Wet Weather July Meeting E/W Double

My dreams for heavy rain came true at HQ today. They got 20mm in the space of just an hour and it is now officially soft. Our 100/1 July Cup bet on Vadream looks decent value now as she has shortened into 33s/25s in most places. Hopefully she brings her A-Game on Saturday.

Now that we know the ground will definitely be soft, I have found a couple of horses whose chances will be enhanced by the unseasonally wet weather. The first one I am interested in is Palmar Bay in the heritage handicap at 3pm on Thursday.

Ralph Beckett trains this son of Exceed and Excel and he is proven in testing ground. He has had just one start this term and it was a modest effort at Sandown 26 days ago. However, it was over a trip of 7f and he looked far too fresh.

That was his second try at 7f. Last season, he had a go in a handicap at Donny on heavy ground and he was again keen, ending up third beat 3L off 88. Previous to that, he had been campaigned solely over 5f and 6f. He was beat at odds of 5/4 on debut at Windsor (5f sft) but he made amends at Salisbury second time up, beating Jasour over 5f on good.

That form looks more than decent now and he followed it up with a 0.75L defeat of Solar Aclaim in a class 2 conditions race on soft at Salisbury. I think the drop back to 6f is a big plus today. They’ll go quicker, which should help him to settle and we know he handles testing ground. At odds of 25/1, he can hopefully hit the frame.

Global Can Outrun Odds

So, who else will appreciate a bit of cut this weekend? On Saturday, there’s a mile handicap for the 3yos at 2.50 and with the Brookhouse yard in good form, Global Skies might be worth a second glance. Like our old friend Mondo Man, this horse is by Mondialiste. His Sea The Stars dam won on soft, his full brother Balboa has won on heavy and Global Skies has already shown a liking for easy ground.

Ok, he admittedly didn’t run well on heavy at Doncaster on his last run of 2023 but that was a listed heat and it may have come too soon after his good second at Nottingham 17 days earlier. He had previously got off the mark on his first try on soft in a Haydock maiden and his best form this year has come on soft ground too.

Back in April he ran a fine race to finish third at Beverley (7.5f sft), beat 1.5L off 86. Good ground and 10f/9f can be blamed for his two runs since but every cloud has a silver lining. He’s been dropped to a mark of 83 and now that he’s back at a mile on soft ground, he could resume his progress.

Jack Gilligan is 6/36 with 16 top 4 finishes for Brookhouse, hopefully he can improve on that excellent frame hitting strike rate. At odds of 25/1, Global Skies is the e/w selection. Back him and Palmar Bay in singles and a cheeky little e/w double.

Newmarket Selections: 3pm Thursday: Palmar Bay e/w @ 25/1 (5 places); 2.50pm Saturday: Global Skies e/w @ 25/1 (4 places). 2x e/w singles and an e/w double recommended.