We round up the bets from our Timeform analysts for Saturday's action.
RUBY WEDDING - 14:05 Newcastle (Rory King)
Rosa Grace – a listed winner at Newbury and Grade 2 placed in the USA – has served her owner-breeder quite well down the years, Ruby Wedding becoming the mare’s fifth winner when scraping home at Hamilton a month ago.
That form will need improving upon to take this more competitive affair but it was just her fifth start, while the small field and steadyish gallop seemed to mask her authority on the day (she showed a fine attitude to get up and nail the front runner on the line). Her novice form all reads well, it’s not hard to see her progressing again anyway given the still nascent stage of her career, and the greater emphasis on stamina that a longer trip and much bigger field should provide looks bound to suit, too, while it’s interesting that she’s Andrew Balding’s only runner at Newcastle, a track at which he has a pretty phenomenal record.
OOL MOLLY - 14:28 Chester (Patrick Jupp)
Cool Molly improved in leaps and bounds in the first half of the year, winning four times on all-weather and then finishing an excellent third in a competitive race over this C&D during the May meeting (had the subsequent Britannia winner behind her that day). She’s not had things go her way since, out of her depth in a 0-103 at Goodwood, unsuited by the drop back to sprinting at York and then scuppered by the draw when back on the Roodee last time, forced wide and unable to adopt her usual forcing tactics. She’s been far luckier in that department this time, drawn in two, and rates as a confident selection dropped back markedly in grade.
ITEM - 14:35 York (Simon Walker)
The last time a 3-y-o won this was the inaugural running way back in 2006, when the Sir Michael Stoute-trained Best Alibi landed prohibitive odds of 2/5 after finishing sixth in the Derby and third in the Irish equivalent. Item must have a cracking chance of bucking that trend, however, easy to forgive him finishing down the field in the mudbath that was the 2026 Derby and much better judged on his emphatic Dante success over this C&D. It’s possible even a straight reproduction of that form will be good enough in receipt of weight-for-age from this older bunch, but after just 4 starts it’s perfectly reasonable to believe that Item hasn’t shown all he can yet, anyway.
STAR MARTINI - 14:39 Newcastle (Simon Baker)
This is a deep-looking novice by Newcastle standards that might harbour a useful prospect or two, and I’ve got a feeling that Star Martini has that kind of potential. She stood out physically prior to her debut at Doncaster last month, when also notably strong in the betting for a Brian Ellison-trained newcomer, and showed up really well in the race, leading until over 1f out and found out by greenness only late on as she faded into fourth. The third won at Newmarket last weekend to advertise that form, and normal improvement should be enough to see Star Martini go close even taking on colts and geldings in a race of this quality, with the drop back to 6f no major concern considering the zip she showed at Doncaster
CALICO BLUE - 15:48 Chester (Kieran Clark)
This looks a good opportunity for the class-dropping Calico Blue. Unbeaten in two starts on the Roodee, he shaped well at Royal Ascot when faring best of those drawn in single-figures before running a cracker in one of the hottest three-year-old handicaps of the season just over a fortnight ago. Well drawn in stall two, he can track likely front runner Postmodern and resume winning ways.
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