What a week for Windsor Races regulars. We enjoyed the usual action-packed Monday equine offering earlier this week. Unusually and thankfully, it was a sun-drenched evening on this occasion. To add to the horse racing enjoyment, we now have Saturday’s Summer Opening Party to savour, which is Windsor’s first themed race night of the year.
If you’re a horse racing enthusiast and a Vernon Kay fan, then you’re in for a double delight as the man of many talents (model, TV/radio presenter, film star), will be spinning the discs and pumping out the tunes after the last race. The 7-race card kicks off at 17:35 but for those wanting to watch the FA Cup Final: Man City v Man Utd, the racecourse will be open from 14:30, and the big screen will be up.
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Windsor Races – Monday, May 20th Review
We kicked off another bumper 8-race Monday evening card with a 3-year-old handicap over the maximum Windsor distance of 11.5 furlongs. The Gosden’s early-season success at the track continued as Lucentio backed up his Bank Holiday Monday victory with another polished performance, at tasty odds of 6/1. Kieran Shoemark, the Stow-on-the-Wolds saddle star, once again took the reins. The Too Darn Hot colt showed his versatility, impressing on good to firm going this week and very soggy conditions a fortnight ago.
The opening race favourite, Alacrity, may have disappointed, only finishing 4th, but Sergio Parisse, the 11/8 jolly in race 2, had punters dancing in the evening sunshine. Clive Cox’s 2-year-old ran a bit green in the latter stages but was always doing enough and got off the mark impressively in the hands of Windsor’s leading rider, Rossa Ryan. The son of Sergei Prokofiev had finished 3rd in his opener over 5 furlongs at Leicester earlier this month, and he appreciated the small step up in trip. Joseph O’Brien’s first runner at Windsor for three years, Lady with the Lamp, would finish back in third spot.
Threesy Does It For The Gosdens
The Gosdens (and Kieran Shoemark) claimed another 3-year-old success on the evening and their 5th of the season at Windsor, with Cat Ninja pouncing for victory in the famous silks of George Strawbridge in the 3rd race over a mile. Like Sergio Parisse in the previous race, Cat Ninja appreciated the step up in distance, as she finished a close second in a 7-furlong contest at Yarmouth last month. The three market leaders finished in that order, with second favourite Clove Hitch, half a length behind the Gosden winner. The front two showed their class, romping 11 lengths clear of the Godolphin-runner in third, Aurora’s Beauty. It looks to be pretty decent form with Andrew Balding’s Clove Hitch finishing a close third to the runaway winner of the Dante, Economics, when the pair met at Newbury earlier in the season.
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Oisin Finally Gets Off The Mark
After finishing 4th, 3rd and 2nd, in the previous three races of the evening, 3-time British champion jockey and Windsor regular, Oisin Murphy, finally got off the mark for the evening in the 4th race. He was aboard an old Windsor equine favourite, Amazonian Dream, who had been heavily backed throughout the course of the day and who went off the 2/1 jolly. All that punting support was justified as Rod Millman’s 5-year-old produced his most emphatic performance at the track. It proved to be third time lucky for the son of Bungle Inthejungle in 2024, who cantered to a 2 ½ length success. It’s only Amazonian Dream’s second victory in 10 runs at Windsor.
That was a third winning favourite in-a-row and beads of sweat began to form on the furrowed brows of the bookies on the rails. Those beads soon turned into a torrent when another well-backed horse and jolly, Rocking Ends, was victorious in the second Fitzdares Sprint Series qualifier of the year. Tom Clover’s 4-year-old grey overtook Darryll Holland’s Grace Angel in the final furlong to go one better than he did on his Windsor debut last summer. Rossa Ryan was in the saddle for his second winner of the evening and his 6th in total at Windsor this year. Rocking Ends is another progeny of Havana Grey, which has enjoyed the good to firm conditions over the past couple of weeks.
The Bookie Bashing Continues
The punting carnage (for the bookies) continued as a 5th consecutive jolly powered to victory. Michael Bell’s Incremental claiming the 6th race on the card, an 11.5-furlong handicap for 4-year-old plus aged horses, at odds of 100/30. Richard Hannon’s Lexington Knight had to settle for a second spot in the race for a second year on the bounce. It was another winner for Oisin Murphy, who closed the gap on Rossa Ryan in the Windsor riders’ standings to just one again. A big shout out for John & Rhys Flint’s 9-year-old Carp Kid who was running in his 19th (wow !!) race at Windsor and finished 9th. It was his 69th flat contest in total. What a horse racing legend.
Laser Focus’ Scorches To Victory
It only took 26 months and 19 races, but Laser Focus finally broke his racecourse duck with the most impressive display of the evening, when romping to a 5-length victory in the penultimate race on the card. The 6-year-old, who has been in the hands of Newmarket trainer, James Owen, since March this year, apparently loved the conditions, having never raced over on a surface quicker than ‘good’ previously. It was the 4th win of 2024 for apprentice rider, Sean D Bowen.
The bookies were also a relieved bunch, as Laser Focus also broke the evening’s winning streak for favourites. They were also left jumping for joy after the last race, as warm favourite Curtiz just failed to get up after a late rally. William Muir & Chris Grassick’s grey filly, Caramay, dug deep to hold on to victory with the sun setting fast at the Berkshire track. Like Laser Focus, it also marked the 4-year-old’s first-ever career victory, at the 10th time of asking. Congrats to Lewis Edmunds too, for his first-ever Windsor saddle success, at the 31st attempt.
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Windsor Races – What’s Still To Come In 2024
Some of the remaining highlights this year are as follows:
December
15th – The Return of NH Racing
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Windsor Races – Saturday, May 25th Preview
As it’s a Saturday race evening at Windsor, most of the regular track jockeys are in action elsewhere earlier in the day: Oisin Murphy (Haydock), Tom Marquand (Goodwood) & Rossa Ryan (York). It gives some of the lesser-known saddle stars their moment in the spotlight. The jockey with the most Windsor rides this Saturday is Jack Mitchell. The Epsom-born rider, who has ridden 100+ season winners in each of the past four years, is scheduled to mount up in all seven races. His best opportunity of the evening looks to be with Ed Dunlop’s Thrilling Dream at the 20:15, but he has several fancied rides. He currently has 31 wins in 2024 but is yet to get off the mark at Windsor.
Only two of the jockeys in action at Windsor this Saturday have tasted success at the track this year. Apprentice Grace McEntee and Jack Gilligan have both entered the winner’s enclosure once this season. Grace McEntee has two rides this Saturday and Jack Gilligan, who returned to Britain after almost 10 years in the States, saddles up on four horses, three of which are trained by Rod Millman.
Will Antiphon Be Forgettable or Four-nomenal?
Ten previous course winners enter the Windsor stalls this Saturday, but Mike Murphy & Michael Keady’s Antiphon, who races in the 17:35 opener, stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of success at the track. The 5-year-old is making a 9th Windsor appearance having finished 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 2nd, 4th, 1st & 1st in his last 8 starts. All his previous three track wins have come in the early part of the flat season, the first coming on his Windsor debut in May 2022, a race in which one of his rivals again today, Coup De Force, finished third.
He would carry 4 lbs more weight when returning to Windsor a year later but still came out on top. Despite never disappointing on another six appearances at the Berkshire track during 2023, he didn’t enter the winner’s enclosure again. He would go off the 85/40 jolly for his opening Windsor race of 2024 last month. There were some nervy moments for punters who backed him as he hung left in the hands of Tom Marquand in the final furlong, but he just did enough to seal victory. There’s never a dull moment for sure when Antiphon is in action.
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Race-By-Race Preview
17:35
I’d love to see Antiphon claim a fourth Windsor career victory, but he faces a very stiff test in what is a very competitive opener to kick off the 7-race card. It’s likely to be a frantic finish and I reckon Rod Millman’s Crazy Luck could run a big race. I prefer to be with Christopher Mason’s On Edge though, who has run two crackers at Windsor already this year, finishing a close second both times. Gina Mangan gets on well with the 6-year-old and takes the reins again. One at a bigger price and a possible for each-way merchants could be Hello Zabeel. The son of Frankel finished 3rd on this Windsor debut last May in similar conditions.
18:05
Only two of the 2-year-olds have racecourse experience before and Paul & Oliver Cole’s Afentiko looks a decent sort if his debut at Lingfield last week is anything to go by. Despite running green, he finished second to the Godolphin favourite, Symbol of Honour, who has already entered for the lucrative Weatherbys Scientific £300,000 2-Y-O Stakes at Doncaster in September. Jack Mitchell rode Afentiko that day, but he takes the reins on Tom Clover’s unraced colt, Breakout Star, here. Oasis Dream’s progeny have performed well at Windsor so far this year and I expect a good debut run from him. Another newbie I like is Rod Millman’s Sweet Sonata.
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Got To Believe In Eve
18:40
Christopher Mason’s Pearl’s Edge hasn’t been seen on a racecourse for 364 days and is currently the outsider in this Maiden Stakes. She was a slow starter that day at Salisbury and should hopefully turn in a much-improved performance at a big price. Of the current three market leaders, I’d prefer to be with Ethandun. Eve Johnson Houghton is having an impressive season and her 3-year-old has previous course experience.
19:15
Robert Cowell’s Democracy Dilemma and Jack Channon’s Desperate Hero have produced creditable performances on previous appearances at Windsor and both should run well. However, Tees Spirit gets my vote here. North Yorkshire handler, Adrian Nicholls, only sent two down to Windsor during the whole of 2023. One of them won, the other came second, and both were ridden by his daughter Mia Nicholls. Mia gets on well with Tee Spirit and the 6-year-old should be there or thereabouts.
Will The Cheers Ring Out For Tarjeeh?
19:45
Another race for the more experienced types. It’s always worth taking note of an Owen Burrows runner. He sent out three at Windsor last year and all of them won, and his one runner so far this year at the track, also won. All the omens bode well for Tarjeeh then. There are several here who could perform well though. Roger Varian has his first Windsor runner this year in the shape of Island Star and Marcus Tregoning’s Wisper has performed well in his previous three starts at the track.
20:15
Ed Dunlop’s Thrilling Dream stepped up in distance to 10 furlongs when winning at Bath last week and produced the best performance of his career to date. The 3-year-old finished 5th on his career debut at Windsor last August, but that was over just 6 furlongs. He should appreciate going even further than last week, over 11.5 furlongs here. I also expect Gary & Josh Moore’s Yarborough to appreciate going up again in trip. He’s another who turned in a career-best when stepping up to 10 furlongs last time out.
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Could It Be Channon Or Hannon In The Last?
20:45
Jack Channon’s Amancio was impressive when finishing 3rd during Windsor’s opening 2024 meeting last month. Both those horses who finished in front of him that day have since gone on to record victories in other races since. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Richard Hannon’s Delicacy sneak into the frame at a biggish price.
Like every Windsor meeting, all races will be screened live on Sky Sports Racing. Good Luck All !!! Let us know your Windsor selections by clicking on ‘Comments’ under the main article title at the top of the piece.
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Image Credit: Deposit Photos
