2000 guineas 2015

I like your selection a lot Darren. He’s done nothing wrong and a mile will suit him, he won last time despite the slow fractions and a quicker paced Dewhurst should see him thereabouts. I don’t think at present he is as good as Ivawood but a long winter could see him progress past his stablemate who already looks built like a bull and running in the Middle park instead of the Dewhurst or another longer distance race is a bit off putting. O’Brien is mob handed and Gleneagles would be my pick of his strong hand at this stage.

My Peacock voucher is still sitting in the bin but I’ve yet to take it out for the trash man……

I can see this

Australia

getting beat in the 2014 Guineas darren,I expect he’ll win The Derby but as far as long term propositions go I’d say

Kingston hill

is the horse to prove the best 3yo colt of the year.

Don’t worry Moe.

I’m sending Dazzer an Irn Bru 2015 calendar for the new year….

ESTIDHKAAR 20/1 not a flashy horse but wants a mile now i think he put in a big run in dewhurst on saturday.

Estidhkaar is current fav for the Dewhurst at Evens with the Ballydoyle pair Gleneagles and John F Kennedy no longer quoted at the moment.

Ivawood was the original favourite for the race but he is worryingly wandering about with various entries he has not been keeping and he is not in the declarations for the Tattersalls Millions race he was entered in on Saturday.

That looked an odd stopping point for a 2000 Guineas contender and I expect the Middle Park is where we will see him next and he’ll go into the winter with us no better informed about his stamina prognosis.

Estidhkaar looks a promising contender and maybe he’ll develop into a solid miler next year. The Dewhurst looks like it won’t launch a potential superstar based on the current betting market and an awful lot is going to hinge on how the Coolmore operation decide to play out their potent looking hand of cards. Aiden has got all the big names entered in the Racing Post Trophy but how many, and which ones, will actually show up?

I like the look of Michael Stoute’s Consort, he made a good impression on his first start and looks likely to progress. Given his trainer’s profile you would think a more than average amount of improvement should come from 2 to 3 years old. Fast forward to April and some positive vibes from the gallops could see a "springer" in the market and there are probably worse bets at 33/1 for the colt’s Classics.

The Dewhurst will be on the Friday 17th October.

They compared Ivawood to Toronado but Toronado didn’t set the world alight in his 2 year old campaign like Ivawood has in his races, he’s been dominate and explosive whereas Toronado was more workmanlike in all three of his 2 year old starts with his best effort beating Dundonnell at Doncaster but that was hardly the wow factor but he had bags of potential and plenty of improvement in him. Ivawood on the other hand looks head and shoulders above the horses he has faced but it depends how he develops from 2-3.

Canford Cliffs didn’t run beyond 6f as a two year old and took in the Greenham instead of the Craven so I wouldn’t overly read too much into Ivawood running in the Middle Park as far as the Guineas goes although it would have been a bonus to see him in the Dewhurst.

An odd time to revisit this thread in the middle of the jumps season but I can’t help but notice that there has been money for

Gleneagles

recently.

Aiden O’Brien has a big say in the betting for this and recent support for his horse who was disqualified in France would seem to be significant you would think.

He is now as low as 6/1 favourite for the 2000 Guineas and it begs the question as to whether they have decided the others who are prominent in the Guineas betting are all showing up as Derby sorts on the gallops.

The joker in the pack is highland reel. As Kevin Blake pointed out at the backend of the flat season he has enormous potential but as with the other Obrien horses we will not now till they run where ballydoyle will aim them at. Thought he looked a cracking colt at goodwood.

I’ve backed Highland Reel for The Derby at 25/1 and also Ol’ Man River. I decided to back Ol’ Man River for the 2000 Guineas as well but I was impressed with Highland Reel being able to drop down in trip and he could have enough speed for the Guineas based on that effort.

I would like to have seen him run again but it seemed like John F Kennedy was the one everybody was talking about last back end.

Aiden has an unbelievable hand for the Classics, even by his standards and finding out which one is

the one

will be key.

Along with Ivawood and Ol’ Man River, I have backed John Gosden’s Faydhan and he would be my most confident selection if it were not for War Front being his sire, causing slight concern about whether he may have been precocious last year. The injury doesn’t worry me so much, as we saw how Kingman came back from one last spring. If Faydhan wins one of the trials he’ll be a warm order come Guineas day.