Valery can call the tune at Hamilton
Anita Chambers previews Saturday's meetings in the UK & Ireland and fancies Ortensia to win the big one.
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CHESTER: 2.15 Boom And Bloom, 2.50 Corporal Maddox, 3.25 Doncaster Rover, 4.00 MONSHAK (NAP) 4.35 Postcript, 5.10 Bella Ophelia, 5.45 Our Boy Jack.
HAMILTON: 5.40 Twilight Pearl, 6.10 Rock Canyon, 6.40 Sovereign Street, 7.15 Valery Borzov, 7.50 Qubuh, 8.20 Sky High Diver, 8.50 Master Of Dance.
NEWBURY: 2.00 Strictly Ballroom, 2.35 Mugazala, 3.10 Maarek, 3.50 Body And Soul, 4.20 Retrieve, 4.55 Arnold Lane, 5.30 Kleitomachos.
NEWMARKET: 1.40 Ardmay, 2.10 Olympic Glory, 2.40 Jamesie, 3.20 Ortensia, 3.55 The Taj, 4.30 Rated, 5.05 Little Rocky.
SALISBURY: Abandoned.
TIPPERARY: Abandoned.
YORK: 1.55 Silvery Moon, 2.25 Suraj, 3.00 Mid Mon Lady, 3.35 Magical Macey, 4.10 Romanoff, 4.45 Reem Star, 5.20 Royal Rascal.
DOUBLE: Monshak and Ortensia.
Ortensia can gain redemption after her Royal Ascot flop with victory in the Darley July Cup at Newmarket.
The Australian speedster was well-touted for the King's Stand Stakes after winning the Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan back in March.
However, she never looked like gaining another famous antipodean success in Berkshire as she had to work hard early on just to maintain her position before fading in the finish.
Trainer Paul Messara has issued a number of upbeat bulletins since that disappointment though and the mare has now had plenty of time to adjust to the British way of life, having more or less lost her race before the start at Ascot having got very on edge.
A previous Group One winner over six furlongs in Australia, the step back up from the minimum trip will be no problem and while she has to reverse form with Ascot second Bated Breath, she is a horse who will not be inconvenienced by soft ground.
Olympic Glory can prove an aptly-named winner of 32Red.com Superlative Stakes for Richard Hannon.
A winner on easy ground at Goodwood on his racecourse bow, the Choisir colt then clashed with leading juvenile Dawn Approach in the Coventry Stakes.
He ran with great credit to finish just three-quarters of a length behind, coming from a fair way back before finishing strongly.
Olympic Glory looked as though a step up in trip would be right up his street there and with plenty of stamina on the dam's side, he should relish this seven-furlong trip.
Jamesie fared best of those on the stands side in the Buckingham Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot and a similar effort can end in triumph in the 32Red Bunbury Cup.
Beaten just under two lengths by Eton Forever, Jamesie has gone up another 2lb in the ratings and while the fact he has not won since last July is hardly encouraging, he is clearly in excellent form at present.
The 53rd John Smith's Cup at York is another tricky puzzle and Mid Mon Lady could be at least an each-way solution to the problem.
Trained in Ireland by Harry Rogers until the end of last year, the seven-year-old was an interesting recruit for Sir Mark Prescott at the beginning of 2012.
While she has not won in two years now, Mid Mon Lady came very close to glory on her debut for Prescott, when just touched off by a head in the Zetland Gold Cup.
She did not have the clearest run that day either and Prescott obviously liked what he saw as he felt she was worth a chance in Listed company subsequently.
He was probably flying a bit high as she was well beaten at Warwick but as a horse who can handle cut with some nice bits of form in the book, she could be a value price.
Suraj was a wide-margin winner at Doncaster last time and he can make the leap to Listed level in the John Smith's Silver Cup.
At Newbury, it would be folly to look beyond Irish raider Maarek in the chrisbeekracing.com Stakes, better known as the Hackwood Stakes.
Plenty of us want the rain to stop, but trainer David Nagle certainly does not as it cannot be soft enough for his progressive mudlark.
A top-notch sixth in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot he really showed what he could do with conditions in his favour when bolting up in a similar race to this at Newcastle.
He is two from two with the word heavy in the going description.
Tim Easterby is rarely far wrong when he thinks he has a smart filly so Body And Soul merits support from the bottom of the weights in the Weatherbys Super Sprint.
Her Ripon win two runs ago worked out well and there was plenty to like about the way she asserted late on at Thirsk last month.
That came on easy ground so hopefully she will handle it even more testing and it is worth remembering Easterby won this richly-endowed contest in 1998 and 2001.
Monshak gets in the Have It Eachway At chesterBET Handicap at Chester off a mark of 81, which could prove extremely generous.
By the mud-loving Monsun, the Sir Michael Stoute-trained filly was only three lengths behind the now 116-rated Great Heavens at Yarmouth on her debut in May and made no mistake next time at Chepstow.
Granted, Great Heavens won with something in hand but is now bound for the Irish Oaks so the merit of that run is there for all to see.
Stoute's runners are hitting form and this step up to a mile and three-quarters will bring her stamina into play.
Valery Borzov may be the answer to the John Smith's Scottish Stewards' Cup at Hamilton.
He is starting to look well handicapped and will handle the heavy ground.
My Queenie is the choice in the EBF Picador Chevrolet Fillies' Handicap at Salisbury.