Derby hero Masar granted star billing on opening day of July festival

In A Nutshell

Newmarket’s July festival, for many racegoers their favourite meeting of the year, explodes into life with last year’s Derby hero Masar the star name on the opening day.

It is a fixture which fits seamlessly between Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood and horses will often run at all three of those meetings.

While the July meeting is famous for its relaxed atmosphere as racegoers enjoy a glass or two of Pimm’s in the most tranquil and picturesque of summer surroundings, competition out on the track is invariably fierce.

Frankie Dettori, racing’s most famous personality and an icon of British sport, took Royal Ascot by storm last month with three Group 1 victories among a memorable haul of seven winners, and he has another fine book of rides on day one, including possible future star Visinari, and Turgenev, the horse who went so close to giving him a Gold Cup day five-timer and caused several bookmakers to restrict multiples on the three-time champion.

Danny Tudhope, who leads the Stobart Flat Jockeys' Championship from Oisin Murphy and Silvestre de Sousa, is also in action as he bids to continue his red-hot summer form.

The first four races, which comprise two Group 2 events, one Group 3 and a 20-runner £100,000 handicap, are all televised live on ITV3.

Masar bids to restore Classic reputation

Winners of the Investec Derby since Golden Horn in 2015 have generally failed to take the massive step up from star to superstar.

While Golden Horn went on to land three more Group 1s, including the Arc, 2016 winner Harzand finished well beaten on his final two starts after scrambling home in the Irish Derby, and 2017 winner Wings Of Eagles could take only third place in the Irish Derby on his sole subsequent start.

This year’s winner Anthony Van Dyck has since been beaten six lengths by 33-1 shot Sovereign at the Curragh so it looks unlikely he too will go on to scale greater heights.

Charlie Appleby with Derby hero Masar during the four-year-old's winter break in DubaiCredit: Edward Whitaker

The Godolphin-owned Masar, who beat Dee Ex Bee by a length and a half at Epsom last June, missed the rest of 2018 through injury, but returned to action at Royal Ascot last month to finish fifth of eight behind Defoe in the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes.

He stumbled badly at the start, and most people will rightly put a line through that run, but he does have plenty to prove when he tackles the Group 2 Princess of Wales’s Tattersalls Stakes under James Doyle.

Trainer Charlie Appleby is upbeat about the four-year-old’s chance of justifying favouritism on the July course, saying "he is in as good a condition as we have ever had him".

Racing needs its Derby winners to continue to excel on the biggest stage, and there will be plenty of smiles if Masar can return to winning ways and put himself firmly back in contention for some of the major Group 1s later in the season.

The Sir Michael Stoute-trained Mirage Dancer and the dual Royal Ascot winner Baghdad are just two of five rivals who will be trying to stop him.

Frankie could prove star of show again

Talking of stars, there is no bigger star than the irrepressible Frankie Dettori, who has four decent rides, headed by Visinari in the Group 2 Tattersalls July Stakes.

Dettori’s Royal Ascot exploits caused some bookmakers to restrict multiples - ironically, the horse who created all the panic, Turgenev, reappears on this card - and the Italian looks to have a great chance of striking aboard Mark Johnston’s colt Visinari, who bids to follow in the footsteps of Advertise, current favourite for Saturday’s Darley July Cup, by landing this 6f event.

Visinari made a scintillating start to his career when making all over course and distance last month to slam Ottoman Court by three and a half lengths.

Frankie Dettori: four rides on day one of the July meeting at NewmarketCredit: Edward Whitaker

Sometimes a visual impression can be worth more than any other method of assessing a race, and Visinari smacked of a richly talented colt going places.

He faces seven rivals as he bids to maintain his unbeaten record and is sure to start a warm favourite.

Dettori’s other three rides on day one are Waldstern, Daily Times and Turgenev.

Fresh from his wonderful victory aboard Enable in Saturday's Group 1 Coral-Eclipse at Sandown, it will be a surprise – and a big disappointment to his adoring public – if he fails to get on the Newmarket scoresheet.

Turgenev aims to go one better

When Turgenev hit the front two furlongs out in the Britannia Stakes at Royal Ascot, bookmakers were staring down the barrel of a multi-million-pound payout.

Dettori had already won the first four races on that Gold Cup day card, including the feature on Stradivarius, and memories of his ‘Magnificent Seven’ in September 1996 were evoked.

Turgenev (far): headed late on by Biometric in the Britannia Stakes at Royal AscotCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

Biometric duly came and put a stop to Frankie fever by prevailing late on, but runner-up Turgenev nevertheless recorded a career-best effort after finishing fifth in the Group 2 Dante Stakes at York, and looks a good bet to go one better in the Listed Edmondson Hall Solicitors Sir Henry Cecil Stakes.

Cecil, of course, enjoyed tremendous success at the July meeting, and tended to run his best two-year-old in the Superlative Stakes, winning it an incredible six times in eight years between 1986 and 1993 and nine times in total.

Four rides for title leader Tudhope

Danny Tudhope, who led Oisin Murphy by 62 winners to 61 in the race for the Flat Jockeys’ Championship at the end of racing on Wednesday afternoon, takes four rides for three different trainers as he bids to consolidate his advantage.

The northern-based rider has been performing at the very peak of his powers this summer, and his growing popularity with trainers ensures he holds every chance of a first title.

He rides two for Michael Bell – Eagles By Day in the Bahrain Trophy and newcomer Led Astray in the British Stallion Studs EBF Maiden Fillies’ Stakes – as well as Jack’s Point for William Muir in the bet365 Handicap and Nkosikazi for William Haggas in the John Deere & Ben Burgess Handicap.

July meeting day one card

Tudhope enjoyed four winners from ten rides at Royal Ascot, and has a particularly good strike-rate for Haggas.

Punters will no doubt be well aware of that profitable association, so expect Nkosikazi to prove popular.

Global Gift, who seeks a four-timer for Newmarket trainer Ed Dunlop, looks the one the pair have to beat.

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