2023 Qatar Goodwood Festival, Day 1
Tuesday 1st August – Saturday 5th August
Live on ITV1 HD and ITV Hub from 2.30pm, and Mark Your Card on Racing TV from 11am
Ground: There should be some give in the ground on the first day. The going is described as Good To Soft, Soft In Places (6.4 on the GoingStick), with no rain forecast until racing begins.
The first day of Glorious Goodwood has something for everyone, with three Group contests including the Goodwood Cup alongside competitive handicaps over five, six, ten furlongs and a mile.
It’s a big day for Frankie Dettori, whose farewell tour has had plenty of box office moments, and he can take the Lennox stakes on the favourite Kinross. An unlucky second in the race last year, he went onto take the City of York, Park Stakes, Prix Foret and British Champions Sprint before a fine third in the Breeders’ Cup Mile.
Having run respectably on his comeback in the Platinum Jubilee, he was a very good third in the July Cup and he’ll take the beating here if in the same form, even with Isaac Shelby getting plenty of weight.
The Goodwood Cup (4.35) provides a cracking rematch between several contenders from the Gold Cup, with 1-2 Courage Mon Ami and Coltrane clashing again whilst Emily Dickinson (fourth), Eldar Eldarov (seventh), Lone Eagle (ninth), and Broome (tenth) are all in opposition.
Considering his exceptionally promising profile (uneaten, won Gold Cup on just fourth start) Courage Mon Ami looks the right favourite although he overhauled Coltrane late on at Ascot over half a mile further, whilst Emily Dickinson, fourth on that occasion, could be even better with moisture in the surface.
Eldar Eldarov (who was unlucky not to beat Giavellotto in the Yorkshire Cup) was below par at Royal Ascot but if he’s back to the form which saw him take the St Leger last year then he must be considered in a cracking contest that can be enjoyed without a bet.
The form standards set in the Vintage Stakes (3.25) by the top-rated contenders don’t look outstanding for all that Haatem has to be respected for his efforts so far. He should provide a useful form guide to 2000 Guineas favourite City of Troy, who beat him in stunning style at the July Festival, but his third in the Woodcote at Epsom or his Coventry fifth set a reasonably high standard and he should go close.
Golden Mind was slightly unlucky in the Chesham, and along with the once raced Iberian, should have more to give but it’s possible this isn’t the strongest renewal of the race and Haatem may be worth backing.
The best bet from the non-group races could be Millebosc in the Chesterfield Cup (2.50pm). He’s been an eyecatcher on his two runs for William Haggas, especially in the John Smith’s Cup at York when he was dropped in early from a very wide draw (20 of 20) and did well to finish seventh in a race where the pace held up well.
He’s slightly better off with Pride of America (winner) and Haunted Dream (third) and off an unchanged mark he’s worth backing to make it third time lucky.
WILLIAM KEDJANYI
RECOMMENDED BETS
BACK Millebosc 1 pt win in 2.50 Goodwood at 7/2 (⭐
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BACK Haatem 1 pt win in 3.25 Goodwood at 11/4 (⭐
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BACK Kinross 3 pts win at 5/4 (⭐
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PROFIT/LOSS (AUGUST 2023): PROFIT +0.00 points
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