Guineas Festival: Graham Cunningham on Sunday

Guineas / Graham Cunningham / 30 April 2011 / Leave a Comment

Can Graham turn a profit on day two?

"I'm very confident this step up to a mile will suit Havant very well indeed."

Saturday's 2000 Guineas was all about one horse in advance, but Sunday's equivalent for fillies is wide open with 19 runners and questions marks over the main players. Graham Cunningham is hoping the man who knows more than anyone about winning this race can provide the answer on day two at Newmarket.

If in doubt, go back to first impressions is my take on this year's 1000 Guineas. Havant was the filly who impressed most as a potential Classic candidate last autumn. And Havant is my choice to come out best at 15:15 on Sunday even allowing that she has something to find on the figures.

Sir Michael Stoute has no peers when it comes to preparing a Guineas filly and this one made useful rivals look second rate when storming away with a G3 on only her second start here. I'm confident she will be just as good on this faster surface. And I'm very confident this step up to a mile will suit her very well indeed.

I Love Me appeals as a live Guineas longshot based on the way she travelled in smart company at two, while anyone seeking a place lay Guineas candidates could do worse than check out Hooray and Make A Dance.

Timeform feel Hooray's wide-margin Cheveley Park win makes her the clear pick of the weights here, but will she truly stay a stiff mile?

I have enough doubts to take a crack at her at under [4.0] for a place, while it will be just as tempting to oppose Make A Dance in the same market given that this represents a vastly deeper pool than the one she swam in when winning her maiden here.

Finding genuinely strong punting angles on the rest of a strong card looks a very difficult task, with the handicaps at 14:05 and 15:50 particularly challenging.

I'm content to pass on the 14;05 and it's also a case of tread warily in the 15:50, though Tiddliwinks is worth a second look at a biggish price given that he caught the eye travelling powerfully several times last season and Kevin Ryan's main jockey Phillip Makin seems to have chosen him ahead of in-form stablemate Our Jonathan.

Fortunately, the rest of the HQ card looks a little more punter friendly and I suspect I will be looking to find a way of being with Field Day and against Eleonora Duse in the 14:35.

Stoute is bidding to land this for a remarkable fifth year running with Eleonora Duse, who developed into a very smart middle distance filly last year, but nine furlongs looks a bare minimum and a Group 2 penalty means only a career best will suffice if she's to give 5lb all round.

Field Day is in the same ownership as Eleonora Duse and has every bit as much potential based on a three-year-old campaign which was highlighted by an impressive Ascot success and two promising efforts against some of the best fillies in France.

Stable form is a concern, as Brian Meehan has been slow from the blocks this spring, but Field Day holds clear each way claims on these terms and there is every chance her best is still to come.

The last three races on Sunday's card can be rounded up concisely.

Tell Dad is the obvious one in the juvenile maiden at 16:25 after a very promising debut here, though the early signs suggest he will go off a shade of odds on against some unknown quantities from powerful yards.

Whey Sauce appeals as a likely longshot in the Pretty Polly at 17:00. Admitedly, it's hard to make a case for Peter Chapple-Hyam's filly on bare form, but it wouldn't surprise to see her leave her maiden form way behind this year and the winners in opposition don't set a daunting standard on what they have shown thus far.

Last but not least we have a rematch between Art History and Sergeant Ablett in the finale at 17:35.

The Sergeant has a 3lb pull for finishing a length-and-a-half behind Art History over this course and distance last month, but Mark Johnston'c colt is getting better with every race this spring and this uphill finish looks ideal for his strong galloping style.