Jim Crowley: I could see him running well at a decent price
Jockey and Coral ambassador Jim Crowley discusses the chances of his four rides at York on Saturday.
I head to York for four decent rides on Saturday afternoon and it’s always a great place to be when the sun is shining. I was disappointed to miss out on the ride on Royal Scotsman over in the Irish 2000 Guineas, but I have commitments here at home and that’s just racing sometimes.
I think he goes there with an outstanding chance and I suspect they’ll ride him a bit cold and see if they can get him to settle a bit better. He was just a bit too fresh early on at Newmarket but if he settles better here, then I think he has an outstanding chance.
I’ve had a really good week this week, but the highlight undoubtedly has to be Hukum in the Brigadier Gerard on Thursday night. I’d ridden him in his work, so I knew he was in good form, but I must admit I felt he’d be vulnerable over that trip against Desert Crown.
However, it really was a special performance and we can have some fun with him throughout the rest of the season. I’d say he’d be a big player in The Arc or the King George, but I do think he’d enjoy a bit of cut in the ground, so we’ll just monitor that and pick our targets throughout the season.
HE’S BACK! 🙌
Our Gr.1 Coronation Cup winner HUKUM mows down Desert Crown in the Gr.3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes at Sandown on his seasonal reappearance! 🔵⚪️@ojburrows74 | @JimCrowley1978 | @hissa_hamdan
— Shadwell Stud (@ShadwellStud) May 25, 2023
Back to this weekend and these are my thoughts on York:
I rode this lad a good few years ago now when he was a good second at Newmarket, but I haven’t been on him for a little while. He’s recently joined Harry Eustace, who’s a very good young trainer, and he didn’t run too badly on soft ground at Ascot on his reappearance.
Most of his form is on better ground, so he’ll definitely appreciate conditions here, and he’s starting to look very well handicapped on his best form, so I could certainly see him running well at a decent price.
I’ve ridden her at home recently and she went really well, so she’s a filly I do like. She’s only rated 91, so she has plenty to find with the top one Mimikyu, but away from her she’s bang in the mix with the rest of them, so I can see her running well.
She did most of her racing in Ireland on softer ground, but she’s won at Dundalk and I think she could be even better on decent ground, so I don’t see conditions being a problem. She’ll need to step forward from that run at Goodwood last time, but if she does, then I don’t think she’ll be too far away.
This is the first time I’ve ridden him, but he’s been competitive in the races he has contested so far and he’s still lightly-raced, so there should be more improvement to come form him.
I don’t think dropping back to 7f will be too much of an inconvenience for him and he’s another who’s been running on a softer surface of late, so you never know, the better ground might just suit him, and I’d say he’s got a decent chance.
I think this horse has a really good chance of completing the hat-trick here. His last few wins have come on soft ground, but I don’t expect the quicker conditions to be a problem for him and the form of his wins have worked out quite well.
That was a really nice performance to win at Newmarket on his reappearance and a 5lb rise doesn’t look too severe, so with more improvement likely, you’d probably say he’s the one to beat.
Jim
