In-running / Neil Munro / 24 June 2010 / Leave a comment Free £25 Bet

Neil Munro brings us another blast of in-running wisdom with his nags to note from Royal Ascot

"Showcasing ran no kind of race in the Golden Jubilee and I am still awaiting for something to come to light. I backed him with the intention of laying out my stake low but was obviously left with a losing bet. I will also keep in mind what John Gosden said post-race, next time he runs: he is a horse who is likely to be lazy once he hits the front."

So, this year's Royal Ascot has been and gone. What a magnificent occasion. Top Hat and Tails for the gents. High class designer dresses for the ladies. Did you guess correctly what colour the Queen's hat would be on the first day? I thought she might go for orange with green dots this year. Well, how wrong I was. And unfortunately that form followed me when trading on the horses during the week.

Ouqba was my first point of call in the Queen Anne Stakes. I will always want to take this four-year-old on when he is campaigned over one mile, especially when it is likely to be a truly run contest. And this contest was, but unfortunately, although travelling well on the outside, he never got into the contest enough to allow his price to contract to the mark I had set. I didn't lose anything but I didn't win anything. I will persevere.

Spacious provided one of the few successes of my betting week despite Mr Murtagh not being able to get her to the front. She travelled very well and looked to have Strawberrydaiquiri beaten but just failed to get her head in front. The lowest trade was at [1.23] but my lowest offer matched was [1.33] which was pleasing. I think they will go for the Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket and the same play of back to lay will be the order of the day.

Presvis was given a rare outing in Britain, but yet again didn't look that happy under Kieren Fallon and my feeling is that there was not enough pace for him. He certainly didn't travel as well as he has been known to. But, in all honesty, finishing six lengths down to Byword will probably be decent form. Look for a race with lots of pace in before backing him.

Showcasing ran no kind of race in the Golden Jubilee and I am still awaiting for something to come to light. I backed him with the intention of laying out my stake low but was obviously left with a losing bet. I will also keep in mind what John Gosden said post-race, next time he runs: he is a horse who is likely to be lazy once he hits the front.

Before I go I always have to leave you with some horses to look out for in the near future, and these come from the five days of Ascot.

Elzaam - It may be a little early to add the Coventry Stakes runner-up to the in-running database as this was only his second start but I feel he idled slightly in the lead before being caught by Strong Suit. My instincts are that connections might try and deliver Elzaam a bit later next time so he will be worth backing pre-race and then attempting to lay out your stake at low odds in case he doesn't get there or idles again.

Riggins/Acrostic - The Royal Hunt Cup is a notoriously difficult betting heat but I think there are a couple of horses to take out from an in-running perspective. Andrew Balding's unexposed 6yo is a hold up horse who is delivered as late as possible. This is a difficult tactic, especially in these big field handicaps, and leads to him trading short in the race despite not getting his head in front regularly. Luca Cumani's Acrostic is ridden similarly, in that he is held up and travels supremely well, but doesn't win often enough. He trades quite short without actually being in the mix at the end of the race so I would be looking to take him on in the run.

Stone Of Folca - It was typical of John Best to run him in both the Windsor Castle and the Norfolk Stakes, and they were both decent efforts. But to my eye, and despite different tactics, being used for both runs he looked a four furlong horse and thus I will be looking to back to lay him in the run over his next few outings.

Tags: Acrostic, Elzaam, Ouqba, Presvis, Queen Anne Stakes, Riggins, Royal Ascot, Royal Hunt Cup, Showcasing, Spacious, Stone Of Folca