There were no excuses for the defeat of Misunderstood, who wasn't good enough on the day.
She was positioned close to the pace, which looked strong, but the winner was by her side, so you cannot blame that. I honestly didn't believe that race was strong, yet my selection and the second favourite struggled to make any inroads.
I said that the Sparkling Wine race wasn't great, and that the horses at the top of the market were too short. The winner was 12/1 and the third biggest price in the race, so it was the right call to take them on, but I chose the wrong horse. Sparkling Wine put in a confusing run as she was cruising through the race but then found nothing.
Naqeeb 11/4 – Goodwood 3.15
I was very surprised by the level of the Naqeeb last year when he initially moved to Julie Camacho's yard, but it wasn't a fluke, and he has shown that he is a stable Listed/Group 3 level performer.
Naqeeb won this race last year, and I can't see why he can't do it again this year. In my opinion, he is the one they have to beat, and it is undoubtedly easier than last year's renewal. There are fewer horses in this race this year, and the level of these opponents is weaker.
Goodwood seems to bring the best out of this horse. He was second at Glorious Goodwood last year before winning this race, and he was second at this track earlier in the year behind Boiling Point. His last run was a poor one, but that was on soft ground and over a mile, which is definitely too short for him these days.
He carried 3lbs more than Boiling Point when the pair met over the course and distance in May, and now Boiling Point is the one carrying more, meaning there is a 6lb swing in the favour of Naqeeb. That is a huge swing in weights for a short head defeat, and I can't see how he doesn't turn that around.
Tikka 11/4 – Goodwood 3.50
This race is totally different to the debut win on the all-weather, but James Fanshawe isn't known for having first-time-out juvenile winners, so Tikka could be well above average.
She was impressive on her debut. She managed to win by three lengths at Kempton, and it could have easily been more if she wasn't eased down by Daniel Muscutt. Her pedigree is encouraging for the future, and further progress has to be likely.
Goodwood will pose different questions to Kempton, but visually, she was ultra impressive, and James Fanshawe has been in tremendous form this year and is still firing in the winners. I like that they haven't rushed her this season, waiting till August to make her debut, and then waited over a month to send her out again. It seems like they have a clear plan in action for her, and she is going to be a big player in this race.
GambleAware