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Updated: 1st August 2011 - GG.com

August's Top Class Racing

A slow start to August's Flat racing action sees the traditional holiday month begin with something of a lull on August 6 as Haydock's Rose Of Lancaster Stakes looms large as the weekend's major contest while over at Newmarket the Sweet Solera Stakes heads a somewhat downbeat day's racing.

So You Think
© Racehorse Photos

Thankfully the pace quickens a touch on the following weekend, August 13, as Newbury stages a fine card that features the Hungerford Stakes and any challenger sporting the royal blue Godolphin silks requires close attention. The boys in blue have made a habit of running a decent horse in this race in recent seasons.

Over at Ripon on the same Saturday there is the always competitive Great St Wilfrid Handicap, a 6f sprint handicap that is always keenly contested and any horse that has run well in the Wokingham Stakes at Royal Ascot is always worth a second look at the much-vaunted garden course of north Yorkshire.

On August 17 we have the opening day of York's fabulous four-day Ebor meeting. This year things begin a little differently because the north's greatest fixture has been moved along a day so that the action begins on a Wednesday, and the curtain comes down on four days of terrific racing on Saturday August 20 when the Totesport Ebor Handicap takes pride of place in its shiny new Saturday spot having been shifted from its previous midweek perch.

On the meeting's opening day the Juddmonte International Stakes is the feature race and if So You Think turns up here then he will be very hard to beat. This has never been a race for wild-card outsiders and Aidan O'Brien's leading middle-distance colt gave a sound beating to Workforce at Sandown last time exposing that rival's chronic lack of pace close home while looking a match for any horse around over the mile and a quarter trip.

Sea Moon
© Racehorse Photos

On the same day the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes is arguably the season's most important trial for the St Leger and seven recent winners of the final classic have taken part in the York showpiece. This time around punters should pay close attention to whatever horse Sir Michael Stoute runs in the Voltigeur given his fine record in the race. Sea Moon, a recent winner over course and distance, looks an ideal type for the race and one to watch out for at the Ebor festival.

On August 18, day two of the Ebor festival, the Yorkshire Oaks is the key race and here it may well be worth taking a chance on Vita Nova, who was the season's unluckiest loser when her saddle slipped and denied the filly certain victory in the Lancashire Oaks.

Fresh from having ridden a poor race on Frankel at Royal Ascot, hapless pilot Tom Queally was the poor soul on board Vita Nova and apart from the saddle calamity it was strange to see Queally ditch the front-running tactics that served the filly so well on a previous successful start at Haydock. Let's hope the front-running approach is adopted once again on the Knavesmire.

On August 19 the Nunthorpe is the feature race over 5f and once again this season's sprinters are a distinctly ordinary lot. I suspect Bated Breath could do best of all on the Knavesmire providing the ground rides on the fast side. In a fresh twist to proceedings the curtain comes down on the Ebor meeting with the Totesport Ebor taking centre stage on the Saturday. Luca Cumani's Bourne will hold a good chance if he makes the final cut.

Finally, August closes with the Celebration Mile on August 27 and an in-form and improving miler is what is required to win this decent prize.

Malcolm Heyhoe writes weekly horse racing articles for GG.COM-Horse racing betting, information, news, results and free daily tips

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