We almost landed a whopper with Carolina Jetstream on Sunday. She ran an absolute cracker and she should be capable of winning a stakes race on good ground at some stage. The Brigadier Gerard Stakes is the feature at Sandown on Thursday night and I have a couple of e/w fancies on the card.
5.42 – National Stakes (Listed)
Even in modest sized fields like this, it is usually a big
advantage to be drawn low in sprints at Sandown. In the last 20 runnings of this 2yo sprint
only four times has it been won by horses drawn 6 or higher. Two of the most
fancied horses here are drawn in 7 and 8, so could there be an upset on the
cards?
Napa recorded an RPR of 95 when winning at Sandown and the
third, fifth and sixth from that race have all won since. The Naval Crown colt
has been handed a lovely draw in stall 2 and it would be no surprise whatsoever
if he bounces out and makes all, just like he did at HQ.
The outsider that appeals most is Dandyman Dan. Trained by
David Evans, whose horses are flying, this son of Dandy Man won on debut at
Bath despite doing a lot wrong and being sent off at 40-1. He was a step slowly
away, he ran green and he bumped a rival but in the end, he overcame that adversity
to win by just over a length.
The runner up went close in another maiden on the AW next
time, the third won, and the fourth and the fifth were both second on their
next outings so it wasn’t a bad race in hindsight.
Does he have the pedigree to win at this level? Well, his
Dark Angel dam is a half-sister to Start Time, who was placed in a G3 as a 2yo,
and his grand-dam Silca’s Sister was a 6f G1 2yo winner for Saeed Bin Suroor.
Hopefully Dandyman Dan has learned plenty from that debut
run at Bath and if he is more professional here, he might be able to sneak some
black type from the plum draw in stall 1. At odds of 25/1, a modest e/w interest
is advised.
2026 Sandown Thursday Tip: Dandyman Dan e/w @ 25/1
6.42 – Heron Stakes (listed)
Ed Walker won this with his recent G1 hero Almaqam in 2024
and while he did have the benefit of a prep run before the race, I think it
might be worth taking a chance on Golden Knight for him here on his seasonal
reappearance.
This Camelot colt was beaten 2.25l into fourth on debut at
Haydock last September (1m, gd-sft) and the winner and runner up from that race
are now rated 96 and 108 respectively. Just under a month later he went on to
win a Newmarket novice (1m, good), and the third, fourth and fifth from that race
have all gone on to win various races since.
Golden Knight dominated that race from the front and I thought
it was a pretty impressive performance. He’s impeccably bred, being out of G3 winner
and he’s a half-brother to Delphi (Listed & G3 winner) and Credenza (placed
in Listed, G3 and G2 company).
His pedigree suggests he’ll stay further than a mile in time
but he was effective over this trip last time so it makes sense to stick to it
for now. Hopefully Walker has him fit and ready and if he does, Golden Knight can outrun his odds of 22/1.
2026 Sandown Brigadier Gerard Meeting Tip: Golden Knight
e/w @ 22/1
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