs to their name. The two anomalies are the Eve Johnson-Houghton’s Boy Browning and Amichi, who hails from Ed Walker’s yard. Both of those fit the unexposed criteria and remain open to any amount of improvement, but there is a streetwise runner in opposition who appears strong to beat.

Rod Millman and his small, family-based team continuously punch above their weight, especially with inexpensively purchased juveniles. They are represented by Woolhampton, who is yet to shed her maiden tag but has been well campaigned and has picked up £47,000 in prize-money – a good investment on the £27,000 she cost as a yearling. 

She is yet to race over six furlongs, but she has finished to good effect on her last two outings and appears to be crying out for this step up in trip. 

Woolhampton finished just over two lengths behind the reopposing Eddie’s Boy on her penultimate start, but track position was crucial that day - Woolhampton had to challenge wide without cover - and she just couldn’t match the eventual winner’s speed in the middle part of the race. 

Crucially she receives a further 5lb pull at the weights and that will hopefully help her gain a much-deserved first win.

Selection: Woolhampton @ 3.6

3.15 Newmarket - 6f Listed Hopeful Stakes

Simon and Ed Crisford are enjoying a purple patch with six winners from 17 runners in the last two weeks, and they are represented in this Listed event by the beautifully-bred Daneh, who makes her belated seasonal return.

She showed a high-level of ability on her three starts as a two-year old - she recorded a cosy win on debut, finished third in the Group 3 Six Perfections and was only denied by a neck in the Prestige Stakes, a race in which she travelled well but appeared to be outstayed.

As such I think the drop back to six furlongs is a positive. Her dam, Rizeena, made up into a top-class miler but possessed enough natural pace to win the Queen Mary, so I’m comfortable that Daneh will cope with the increase in tempo as she tackles a shorter trip. Equally if she is ‘gassy’ on her first start for 364 days, the slightly faster pace will aid jockey Jamie Spencer’s mission to get her settled.

Fitness will have to be partially taken on trust, but my confidence is heightened by the fact the Crisford team have sent out a number of first-time-out winners this season and similarly enjoyed success with a debutant earlier this week.

I’m confident that this classy filly will be plying her trade at a higher level than this in the future and expect her to capture this price.

Selection: Daneh @ 4.8

Recommended bets

Woolhampton (2.45 Newmarket) @ 3.6
Daneh (3.15 Newmarket) @ 4.8