Almeraq to strike Ayr gold en route to bigger things

If Almeraq has any pretensions of living up to his Group One engagement, he really needs to be winning the Fergie and Myra Happel Ayr Gold Cup Trial Handicap on Monday.

The three-year-old represents powerful connections, being owned by Shadwell and trained by William Haggas.

Haggas has him in the Stewards' Cup and he will almost certainly need to strike gold in Scotland off his mark of 90 just to have a chance of getting into that fiercely competitive Goodwood handicap.

Even more intriguingly, however, the son of Dark Angel has been given an early entry in the Sprint Cup at Haydock, which may seem ambitious at this stage but there is a lot of scope for improvement and as No Half Measures and American Affair have proved this season, there is very little between the best handicap sprinters and the top-level performers.

Almeraq was second on his Newbury debut before going one better at Yarmouth on his final start at two and was trying to give Spy Chief 7lb on his return from eight months off the track at Yarmouth in June.

While his odds-on defeat looked disappointing at the time, the winner has since finished second in the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot and seventh in the July Cup, so it was no disgrace at all.

Royal Ascot form is on show in the racingtv.com/freetrial EBF Maiden Stakes, with Irish trainer Fozzy Stack bringing over Thesecretadversary.

It could be argued the St Mark's Basilica colt is the best juvenile maiden in training given he found only the high-class Italy too strong on his debut and was then a length second to Humidity in last month's Chesham Stakes.

It will be a major surprise if he does not make it third time lucky in this sort of company.

Azaniya could hardly have been more impressive than when winning at Newmarket on her seasonal reappearance and is worth watching in the British Stallion Studs EBF Fillies' Handicap at Windsor.

Sixth and third in two all-weather races at the back end of last year, she was a hot favourite on her return to the track on the July course three and a half weeks ago and absolutely hosed up.

She begins her handicap career off a mark of 84 having won by 7.5-lengths, but she beat some useful looking types and could well improve for the step up to 2000m.

Milteye has not been out of the first three in five runs for Harriet Bethell and should go close again in the Racing Again Next Tuesday Handicap at Beverley.

Following previous spells with Mick and Jack Channon and latterly Edward O'Grady in Ireland, the five-year-old made the move to East Yorkshire and was rewarded for a string of consistent efforts when winning at Carlisle last time out.

A 3lb rise does not look unfair and any rain that falls on the Westwood will be in his favour.

Jentobello won two bumpers for Iain Jardine and should he have any aptitude for the jumping game will take a lot of beating in the Furness Building Society Maiden Hurdle at Cartmel.

He is by My Dream Boat, who carried the same Paul and Clare Rooney silks Jentobello sports when winning the 2016 Prince of Wales's Stakes. - Press Association

TAB is betting on 4 UK meetings on Monday. Here are the tips

CARTMEL: Race 1: 14.43 Game Management, Race 2: 15.12 Larkfield Lusive, Race 3: 15.42 Positive Mindset, Race 4: 16.12 Jentobello, Race 5: 16.45 Anyharminasking, Race 6: 17.20 Fairlawn Flyer, Race 7: 17.50 Am Still Here.

AYR: Race 1: 15.00 Thesecretadversary, Race 2: 15.30 Flowstate, Race 3: 16.00 Cooperation, Race 4: 16.30 ALMERAQ (NAP), Race 5: 17.05 Boy Douglas, Race 6: 17.40 Cisco Disco, Race 7: 18.15 Summerstorms Dream.

WINDSOR: Race 1: 18.10 Vlad, Race 2: 18.40 Gwen John, Race 3: 19.10 Passing Thought, Race 4: 19.40 Gallic Legend, Race 5: 20.10 Safari Dream, Race 6: 20.40 Azaniya, Race 7: 21.10 Albus Anne, Race 8: 22.40 Judge Frank.

BEVERLEY: Race 1: 19.20 Ishimentor, Race 2: 19.50 Opal Storm, Race 3: 20.20 Capital Guarantee, Race 4: 20.50 Tootsie, Race 5: 21.20 Invincible Shadow, Race 6: 21.50 Milteye.

ALL TO COME: Thesecretadversary and Almeraq (Ayr, Races 1 and 4).