St. Leger 2013 Preview

Feather in the Cap - Cap O'Rushes looks the value in the St. Leger

The 2013 classic season is rounded out on Saturday by the oldest classic of them all the Ladbrokes St. Leger.

The stamina test run over an extended 1m6f at Doncaster’s Town Moor course will pit the best of this season’s three-year-old colts and fillies against each other; and the St. Leger is the one classic that is renowned for throwing up a surprise or two, as evidenced last year when Godolphin ‘outsider’ Encke ruined the Camelot Triple Crown dream.

The Leger has arguably become the forgotten classic in recent years and without the Camelot story going in to this year’s race, the 2013 renewal hasn’t really received the hype and coverage that 2012’s race did. Without a truly stand-out star from this year’s classic generation in the line-up as well the race doesn’t quite have the excitement and anticipation built around it this year that it has in the past. That said what we do have is an extremely competitive looking race and one that looks wide open in terms of potential winners.

The Oaks winner and the Derby second and third all line-up, as well as a host of other potential improvers, creating a really intriguing field for the 2013 St. Leger.

Irish Derby Preview

Another Approach? - Libertarian can become the latest New Approach offspring to land a classic

With Royal Ascot only a few days removed it’s great to have classic action again this weekend with the Irish Derby taking place at the Curragh.

Won last year in a mud bath by Camelot, Ballydoyle will be hoping to follow up in the 2013 renewal without it taking as much out of their Epsom hero as it seemed to twelve months ago.

The ground should be nowhere near as horrendous as it was last year and hopefully a few more than the five that went to post twelve months ago will line-up here.

Aidan O’Brien and the Coolmore operation have won the race every year since 2006 and they would have to be hopeful that Epsom victor Ruler Of The World will add to that impressive record for them in 2013.

The unbeaten colt became the first horse since Shergar to follow up victory in the Chester Vase with victory in the Epsom classic and the son of Galileo currently heads up the betting looking to make it four wins out of four.

Unraced at two, Ruler Of The World has improved with every outing in 2013 and it’s hard to know still just how good he can be. However given how close the first five all finished to each other at Epsom, it is difficult to make a case on the form book for him being as short in the market as he is at present.

Obviously the Ballydoyle stranglehold on the race is also factored in to that price, but at just under three times the price Epsom second Libertarian looks a better bet from a value perspective.

The Derby 2013 Preview

Battle of the Bolge - Can Jim Bolger & Dawn Approach repel the Coolmore ranks in the Derby?

It’s the most prestigious classic of the season on Saturday as Epsom plays host to The Derby.

With fifteen horses still in the reckoning to tackle the downs’ demanding camber and undulations as of this morning, the time seemed right to run the rule over the contenders, not all of whom are guaranteed to run as things stand.

So here in ascending order based on current price (starting with the favourite) is my runner-by-runner guide to this year’s Epsom Derby:

Dawn Approach – Unbeaten 2000 Guineas winner and heavy favourite. Has won seven from seven including three Group 1s and Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot. Unraced beyond 1m but sire won the Derby and looks like he should stay and handle unique demands of Epsom. Champion European two-year-old in 2012 and seems to improve with every run, dominant in 2000 Guineas and trained by a genius – the one to beat.