Our form expert has two selections for the excellent evening card at Sandown on Thursday featuring the Brigadier Gerard Stakes.
The Verdict: Thursday May 28
1pt win Nation's Hope in the 18:42 Sandown at 11/1 (Paddy Power, 10/1 Sky Bet)
1pt win Gethin in the 19:12 Sandown at 11/4 (Paddy Power, Ladbrokes, William Hill)
Gethin has the gears for the Brigadier
It’s another high-quality evening of racing at Sandown’s annual Star Sports Brigadier Gerard Stakes night and for the second year running Ombudsman returns in the Group 3 feature for John & Thady Gosden.
Last year he was beaten by Almaqam as he prepped for his Prince Of Wales’s win at Royal Ascot and this time around he could be vulnerable again on his first start for a couple of months conceding a 7lb penalty.
Indeed, Gosden suggested himself this week that he had to back off him after Meydan and that should make odds-on backers think twice, for all that he has a pretty significant class edge on these opponents on his best form.
I can see him being undercooked for this with Royal Ascot in mind and with the ground likely to be too lively for Almeric that opens the door for Owen Burrows’ GETHIN, who looks a horse going places for new owners Wathnan Racing.
The son of Ghaiyyath isn’t dissimilar to Ombudsman as he’s a lightly-raced slow burner who could take off at four and he suggested as much with a very impressive victory at Kempton last time in the Magnolia Stakes.
It was the way he travelled as the likes of Devil’s Advocate and Plage De Havre came off the bridle that marked him out as a bit special, his finishing kick under hands and heels riding a product of the way he went through the race.
With that run under his belt and getting 7lb from Ombudsman he has a good chance of victory here, especially given the way this could pan out.
A tactical race looks likely, but he has the gears to overcome that under James Doyle for a yard that is firmly in the groove.
The Verdict: Back GETHIN in the 19:12 Sandown
Hope for us all in the Heron
Charlie Appleby runs half of the eight runners for Godolphin in the Listed Star Sports Heron Stakes over a mile at 18:42, giving this the look of a Meydan race in the early months of the year.
Anyone who watches the Dubai action as we inch towards the clocks going forward will be well used to the second and third strings coming out on top, and while stable number one Talk Of New York is well respected it’s not out of the question he’s beaten by one from his own yard.
Indeed, it’s interesting Appleby has identified this race for so many and due to jockey bookings and cap colours the highly-promising NATION’S HOPE has drifted out to double-figure prices.
He is admittedly very hard to weigh up after just two starts on the all-weather at Kempton, but he was hugely impressive on both occasions and is in the mould of Notable Speech and Opera Ballo who have graduated from the same education in recent years.
Nation’s Hope is impeccably bred as you would expect, being a Ghaiyyath half-brother to the same stable’s Nations Pride, so there must be hope that he turns into a top-level performer just like his sibling.
This is his first start since December and he wears the red cap under Rossa Ryan, so you can see why he’s uneasy in the market, but he’s now looking a big price for a horse as exciting as him.
The Verdict: Back NATION’S HOPE in the 18:42 Sandown
Preview posted at 15:00 BST on 27/05/26
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