Race In Focus: Tom Collins keeps the faith in the Sprint Cup and provides his Thirsk nap

The Sprint Cup has just about everything: Group 1 status, three-year-olds tackling their streetwise elders, an array of 110+ performers and a maximum field of 17 runners.

What more could you want? Maybe a superstar in the division - a sprinter that turns up and attracts his or her own crowd. You have to go back to 1990 to find a horse that I believe fits that category in the shape of Dayjur, although I’m sure plenty of you will make a case for Invincible Spirit, or maybe even Harry Angel, who have both won this race since.

The general rule of thumb in this race is that very good horses run here, not great ones. And although that might not write the headlines, it’s a factor that generally means punters are provided an excellent betting heat. Sometimes the lack of a generational talent has its perks. 

Owen Burrows, who has had a productive year with limited stock, saddles antepost market leader Minzaal. The Shadwell-owned four-year-old has won just three of his 10 starts but proved he can mix it with the best when he finished runner-up to subsequent Nunthorpe winner Highfield Princess in the Group 1 Prix Maurice de Gheest last time out. That form looks pretty strong, but it certainly doesn’t stand out.

In fact, despite running well in all three attempts at the top level, Minzaal has never won a Group 1. He has also never run at Haydock, and would almost certainly prefer cut in the ground. The latter may come to fruition given the weather forecast for Saturday morning, but the remaining negatives are enough to put me off him, especially given he heads the market.

Last year’s winner Emaraaty Ana has a couple of lengths to find with Minzaal on collateral form via Highfield Princess, but he won this race last year and perhaps deserves to head the market after bouncing back to something near his best at York. While Kinross performs particularly well here and cannot be overlooked.

However, it’s a horse that finished behind Minzaal in the Maurice de Gheest that interests me most - and no, it’s not Naval Crown! Rohaan remains criminally underrated and he’s overdue a victory at the top level. He flew home for fourth at Deauville, despite being unsuited by the way the race panned out, and I fancied him to make amends in the City Of York Stakes - a decision that I now regret.

York just isn’t his track - his two bad performances have come there this year, largely due to its front-running bias and his contrasting running style. He now drops back a furlong, returns to a venue that suits and is likely to get a fast pace to run at with Go Bears Go and Art Power in the field. There are lots of ticks in important boxes for David Evans’ charge, and the booking of Hollie Doyle just increases my confidence of a big effort. 

Little splits him and Minzaal on form, yet he’s double the price. Work that one out!

Third-time lucky for Three

York’s Ebor Festival doesn’t just provide fantastic mid-summer racing featuring some of the best equine talent that Great Britain and Ireland has to offer, it also produces numerous clues that will help you make long-term profit, especially if you focus on the round track contests. 

In theory, the long five-furlong homestraight on the Knavesmire should favour closers, especially as prominent racers are regularly sent for home off the hometurn. However, that is rarely the case on quick ground - those in the firing line from the outset tend to prove extremely difficult to peg back, no matter how fast they go through the early stages.

Three Yorkshiremen (far left): finished tenth in the Convivial Maiden at York

Taking note of horses who make up ground from unpromising positions at York is a must, and one that caught my eye after employing those tactics was Three Yorkshiremen. Richard Fahey’s juvenile ran with great promise on debut behind a subsequent winner then went to York for the ultra-competitive Convivial Maiden, in which he finished tenth.

A duck-egg in his form figures will put plenty of punters off, but he shaped far better than his final position and went straight into my mythical notepad. Ridden by Jamie Spencer, Three Yorkshiremen looked inexperienced in the early portion of that 7f contest and was fanned widest on the bend as the field made their way into the straight.

The son of Massaat turned in with just one rival behind and initially appeared outpaced as the leaders quickened. However, after some gentle encouragement Three Yorkshiremen began to make smooth progress until two gaps slammed shut within the space of ten strides. Spencer opted for a soft approach thereafter, but he clearly had plenty of horse underneath him as he passed six rivals in the final 100 yards.

Fahey has decided to send him out just 15 days later and will hope that he can make amends in much calmer waters in division two of the Personal Touches EBF Novice Stakes (2.51) at Thirsk. Unless newcomer Electric Eyes is well above average, I’m confident that Three Yorkshiremen will take home the first prize.

Recommended bets

Three Yorkshiremen (2.51 Thirsk) @ 4.7
Rohaan (3.30 Haydock) @ 12.5