Thursday 4 June 2015

Jack To Nail 'Em

The Derby meeting at Epsom is one of my favourites, and on the first day it is all about the girls. Eleven fillies go to post in this years Oaks, and it has been a notoriously difficult race for punters in recent years with three of the last four winners returning at 20/1.
This years edition looks open enough, with Legatissimo deservedly at the head of the market after her superb display at Newmarket in the 1000 Guineas. However, the one that catches my eye is Jack Naylor, who was a creditable fourth on her seasonal reappearance in the Irish 1000 Guineas. Significantly she gave the favourite 5lbs and won cosily enough when they met last season over a mile, and the trip today of 12F should suit Jack Naylor even better. She has shaped on both of her Group 1 starts as if she needed a stiffer test of stamina, and connections have always thought of her as an Oaks Filly.
She is a daughter of Champs Elysees, a proven middle distance horse, and her dam was a listed winner over 10F. There is plenty of black type on the dam line if you go back far enough, and most of it is at middle distances too. How she was bought for ten grand is beyond me! With stamina more or less guaranteed, and with Fran Berry back in the saddle, Jack Naylor can swoop late for Jessica Harrington and give her the biggest win of her career on the flat to date.

Selection: Epsom Oaks:  Jack Naylor 7/1

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