Outsiders for the Haydock Sprint Cup

A quality’s day racing on Saturday on ITV Racing featuring Haydock, Ascot and Kempton, has the Haydock Sprint Cup as its feature, for which we have tips as well for all the other Horse Racing.

A wide open renewal this year sees Martyn Meade’s Advertise at the head of the market, after two Group One wins from his last three starts, including on similar ground in the Commonwealth Cup.

He’s closely followed in the betting by two other three-year-olds in the form of Stewards’ Cup winner Khaadem and Ten Sovereigns, who landed the July Cup before struggling in the Nunthorpe.

The forecast soft ground and the wide open sprint division this year means there is potential for a surprise, and here we focus on three outsiders, something that punters shouldn’t shy away from, given that five of the past ten renewals were won by runners at odds of 10/1 or bigger.

The Tin Man

A fan favourite who thrives in this contest, second to Quiet Reflection in 2016, third to Harry Angel in 2017 and a well deserved winner last year on heavy ground under Oisin Murphy, when beating the re-opposing Brando.

2019 hasn’t entirely gone to plan for James Fanshawe’s seven-year-old, although encouragement can be taken from his first two seasonal runs. Third to Dream Of Dreams on his return (seven pounds better off with that rival), he was a close sixth in the Diamond Jubilee behind Blue Point.

He arrives here on the back of a disappointing run at Newbury, seventh there behind Waldpfad, however he is no stranger to rediscovering his form at today’s venue, and goes on the ground as well as any. Given that he won last year’s renewal, he looks overpriced.

Waldpfad

The son of Shamardal is no stranger to success in the UK despite being trained in Germany, landing the Hackwood Stakes at Newbury in July at odds of 33/1. That was his second Group Three success of the season, seeing him overcome two re-opposing rivals on similarly soft ground.

He defied a penalty then, giving Khaadem, who finished held in second, eight pounds. Today he is six pounds better off with that rival, and looks far more at home on a softer surface than Charlie Hills’ three year old colt, who was a long way behind Advertise on good-to-soft previously.

Having come out and won the Stewards’ Cup in such impressive fashion subsequently, Khaadem deserves to be near the head of the market, but the disparity of prices, given the change in weights and the result at Newbury is bizarre.

It is perhaps solely informed by Waldpfad failing to score at Baden Baden subsequently, although he was still a close second to a progressive three year-old there, and will appreciate being back on slower ground.

Forever In Dreams

Another who is surely too big a price in comparison to a previous rival is Forever In Dreams. Twice a winner as a juvenile before finishing a close seventh in the Queen Mary when trained by Matthieu Palussiere, she scored over course and distance on her second start for her new Irish yard.

She was beaten little more than a length by Advertise, ahead of Hello Youmzain, Ten Sovereigns and Khaadem in the Commonwealth Cup and is ten times the price of that former rival and available at considerably bigger odds than the three ahead of whom she finished.

Given her progressive profile and her perfect record of three-from-three on ground with soft in the description, she is a huge each-way player at a monstrous price.