Winter won’t disappoint on Thursday
Coral preview the Nassau Stakes
There was a massive shock on Wednesday at Goodwood, 20/1 shot Here Comes When winning the Sussex Stakes ahead of odds-on favourite Ribchester. Churchill was withdrawn in the build-up, setting the pace for the day.
A nice price winner if you were on, but favourite backers will be looking for a bit more luck on Thursday, when the Nassau Stakes headlines a seven-race card. Will we see another upset? You can place your bets on that race, or any from the day, at Coral. Click here to build your accumulators.
Winter a worthy favourite
The main event goes at 3.35pm, and we have a nine-runner field to sort through. One mile one furlong lies ahead of the contenders, and Coral’s racing team have Winter marked up as favourite going in to the day. A convincing jolly, and so she should be.
Aidan O’Brien’s three-year-old filly, a product of high-class breeding, arrives at course with a CV showing four wins from seven starts, never finishing outside of the places. A third on debut at Naas was followed by a similar effort at Gowran, then the penny dropped. She won a maiden at Dundalk, was second at Leopardstown, then went on a three-race winning run.
More to come from the NAP
Banking the prize money in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in May, she made a quick-fire return to the winner’s enclosure in the Irish version of the race, before completing the group one treble at Royal Ascot in June, claiming the Coronation Stakes by 2 ½ lengths from nearest finisher Roly Poly. Seen running on at the finish, those who followed the race left convinced there was more still to come from O’Brien’s star.
Ryan Moore was in the saddle at Ascot and he returns to do the steering again here, which does nothing but heap on confidence. The stable has been firing of late too, as you would expect from O’Brien, winning three of his last 10 races.
Form impossible to ignore
The step up in trip won’t be a problem for Winter, and although she faces a talented field here, it’s all about the favourite. It would be foolish to ignore those three group one wins on the bounce, and in terms of form, nothing gets anywhere near her.
Coral are currently trading the NAP at 13/8, having been nibbled in from 7/4. We expect to see plenty more by way of support in the run-up to the start. If she handles the trip and conditions as well as we expect her too, she’s a solid winner of this. A favourite worth having in our book.
Goodwood selections
1.50 – Addeybb
2.25 – Endless Time
3.00 – Cardsharp
3.35 – Winter
4.10 – Veejay
4.45 – Magical
5.20 – Megan Lily
Have a read through Jim Crowley’s thoughts here
