Horse racing has plenty of festivals and one is in Suffolk next month. Newmarket is the course to go to for the Moët & Chandon July Festival.
There’s not one, not two but three days of top class horse racing to watch. From July 7 to 9, if you want a day out watching racing and trying on some of the latest fashions, then Newmarket will offer you all of that. Oh, and don’t forget the return of Après Racing featuring some great hits being played by Radio 1 DJ Adele Roberts and Denise van Outen.
July 7 is Ladies Day so that’s when all the fancy dresses and hats are to be seen. The racing that day is highlighted by the Group 2 Princess of Wales’s Stakes.
That’s run over a mile and a half, and the highest rated entrant is Hurricane Lane. The Charlie Appelby trained runner has won twice over the distance. However, Hurricane Lane can go further and won the St. Leger last year.
Other possible runners include Pyledriver, who was recently second in the Coronation Cup. Alpinista will be attempting to win a sixth straight race. Victories have included two recent Group 1 wins in Germany and last year won the Lancashire Oaks.
July 8 sees the Group 1 Falmouth Stakes take place with recent Royal Ascot winner Inspiral at 4/7 to be the winner. If successful, it’ll be her third win at Newmarket. The filly has come a long way from winning in Class 4 at the 2021 July meeting. All five of her races have been won and the filly will be difficult to beat in this race.
The British Gambler that compares the best horse wagering firms in Great Britain assures: Homeless Songs will be out to cause a surprise and can be baked at 7/1. May saw this Dermot Weld trained runner win the Irish 1000 Guineas. Already a Group 2 winner at Newmarket this year, Dreamloper (8/1) followed that up with a Group 1 success in Longchamp.
Saturday July 9 is the final day of the festival and there are two great races scheduled. If you love trying to work out a difficult handicap, then the Bunbury Cup is ideal for you. This is a Class 2 handicap run over seven furlongs and even the joint favourites are 8/1.
Montassib is one of those joint favourites and trained by William Haggas. He’s won twice this year and could have also won the Buckingham Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot with a clearer run and has less weight to carry here.
The other joint favourite hails from the John and Thady Gosden stable. Samburu also has two wins this season but was sixth last time out in the Group 3 Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot. Back down in class, this contender only has 8st 5lbs to carry and at 8/1 looks a good tip for success.
The Group 1 Darley July Cup is the main attraction on the last day of the festival. This six furlong race sees Royal Ascot winner Perfect Power as the current 2/1 favourite. The Richard Fahey trained runner looks to follow up his Coronation Cup success.
Earlier this season, Perfect Power was seventh in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket. That was over a mile and proved to be too far for him. Moving down to six furlongs worked well at Royal Ascot and could do so again in July.
