3 minute read

Sam King returns with two selections for you on Wednesday afternoon…

Goodwood 2.55 - Rhoscolyn

You'll need to find the mud-lovers at Goodwood this afternoon, with conditions officially described as 'heavy' at the Sussex venue.

The weather gods looked to have answered the prayers of last year's winner Rhoscolyn and David O'Meara's charge is surely the one to beat with everything seemingly falling into place back at his favoured venue. A four-time course scorer, he looked as good as ever when striking at Epsom back in May and while form figures lately suggest poor performances, the David O'Meara-trained six-year-old has been operating on ground that's far from ideal.

He's back on his last winning mark of 97 and should get a nice toe into the race under Danny Tudhope, with Hafeet Alain and Leadman both likely to push forward in stalls one and two. This gelded son of Territories won three times on ground described as soft or heavy at this venue last year and looks fair value to gain his first success at the course in 2024.

Odds – 10/3

Goodwood 4.05 - Botanical

Later on the card, the Listed Foundation Stakes looks like a really interesting renewal with a host of different types of horses taking each other over a trip shy of ten furlongs on heavy ground.

A recent gelding operation could spark the talented Macduff, who struggled in the Group 1 Epsom Derby before finishing down the field at Royal Ascot, back to something like his best, but even still, he's unproven on ground this soft.

Previous course winners Novus, who sports first-time cheekpieces, and Passion And Glory both need to be taken seriously, especially with the latter arriving top-rated in this line-up. However, neither has the potential of Botanical.

George Boughey's new recruit looks to hold a progressive profile on ground softer than good. He's not encountered genuine soft surface since a destructive Hamilton handicap success in October last year but did post a very creditable second-place finish to a progressive colt in a competitive York handicap for Roger Varian back in July.

The fitting of a first-time tongue-tie also looks like an interesting addition by his new handler and with everything pointing towards a career-best performance, George Boughey's Lope De Vega colt is selected to gain his first stakes victory en-route to bigger and better things this autumn.

Odds – 5/2