Improving juvenile Equimou can make feather weight count at 10-1

If last year’s Muthmir turns up for the VIP Premium Vaping & E-Liquids Scarbrough Stakes (3.00) on the opening day of the St Leger meeting at Doncaster, he will win with plenty to spare.

However, he has been really disappointing for the most part in recent months and was again a bit laboured when only third in the Beverley Bullet last month. Throw in the fact the ground is likely to be a good bit softer than he prefers and he looks well worth taking on again.

The form horse is probably Thesme, who ran an extraordinary race in the Nunthorpe last time when showing blistering pace to lead Mecca’s Angel and Limato and keeping on well to finish fifth. That represented a big step up in form but the time was superb, so there was no fluke. However, Thesme has been beaten seven times this season, sometimes in much lesser races than this, and she certainly isn’t the strongest of finishers.

Talking of runners who struggle to win, there is no doubt Pearl Secret has it in him to score, but he hasn’t done so since May 2015. He will get the strong pace he needs to assist his come-from-behind style
but I’m far from convinced he’s in any sort of form.

Line Of Reason doesn’t win often either, so there could be an upset and the two improving three-year-old fillies trained by Clive Cox look worthy of strong consideration.

Priceless probably has the better form of the pair but Adam Kirby has chosen Go On Go On Go On and she is firmly on an upward curve.
I just wonder whether she would prefer faster ground, though, and for that reason it could be that the two-year-old Equimou is worth backing at 10-1.

On the face of it Equimou has plenty on her plate, but the form of her second in a Listed race at Newbury last time is already working out really well, with the third having won the valuable sales race at York easily, and I’m pretty sure Mrs Danvers, who beat her on that occasion, would be strongly fancied for this getting nearly two stone from Pearl Secret and Muthmir.

The one characteristic I really like about the Robert Eddery-trained filly is that she hits the line hard and she also has plenty of pace, as she has travelled sweetly in all her starts. I doubt she will be run off her feet even by real speedsters like Thesme and, getting all that weight, could spring a minor surprise.

Furthermore, the juice in the ground will suit her well and, while the two-year-olds didn’t show much in the Nunthorpe last month, they were both drawn in the car park, while a much less talented juvenile than Equimou wasn’t beaten far in this race last season.

1pt win at 10-1 with Betfair & Betway