Top trainer bids to end a 128-runner losing streak at York - Chris Cook's three things to note on Friday
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1. Easterby out to snap his losing run at York
Over the years, I think I've compiled a fair record as a trends-killer, someone who can bring a sequence of results to a shuddering halt just by mentioning it in public. The most recent example was last Friday's Front Runner, when I discussed Charlie Appleby at a time when his form figures read: 4572023332874. Since I wrote about it, his form figures have been: 11137221. Dammit, Charlie! Anyway, let's see if we can't help out another trainer in similar style. Tim Easterby is on a run of 0/128 at York, a streak that started over a year ago - of course, it's pretty easy to have a bad run there, since the fields are always so big. He has Highwaygrey and Poet's Dawn in the opener, Missutoo in the seller and Quest For Fun in a 7f handicap.
2. Will Aidan O'Brien's debutant turn out to be Brilliant?
There's a significant-looking Aidan O'Brien debutant in the opener at Cork. The boys and girls at Ballydoyle have put their faith in nominative determinism by calling this juvenile filly Brilliant. She's a Gleneagles half-sister to Alcohol Free, who wasn't the most consistent but won the Cheveley Park, the Coronation Stakes, the Sussex and the July Cup. Brilliant holds an entry in the Airlie Stud Stakes next month.
3. Cork contenders back on show
It's also Classic night at Cork, with the slightly odd arrangement that the Oaks is a Group 3 while the Derby is a handicap. Rosscarbery, winner of the Oaks last year, makes her seasonal reappearance tonight. Godolphin's Safecracker, the beaten favourite in last year's Derby, has another go, having edged up the ratings a bit since chasing home Hell Bent 12 months ago. Morph Speed, who won the Derby two years ago, has joined Joseph O'Brien for this season and looks a more likely winner.
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The Front Runner is our unmissable email newsletter available exclusively to Members' Club Ultimate subscribers. Chris Cook, a four-time Racing Reporter of the Year award winner, provides his take on the day's biggest stories and tips for the upcoming racing every morning from Monday to Friday. Not a Members' Club Ultimate subscriber? Click here to join today and also receive our Ultimate Daily emails plus our full range of fantastic website and newspaper content.
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