2025 Glorious Goodwood Friday Tips

The rain arrived after the first race at Goodwood which was unfortunate for Thunder Wonder but he ran better than his finishing position suggests. Unfortunately, Tamam Desert wasn’t ridden as we hoped and it looks like old father time may have caught up with Winter Fog. Two blanks in a row, now it is really starting to feel like Goodwood and Galway! Check out Dave’s 2025 Glorious Goodwood Friday fancies below.

2.30 Goodwood – Golden Mile Handicap (Heritage)

It is hard to believe it is three years since we backed Orbaan to win this at 33/1. David O’Meara’s horses are always worth keeping onside in this race but I am going to side with a horse who is going to hopefully relish the testing conditions at Goodwood.

Star Anthem was placed when we backed him in the G3 Horris Hill on heavy ground at Newbury last season. He also wasn’t beaten far in a 6f G2 at the same track on heavy on his previous start so clearly, he is a horse that enjoys getting his toe in.

After two moderate efforts on good-good to firm at the start of this season, he showed signs of life when returned to soft ground at Chester last time out. In that extended 7f handicap he was beaten just 2.5l into third off 99 and he is now 1lb lower.

He has a high draw here but when the ground is testing they tend to tack across to the near side so that may not be too much of a hindrance. In that last Chester race it looked like Star Anthem was ready to step up to 1m and if he stays, he will hopefully outrun his odds of 50/1.

 2025 Glorious Goodwood Friday Tip: Star Anthem e/w @ 50/1 (6 places)

3.05 Goodwood – Qatar Stakes (Group 2)

John Quinn won this race in 2023 with Highfield Princess, who was a 4-9 fav on the day. He runs JM Jungle this year and while a rating of 102 leaves the son of Bungle Inthejungle with a fair bit to find, he has a couple of pieces of form this year that suggest he may be able to rate a bit higher.

Six runs ago, his last start on good to soft, he was beaten 1l by American Affair in a 5f handicap at Musselburgh off 93 when in receipt of 1lb. Jim Goldie’s horse has since gone on to win the King Charles at Ascot and is now rated 114.

JM Jungle had his first start in stakes company at York last time out and was beaten just over a length into third in that 5f listed heat on good to firm. His only start over this C&D on soft saw him win a handicap off 87 in 2023 and overall, his form figures on softer than good read 3154232442 so he doesn’t mind a bit of cut.

Quite a few of the shorter priced ones in here would prefer quicker conditions and in the hope that the rain softened ground slows them down, JM Jungle is the e/w selection at odds of 25/1.

2025 Glorious Goodwood Friday Tip: JM Jungle e/w @ 25/1 (4 places)

-DaveStevos

Vicario Might Sneak Black Type At York

Royal Dubai rewarded our loyalty with a superb win last weekend, advised at 28/1 (R4 applied). Unfortunately, that was as good as it got. Tango Flare blew the start, Ardisia ran respectably but missed a place and I have no explanation for Ain’t Nobody’s dire effort.

The King George is the main event this weekend but there’ll be no Goliath priced winner in this renewal with just five declared. We are also racing on the Knavesmire on Friday and Saturday and an Ed Walker trained filly might be able to sneak some black type at massive odds in the Listed Lyric Fillies’ Stakes on Friday evening.

Ready To Step Up In Trip

This filly is a half-sister to our old pal Makarova, a mare we backed at tasty odds when she won the Abbaye. She’s also a full sister to Nina Bailarina, who was placed in a 6f G3 for this yard. Hardly a candidate for 10.5f on breeding but on the evidence of her last two runs over 1m, including in a listed heat at Pontefract 17 days ago, she looks ready for this longer trip.

The first of those runs over 1m was a staying on third in a handicap at this venue off 83. She raced a bit keenly that day but last time at Pontefract she settled a lot better and she ran on well from the back to nick fifth, 6.25l behind the winner Royal Dress but only 0.75l behind the third Imperial Quarter, a 14/1 shot here. Vicario is 66s.

PJ McDonald takes the ride and he is 6/41 with another 17 top 4 finishes when riding for Ed Walker. That’s a frame hitting strike rate of over 50%, hopefully he can enhance that on Vicario and nick some precious black type in the process at odds of 66/1.

7.48 York Tip: Vicario e/w @ 66/1

-DaveStevos

2025 Newmarket July Meeting Thursday Tip

Last weekend was finished off in fitting fashion by Daylight. She wasn’t disgraced in the Jean Prat, she just didn’t quite see out the 7f. I was going to preview the live ITV races at Newmarket tomorrow but after looking at the card, no thanks. However, at least there is one decent betting heat, the sprint handicap at 3.00, and I am going to chance two in that at decent prices.

3.00 Newmarket - bet365 Handicap (Heritage)

There are two that interest me here and the first one is The Strikin Viking. Trained by Newmarket based handler Hamad Al Jehani, this horse is making his handicap debut. Highly tried last year, his two best efforts were a 0.5l second to Henri Matisse in the G2 Railway Stakes at the Curragh (6f, gd-sft) and a 0.5l second in the G2 Richmond Stakes at Goodwood (6f, gd-fm). 

His last two starts of 2024 weren’t up to much and he also disappointed when nearer last than first in a 5.5f Chantilly G3 on his sole run of 2025. He now switches to handicaps off a mark of 103 and while it is hard to argue he is thrown in on recent performances, I think odds of 40/1 are a bit dismissive of his chance.

However, given that he ran so well at Goodwood last year, my fear is that this might be a tune up for the Stewards’ Cup at that venue next month. He’s 50s for that at the moment with one firm, if he wins or runs well here, those odds will tumble. I’ll have a small e/w bet on him just in case, but the other one that looks a shade too big in here is Kevin Ryan’s American Style.

Style Can Strike

By Washington DC, this gelding is having a fine season. A winner off 78 at Ripon on his reappearance, he has backed that up with solid efforts on the Rowley course at Newmarket (twice) and last time out at York when fifth behind Hucklesbrook. He is now 11lb better off with that rival so he may well be able to close the 3.75l gap.

On his previous start he finished 1l behind Marchogian on the Rowley course, from whom he was getting 2lb. He gets 7lb from him here and he has already reversed the form (at York last time), yet he is 22/1 and Marchogian is 14/1. Go figure.

Josephine Gordon got a good tune out of this lad that day at Newmarket and she is back in the plate today. Now, it must be said that American Style does need to pull out a bit more to win this off his current mark but from what we have seen so far this season, he is almost guaranteed to run his race and if he does, it should be good enough for a place and you never know, he might even win.

At odds of 22/1, he is well worth backing e/w and I’ll also be having a half-stakes e/w bet on The Strikin Viking at 40s. Hopefully we can nick some place money.

2025 Newmarket July Meeting Thursday Tip: American Style e/w @ 22/1 NAP; 0.5pt e/w The Strikin Viking e/w @ 40/1 (both 5 places)

-DaveStevos

Daylight Could Shine At Deauville

Saturday was an unmitigated disaster. It was a complete and utter shitshow with absolutely zero positives. To be fair, we’ve had a decent few weeks so we were due a dud of a day.

In an attempt to salvage some dignity from the weekend, I am going to back Daylight in the Prix Jean Prat at Deauville. Trained by Patrice Cottier, this horse can be backed at 33/1 but I’m not sure she should be as big as that, especially if the forecast rain materialises.

Last season, this daughter of Earthlight posted some rock solid efforts in defeat at the top table. Campaigned exclusively at 6f, she won two of her first three starts, including a G3 at Deauville. She then finished a 1.5l third behind Whistlejacket and Rashabar in the G1 Prix Morny, again at Deauville, and followed that up with a fine 3l second behind superstar filly Lake Victoria in the Cheveley Park at Newmarket.

Two Runs

This season, she has had two runs. In the first one, her first try at 7f over this C&D, Cottier used her stablemate Kaadi as a ‘pacemaker’. However, the entire field basically ignored her and sat 8-10 lengths behind and I think Barzalona mistimed his challenge and got to the front way too soon. Daylight subsequently faded into third in the last 100 yards.

On her second start of the season, Daylight ran in the French 1000 Guineas and the 1m trip probably just stretched her. She wasn’t disgraced in seventh and in the end, she was just over 4l behind the first two. The bookies weren’t impressed by that run though and she has been completely written off by them.

Optimum Trip

It looks like seven furlongs is this filly’s optimum distance and that is what she gets today. Her course form figures read 133 and looking at how she has been campaigned, I’d imagine her whole season has been geared towards this race.

Mickael Barzalona is back on board and hopefully, he has learned his lesson from hitting the front far too early the last time he rode. If he can time his challenge right, and get a clear run, Daylight can hopefully hit the frame at odds of 33/1.

2025 Prix Jean Prat Tip: Daylight e/w @ 33/1

-DaveStevos