Andrew Asquith is back with two more bets in his latest ante-post column, including one in a red-hot Cheveley Park at Newmarket.
Weekend View: Saturday September 26
1pt win Libertango in the Cheveley Park Stakes at 4/1 (William Hill, 7/2 bet365, Ladbrokes)
1pt e.w. Erzindjan in the Cambridgeshire at 14/1 (General 1/4 1,2,3,4)
Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook Betfair Sportsbook
The Cambridgeshire Meeting starts at Newmarket on Thursday and it is an excellent three days of racing in store.
Saturday’s card looks a humdinger with potentially one of the best renewals of the Tattersalls Sceptre Sessions Cheveley Park Stakes in years coming just before the Tattersalls Middle Park Stakes setting the scene beautifully for one of the most competitive handicaps of the season, the bet365 Cambridgeshire.
There is plenty of collateral form in the aforementioned Cheveley Park, with LIBERTANGO beating Sun Goddess in the Albany at Royal Ascot before succumbing to Senorita Bonita in the Duchess of Cambridgeshire at Newmarket, and each filly has gone on to even better things since.
It is Timeform’s top-rated juvenile Sun Goddess who sets the standard, ahead of Senorita Bonita, but I don’t think we’ve seen the very best of Libertango following Royal Ascot and there’s scope in backing her at around the 100/30 mark or bigger.
She looked very promising when making a winning debut at Leicester and confirmed that when a most impressive winner at Royal Ascot, overcoming the rise in class in style as she overcame trouble in-running to beat Sun Goddess by a length.
Her performance that day was marked up further (she was given an extra 6lb by Timeform) following some striking closing sectionals and, though she failed to land the odds against Senorita Bonita at Newmarket, that was a very messy race which probably didn’t suit either.
Admittedly, Senorita Bonita has come out and won the Prix Morny in superb fashion since, but I also thought that Libertango did incredibly well to win the Lowther at York.
Soft ground was against her, as was her high draw in stall 15, having to be dropped in from the start and switching right across to get the favourite Star of State in her sights, but still having quite a bit of ground to make up.
Libertango did that in seamless fashion and was soon on the heels of the better-placed runner-up and she found plenty for pressure in the closing stages. On better ground I’d be confident she would have won by much further and she covered almost every blade of grass that day, ending up making her challenge on the far rail.
Star of State has since breezed through a valuable sales race at the Curragh to boost the form, but I don’t see any reason why she’ll reverse York form if she reopposes again on Saturday.
The ground will be much more to Libertango’s liking this weekend, and with Moonrise and a likely pacemaker from Ballydoyle in the line-up, we should get a true gallop to aim at. She was third fastest at the Newmarket breeze-ups earlier in the year, so the track should be no problem, and she’ll relish the uphill finish.
The Cambridgeshire is the big betting race of the weekend and the John & Thady Gosden-trained Gavriel looks a worthy favourite. Pipedreamer, Wissahickon and Lord North were all progressive three-year-olds who have won the race for John Gosden this century and Gavriel looks another bona-fide contender.
Gavriel is well in under a 4lb penalty for his Ascot success earlier this month and he should have no problem dropping back in trip, so he makes obvious appeal. His price for a race of this nature doesn’t, though, so I’m therefore looking to take him on.
The one horse who I can’t get away from at a general 14/1 is ERZINDJAN, who went into plenty of people’s notebooks when a running on fourth from the wrong side of the track in this race 12 months ago.
As a result he started the 9/4 favourite for the John Smith’s Cup next time and he didn’t at all run badly there, not exactly an unlucky loser but still not getting the rub of the green and leaving the impression he was still in top form.
A steady gallop was against him on his final start last season, but he showed his true colours returned to this course and distance when opening his account for these connections on his return in May.
Erzindjan ended a five-year losing run that day and had more in hand than the half-length winning margin implies, belatedly confirming himself a well-treated horse having shaped better than the bare result on numerous occasions last year.
He ran just as well in defeat in the Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot next time, hindered a little by having to wait for a gap two furlongs out having travelled well into contention, and meeting more trouble when beginning to hit top gear.
It was a poor run at York last time, but that is uncharacteristic of him, and you do wonder if that race was used as a stepping stone to this given how well he’s run both times over this course and distance.
He’s just 1lb higher in the weights than for his win in May and the booking of Billy Loughnane looks a big positive. Provided a good draw, it is very hard to see him not being involved at the finish.
Preview posted at 17:05 BST on 22/09/2026
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