General / Graham Cunningham / 12 June 2009 / 2 Comments

Racing UK pundit Graham Cunningham again casts his weekly eye over the horseracing world where his attention is taken mainly by York with a side order of Royal Ascot thoughts...

Pyramid looks the right scheme in York's annual sprint puzzle

It used to be Timeform Charity day and now it takes place under the Macmillan Charity banner. But the racing menu at York this Saturday remains as strong as ever with the highlight being the Reg Griffin Memorial Trophy at 3.10.

As usual it's possible to argue a case for any number of horses in this £100,000 handicap. Proclaim has thrived on racing, while Master Of Disguise landed a gamble in style over five furlongs at Sandown and Dark Mischief is almost certainly better than he showed when racing too freely at Salisbury last month.

In short, this isn't a race to go overboard about from a punting viewpoint, but one horse who does appeal as a sporting win and place option is Parisian Pyramid.

Dandy and Adrian Nicholls linked up to land this race with Tax Free four years ago and Parisian Pyramid has plenty going for him as he bids for a repeat.

First, he has loads of early speed, which is always an asset at York. Second, he has run well in two strong handicaps in the last month.

And third, Parisian Pyramid shaped as if this return to six furlongs will be ideal when fading late over seven at Epsom last week.

Is he another Tax Free? Probably not. Is he good enough to go well at an each way price. On balance, I suspect he is.

* * *

Many and Taikoo the two to note for the Queen Mum's Cup

Handicaps with 20 runners ridden by lady amateur riders with varying degrees of experience wouldn't normally be my idea of punting heaven.

And yet the Queen Mother's Cup which opens York's card at 2.05 offers a fairly appealing shape and two interesting horses in Manyriverstocross and Taikoo.

The first point to make about this £20,000 handicap is that with a big field and a clutch of front runners the emphasis will be firmly on staying the trip thoroughly.

And Manyriverstocross and Taikoo both score well in that department. Manyriverstocross is ridden by the diminutive Rachel King, who is no relation to trainer Alan but created a good impression when guiding Norman The Great to victory at Newbury recently.

More importantly, this strapping gelding isn't fully exposed on the Flat and caught the eye staying on willingly when well backed behind the highly progressive Red Merlin and Crackentorp on his Goodwood reappearance.

In short, Manyriverstocross looks to have clear win and place potential given his overall profile. And the same applies to Taikoo, who galloped on strongly at Pontefract on his latest start while giving the firm impression that a searching gallop might bring about a little more improvement.

* * *

Scott and the Sheikh made it all look so easy

Writing about Saturday's big York sprint reminds me of an incident from the distant past when the race was known as the William Hill Golden Spurs.

It was June 1991 and I was sent to Newmarket to interview trainer Alex Scott for Timeform. Scott was an engaging interviewee, but when we came to a horse called Sheikh Albadou he asked me to turn off the tape recorder.

I can't recall his exact off the record comments about his improving sprinter, but it was something akin to "he's the best I've ever trained by a long way" and that it might be a good idea to get stuck in for the upcoming York feature.

Sheikh Albadou, backed ante-post at 4-1 by over half the staff at Timeform House, duly bolted up at 9-4 at York before going on to land the Nunthorpe and the Breeders' Cup Sprint later that season.

Scott took the wraps off another budding champ when Lammtarra made a winning debut at Newbury in 1994 but was tragically shot dead by an aggrieved employee before the chestnut landed the Derby and the Arc for Saeed Bin Suroor the following season.

I often wonder what direction Scott's career would have taken had he been given the chance to mastermind Lammtarra's career.

Perhaps he would have become an important cog in the Godolphin wheel. He certainly knew the time of day where "the Sheikh" was concerned.

* * *

Godolphin leaning hard on Gladiatorus and Ahmed to ignite their season at Ascot

And speaking of Sheikhs, what do you make of Sheikh Mohammed's decision to allow Ahmed Ajtebi to ride Gladiatorus in Tuesday's Queen Anne Stakes?

Granted, Ajtebi struck up a fine rapport with the powerful four-year-old in Dubai this spring and the pair combined to put up a thunderous performance when trouncing a field crammed with Group 1 performers in the Dubai Duty Free back in March.

But even so, to dispense with the services of a superb rider like Frankie Dettori for a race which is hugely important for Godolphin's season seems bizarre from this vantage point.

Yes, the 2009 campaign has a long way to run, but Godolphin are 0-14 in British Pattern races this year and, with the exception of Gladiatorus and possibly Veracity in Thursday's Gold Cup, their cupboard for the royal meeting looks worryingly bare.

And then there is the riddle of whether Gladiatorus, who was trained by Mohamed Bin Shafya for his Dubai campaign, can transfer his Nad Al Sheba form to Europe.

Stablemate Eastern Anthem hardly covered himself in glory in the Coronation Cup after his lucrative Dubai stint.

And if Gladiatorus follows suit then it would come as no surprise to see Paco Boy take full advantage in the day one opener.

* * *

Sandown and York look the logical targets for Sea The Stars

Finally this week, a few remaining questions regarding Sea The Stars and the fallout from last week's Derby.

First, it's worth asking whether the adulation heaped on John Oxx's colt is just a little bit over the top at this stage.

Second, what will be the next target for Sea The Stars? I would bet odds against him locking horns with the O'Brien massive again in the Irish Derby and expect him to go for Sandown's Coral-Eclipse or York's International Stakes next.

Third, I don't think for a minute that Aidan O'Brien was trying to gain an unfair advantage by bringing his team into the paddock late at Epsom. But I do think that if you have six runners in a Classic it's very optimistic to think that you can spend several minutes painstakingly saddling each and every one of them yourself.

And lastly, a message to Seamie Heffernan, who scooped the prize for bizarre quote of the week when arguing that Sea The Stars beat the Ballydoyle sextet "on his terms."

Seamus, it was you who rode Fame And Glory from behind a proven top-class miler. You had the chance to change those terms by riding a guaranteed stayer more positively last weekend.

And it might not pay to hold your breath waiting for a chance to take revenge over the Derby distance.

Comments (2)

1. Nat | 12 June 2009

   "Seamus, it was you who rode Fame And Glory from behind a proven top-class miler. You had the chance to change those terms by riding a guaranteed stayer more positively last weekend."

   Sour grapes.....as you tipped Fame and Glory?

2. graham cunningham | 13 June 2009

   Yes, completely borne of sour grapes and absolutely nothing to do with the fact that a bloke riding as part of a six-strong unit on a surefire stayer suggested that one horse with no stable backup and some stamina concerns dictated things on his own terms.

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