All eyes will be on Epsom and the Derby on Saturday, and I’m hoping to be able to catch it from the weighing room at Hexham!
Desert Crown was very impressive in his trial and Sir Michael Stoute knows what he’s doing with these top-notch horses. When you look at some of the horses he’s had over the years it’s phenomenal, and there’s every chance Desert Crown could be another good one.
The problem with trying to find the winner of the Derby is that you could probably run it five times and get five different winners – it’s that competitive and you need plenty of luck.
I thought Stone Age was very impressive at Leopardstown, while I don’t think the other horses from Ballydoyle are back numbers either, and I quite like the chances of Changingoftheguard.
It will be an extra special Derby this year following the death of Lester Piggott. To ride the number of winners that he did, including nine Epsom Derbys’, and continue riding for such a long time is unbelievable.
Weekend Chances: It’s horses for courses up at Perth!
I’ve got a fairly quiet Saturday, with just three okay rides, while Sunday is a good card at Perth and I’ve got plenty of nice chances there.
Minella Trump is an absolute legend and I’m looking forward to getting back on him in the Perth Gold Cup (4:01pm). He absolutely loves the track. He’s been there five times and won every time – it’s quite incredible. It’s hard to know whether he can defy his mark again, but the only time he’s failed to get his head in front in his last eight starts is because of soft ground at Ludlow.
He does what he has to do and gives you everything you ask for.
Old Amalfi Doug is a bit of a legend too, and if he can go and win the 2m4f handicap (4:32pm) then he’ll be the winning-most horse of all time at Perth! He’s a big boy, about 17 hands, so if they ever decide to make a bronze statue of him they’ll need a lot of it!
Given how big he is, you wouldn’t have thought he’d act around Perth, but he certainly does.
The horse in the first (2:20pm), Ain’t No Sunshine, won a bumper at Kelso on bad ground and was then pulled up on that really testing ground in the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham. He’s a better horse on better ground so should go well.
I’ve got Geronimo in the novices chase (2:55pm). He won well first time over fences but then fell at Ayr two starts back. The problem that day was that it rained all day and he hates soft ground. When I asked him to quicken, having hit the front, he just didn’t pick up that well on the ground and then he stumbled and tripped himself up at the back of the last.
The last day at Sedgefield I felt he wasn’t completely over the fall – that seemed to knock his confidence a bit. If he can get back to the sort of form he was in when he won, then you’d like to think he can be very competitive again.
Pammi is another one that loves Perth, including winning there last time out.
She remains well-handicapped on her old form so would hopefully have a good chance.
I’ve also picked up two rides for Shark Hanlon, with A Mere Bagatelle in the 2m handicap hurdle (3:30pm) and Mr Sundancer in the bumper (5:35pm).
A Mere Bagatelle was second to a horse of Dianne Sayer’s who looked pretty well-in last time, so I’m hopeful of a good run from him, while the bumper horse has some decent form too.
