Saturday Antepost Racing Tips: Speech the Notable pick for Lockinge success at Newbury

• Lockinge match between Notable Speech and Rosallion one to savour

• London Gold Cup Handicap pick at 3/14.00 for Saturday

• Alan Dudman has three tips in his latest antepost column ahead of Newbury this weekend 

Lockinge Day at Newbury and four races televised on ITV

Last weekend's two selections in the antepost column didn't turn up and with two non-runners it capped off a pretty trying week as I struggled at Chester, like quite a few by all accounts, as the ground seemed nowhere near the good or dare I even say it, good to firm.

Newbury should be quickish going with a dry week, although I am sure we can expect that hose to skewer any of the firm patches.

Speech is the Lockinge selection

Let's get straight on with the Lockinge, the first big Group 1 of the season pitting the older horses together and Rosallion is the one everyone is looking forward to seeing, and one no doubt the layers will want to duck as he's a class act and 6/42.50 tells you the story what is expected this Saturday.

Richard Hannon's star three-year-old was one of the best horses last term on the turf according to Timeform - rated 126 with a pair of Group 1s at Ascot and the Curragh in the Irish 2,000 Guineas.

Most intriguing here is the potential match-up that Goodwood fans were robbed of in the Sussex Stakes with 2,000 Guineas winner from 2024 Notable Speech hopefully ready for his return to action as the 4/15.00 third in the betting on the Sportsbook.

Notable Speech reached the celestial city of gold last term in the first Classic of the season at Newmarket and then on with Goodwood, but the flop at Ascot behind Rosallion dented his climb towards untouchable and he finished off with a creditable third in the Breeders' Cup.

On their personal fixtures, Notable Speech and Rosallion are one apiece, and the Godolphin runner was rated only 1lb inferior according to Timeform from last term.

At the prices, it has to be Notable Speech, and if the ground is genuinely fast (Lord we can pray), his devastating turn of foot is a weapon that Rosallion's fans and devotees will be scared of, and the 4/15.00 for a Classic winner is far too big in my view.

We ought to mention the angle of him being fresh and a first-time-outer, as last term might have caught up with him in America considering he was on the go since the early part of 2024 right through until November.

It isn't just a two-horse race, as Dancing Gemini will have a say at 11/43.75, and he quickened away readily from Tamfana in the Bet365 Mile last time at Sandown and both he and the second will have fitness as their key advantage.

London Gold Cup Handicap - a race for Nebras to excel in

We're in no particular order for the weekend's menu and reversing 35 minutes to the 14:00, and the London Gold Cup Handicap could be a terrific race, although with a sense of disappointment as we will be nowhere near the maximum field of 20, with 14 in at the entries stage on Tuesday morning.

Two were from Ballydoyle with Genealogy and Light As Air. The former finished a well beaten fifth in the Autumn Stakes at Newmarket last term to Delacroix, and that fellow needs no boosters. A handicap debut mark of 96 however is no gimme, although Bertinelli won it for O'Brien two years ago from 99.

The race has thrown up some very classy sorts in recent times; Headman for one, Bay Bridge another, and there's Israr, Cannock Chase and Time Test.

Genealogy is at 5/16.00 on the Sportsbook with Light As Air at 7/18.00 but whether both turn up is the question. Genealogy holds an entry in the Irish 2,000 Guineas a week later, and also one in the Irish Derby.

Light As Air likewise is double-entered for the same two Classic races.

I am pretty happy to go with John and Thady Gosden's Nebras at 3/14.00, who was seen at the Newmarket recently in a messy four-runner affair.

Alpine Trail, a progressive horse for Charlie Appleby earned another win and made the running, gifted an easy lead against three rivals and he also handled the dip near-side well.

Nebras was quite some way apart towards the centre of the track and got somewhat lost in the dip having threatened. It was a first attempt at 1m2f and he seemed to get it well enough, although had to come from further back, and with Ernst Blofeld in that very same race and looking awkward under pressure, Nebras looks far more trustworthy on that particular duel.

He's unexposed at the distance and can be a bit of a hard-puller, so a bigger field will help him on that front. He raced in the Group 1 Futurity last term and the ground was an obvious excuse in the bottomless slop, so he's quite an interesting runner for a handicapper in this sphere, albeit off a stiff mark.

Gosden has some mighty impressive stats too at Newbury with a win rate around 19% and a massive 48% placed. Over to you Hollie Doyle.

Haggas three-year-old worth noting...even if he doesn't turn up

The Newbury 13:25 Highclere Castle Gin Carnarvon Stakes is another ITV race and the 6f contest holds any amount of potential improvers here, and the one that was on my radar from last season was the William Haggas-trained Almeraq.

Now, we have to start with the ground. He was a winner on soft as a novice, but you never know until you try is the old maxim so we have to be open-minded on that score, and the price at 9/110.00 factors in that. I wouldn't be massively shocked if he's a non-runner in truth, but he looked a good prospect last term.

His Yarmouth victory came on second run, but he looked every inch a potential pattern performer and showed the benefit of a debut outing with a controlled front-running victory.

What struck me physically is that there was a fair bit about him, a big, good-looking powerful colt and Yarmouth was settled instantly.

He possibly could get further and certainly shaped that way, and I can see a track like Newbury with its wide-open expanses suitable, especially if making the running.

We come back to the ground; he's a son of Dark Angel - whose stats read 12% win and 30% placed on ground away from anything with "soft" in the description, and he's very similar at 11% and 29% on good to soft, soft and heavy, and that's from a lot of runners.

Haggas has won this race twice in recent years with Tiber Flow and Adaay, and we're backing a good prospect, and Jim Crowley said he was quite exciting and had a good mind post-Yarmouth last October.

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