Cecil’s Twice Over looks good to Eclipse his Sandown rivals at 2/1
THERE is certainly no Sea The Stars in tomorrow’s Coral Eclipse field, but the £500,000 added Group 1 contest has still attracted last year’s Champion Stakes winner TWICE OVER and Dubai Sheema Classic winner Dar Re Mi in what looks set to be an intriguing battle of both generation and sex.
Twice Over was last seen in action at Royal Ascot when beaten just half a length by Byword in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes. There are plenty of pundits who feel that jockey Tom Queally gave the son of Observatory too much to do and that he would have added another Group 1 win to his CV if ridden closer to the pace. I’m not entirely convinced about that, but still feel that the form (even without the victory) is rock solid.
The key with Twice Over is that he seems to be improving with age. Yes, he was beaten out of sight in this race by Sea The Stars 12 months ago, but he has improved dramatically since then. He rounded off last season’s campaign with wins at Doncaster and Goodwood before going on to land the Champion Stakes over this distance at Newmarket. His final run was arguably his most impressive when finishing third to Zenyatta in the Breeders Cup Classic in November. The Prince of Wales’s would have blown the cobwebs away and he is fancied to land the prize at 2/1 with Paddy Power
John Gosden’s Dar Re Mi is respected, but all of her best form seems to be over an additional two furlongs. In fact, she has been beaten on two of her last three attempts at this trip and may just lack the required speed at the business end. Therefore, a bigger threat to our selection may well be his owner’s ‘second string’, Zacinto, who is stepping up to 10 furlongs for the first time. He has always threatened to be a Group 1 performer and the step up in trip may be just what he needs.
However, the best of his form is well below anything that Twice Over has achieved and he is plenty short enough at 7/2 with William Hill. The only other one worthy of a mention is Aidan O’Brien’s Viscount Nelson. He will love the trip and ground, but may not be good enough to win a race of this quality.
Over at Haydock and BARSHIBA makes plenty of appeal in the Bet365 Lancashire Oaks at 2.50pm. David Elsworth’s gutsy six-year-old is blind in one eye, but that doesn’t stop her trying her heart out. She won this race last year and ran a respectable third to Harbinger in the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot. This doesn’t look like the greatest renewal and on the quick ground she loves, I fancy her to outclass this field.
For those of you that can’t wait until tomorrow there are a couple of decent looking bets at Sandown this afternoon. The Hannon stable run a couple of newcomers in the maiden at 3.25pm and the one to back is CHAIN LIGHTNING. He doesn’t have the best draw, but apparently he is pretty smart and can add to the stable’s fine two-year-old record this season. I’ll also be having a few quid on Sir Michael Stoute’s VERDANT in the 4.35pm. He won on his seasonal reappearance over course and distance and could still be well-handicapped.
POINTERS…
CHAIN LIGHTNING 3.25pm Sandown (today)
VERDANT 4.35pm Sandown (today)
BARSHIBA 2.50pm Haydock (tomorrow)
TWICE OVER 3.10pm Sandown (tomorrow)