WOW! What a weekend of Group 1 action at Newmarket and a fabulous Cambridgeshire win for Paul Hanagan.
But who or what has made it to me latest Good, Bad & Ugly column? Let’s find out…
GOOD
It’s not often I put up a selection in this column, but this week I feel compelled for making the case to lump on IN SWOOP each-way for Sunday’s feature Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
The Arc betting suggests this year’s renewal is a two horse race, with dual heroine Enable and 2020 star Love dominating the market.
They might, indeed, take centre stage. However, their ratings do not entitle them to be so far clear in the ante-post lists. The difference with Enable and Love to most of the others is they quite rightly have fan clubs and the bookmakers know it.
In Swoop does not have a British fan club, with many punters having hardly ever heard of the horse.
However, he has one weapon that is key, and that is he loves bottomless ground. And that could be a potent weapon with rain falling in Paris. As we saw with Waldgeist last year, ground plays a huge part.
Not that In Swoop is a mug. He could be exceptional. After just three runs he won the German Derby with a powerful finish. Then, he went to Longchamp for the Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris and was never placed to challenge before powering into a second behind Mogul.
In itself, that form is not good enough. But should it be Ypres-like conditions on Sunday then that won’t matter. This is a 20-1 shot worth an each-way play.
BAD
Struggling with mental health is a horrible problem for so many people. But good can come from bad.
George Sheriff is the other half of trainer Clare Hobson and is doing his bit to try and help the cause. Sheriff has decided to join ‘Barry’s Flying Circus’ and raise money for Tonic Music for Mental Health because he feels mental health is a huge issue that is often overlooked.
After speaking to Barry Ashworth and getting to know him, Sheriff found there was a very close link between the horse racing business and the music business…. that link is mental health.
Suicide has become a regular topic within racing and the general mental health of trainers, jockeys and everyone else involved in the sport questioned.
Sheriff’s aim is to try and make mental health issues a topic that is openly spoken about and is no longer an embarrassing illness for people. If you feel like helping the cause the link is here.
UGLY
In a slightly contrived way I want to bring Hanagan in here as things looked more than ugly for him a few months ago as he recovered from a serious back injury.
Hanagan is one of those blokes that no one has a bad word to say about – oh I so wish I could say that about myself!
You only have to follow him on Instagram to see he’s a real family guy. People love to see that in a top sportsman.
The former champion jockey’s positivity was a joy to behold on Majestic Dawn for Paul and Oli Cole in the Cambridgeshire, and he was a class act when I interviewed him after the race for ITV.
Hopefully he can kick on now and continue to be one of the top riders in the country.
