ITV Racing Saturday Preview - 10/10/20

The first race on ITV on Saturday is the Class 2 Nursery Handicap over a mile and Just Fine for Sir Michael Stoute looks to have a huge chance.

The two year old has been seen twice in his racing career, finishing fourth in a good event at Lingfield which the winner has since franked.

The son of the Sea The Stars also franked that race by getting off the mark next time out at Sandown over a mile and having been given a mark of 90 for his handicap debut he should give another bold showing.

The first group race of the day is the Zetland Stakes over 1 mile 2 furlongs and we expect the favourite Kyprios to blow the field away.

The son of Galileo could turn out to be an exceptional juvenile for Aidan O'Brien having been seen once in his career and he got off the mark straight away.

He raced at Galway over 8.5 furlongs on heavy ground, doing his best work in the final furlongs showing he wants a staying trip and the form of that maiden has worked out really well.

The Listed Rockingham Stakes is always a messy affair but the favourite Legal Attack for Simon & Ed Crisford looks the pick of the bunch.

The juvenile colt has been seen twice so far this season, getting off the mark on his debut at Newmarket over six furlongs and then backing that up in a Group Three last time out.

He headed over to France for the Prix Eclipse over six furlongs again and in good to soft ground ran a good race to finish runner up.

He handles the soft ground well and has some of the strongest form heading into the event.

One of the most hotly contested races of the weekend as you could make a case for nearly ever runner in the field, but the horse that looks the most progressive is Sir Michael Stoute's Maximal.

The two year old has one of the best form lines of the season having finished second on his first two starts and then got off the mark in a very strong race at Sandown last time out.

On his second start he finished second over seven furlongs at Sandown which has since seen, Maximal, third, fifth and sixth go on to win since.

She was stepped up to a mile for her last start and got off the mark for the first time revelling in the extra distance and she is sure to improve in this tougher race.

The progressive Ilaraab goes for us in the next at York with the William Haggas trained three year old being a big improver in all of his races this term.

Having finished seventh on debut in June he has since gone unbeaten in his last four events landing some decent handicap races.

He heads to York seeking a five timer having shown his ability on both good, soft and all weather surfaces and being lightly raced on still a decent mark he should go well again.

The feature race of the entire weekend at Newmarket is the Group One Dewhurst Stakes and we are siding with the Irish runner Thunder Moon.

The son of Zoffany extended his unbeaten run to two races when landing the Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes at The Curragh and before that won over the same course and distance in a maiden.

The juvenile took a huge step forward to land the black type event that was last year won by Pinatubo and they are following in the footsteps of the superstar by heading into this race on Saturday.

Off the back of his win he went to favourite for this event and is now battling it out with Chindit at the top of the market, but if running to the same form as his Curragh win he is the leading contender.

The big fielded Sprint Trophy Handicap over six furlongs seems to be a minefield as ever and with that in mind we have two each way shouts.

The first is the David O'Meara trained Gulliver who usually loves these big fielded events, but he will have to find his best form after some less than impressive runs.

However, the six year old is very capable of a big showing if getting back to the form at the start of the summer when placing in the Wokingham Stakes at Royal Ascot and also finishing second in a photo finish in the Scurry Handicap at The Curragh.

On his last few outings he has not shown his best credentials, but has dropped back down in the handicap to a decent mark and having won this race last year off 2lb lower he has to be watched at a price.

The second runner for us is the David Barron trained Kynren who has been an ever frequent runner in these types of events and over the years has given his best performances at York.

The six year old has been seen at the track three times not finishing out the front three in any of those big fielded races and having ran a solid race last time out in the Ayr Gold Cup he looks a live contender at a double figure price.

He is dropping down for his first crack at six furlongs but he does not lack any pace and has performed to his best on soft ground.

The big fielded Cesarewitch Handicap over the staying trip of 2m2f is always a cracking event and with that in mind we have two selections at opposite ends of the market.

The first is the Willie Mullins trained Great White Shark can run a huge race for the yard that has landed the last two renewals of this race.

This dual purpose trained runner ran in this race last year and finished 10th of 30 off a mark of 89 and steps up on Saturday 3lb lower.

He is the yards sole runner in the race and having last ran in July when winning a big fielded handicap hurdle at the Galway festival and winning, his form looks decent if converting it to the flat.

Our second runner at a huge each way price is Vis A Vis for Neil Mulholland and although on the face of it his form does not look the strongest, he always performs well in big fielded events.

He has found it tough going this season which has seen his mark drop to 83 and last season and in 2018 he finished fourth in this race off a mark of 90.

The 7lb drop could make him interesting at 33/1 and he could handle the soft ground better then some of the other runners.