Racing by Tom O'Ryan
Spa Lane, successful at Beverley on his season reappearance, returns to the East Yorkshire course tomorrow with excellent prospects of doubling his score.
The five-year-old, trained in Lincolnshire by Sue Lamyman, will bid to play a starring role in the Racing Channel Handicap in the hands of apprentice Colin Teague.
Spa Lane has run well in defeat in his last three starts, which included a second-placed effort at Ripon where he failed to secure a clear run, and looked a shade unlucky. On his latest outing at Pontefract, the gelding finished fourth to Arisaig in a two and a quarter mile slog in the mud and seemed to find the distance just beyond him.
Back to two miles tomorrow, his winning distance, Spa Lane is napped to complete a Beverley double.
Naviasky, who got off the mark when fulfilling previous promise at Carlisle recently, looks capable of following up in the Miller Mile Handicap, while William's Well, a consistent performer this season, can open his winning account in the Hypac Handicap on behalf of Mick Easterby.
Tomorrow's principal racing is staged at Sandown, where the £250,000 Coral-Eclipse Stakes takes pride of place.This prestigious prize looks set to fall to Frankie Dettori, who partners Daylami for Saeed Bin Suroor.
Daylami is on something of a retrieving mission, having narrowly missed out last time at Royal Ascot, where he was beaten two necks into third by his stable-mate Faithful Son in the Prince of Wales' Stakes.
A clear passage is hoped for tomorrow when Daylami can meet Faithful Son on 5lb better terms. Revenge looks likely.
Eric Alston's Gulf Shaadi, who finished a creditable eighth in last month's Royal Hunt Cup, deserves another chance in the Kingston Rated Handicap, while Lynda Ramsden has double prospects with Bishops Court (3.20) and Mungo Park (5.15).
On a cracking day of racing, Haydock, the other televised meeting, also stages a fine card, highlighted by the Letheby & Christopher Old Newton Cup.
Fantail, trained by the in-form Mark Tompkins, is the one to be on here, after a comfortable success at Beverley last time. Open to further improvement he looks capable of capturing this £50,000 prize in the hands of Darren Biggs.
The progressive Altaweelah, winner of her last two races, a facile scorer at York on her latest outing, bids to complete a hat-trick in the coveted Lancashire Oaks, and is fancied to cope with this step up in class. Royston Ffrench has the mount.
Ffrench can also win the Eatons Cock O' the North Handicap on Prix Star.
Trained at Middleham by Chris Fairhurst, Prix Star finished a good third to Five Of Spades on his reappearance at Newcastle and, even more creditably, occupied the same position behind Friar Tuck in the valuable William Hill Trophy at York last month. He deserves to find a winning opportunity this time.
Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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