Three horses to follow on quick ground at Epsom on Saturday

Regal Reality – 12:50 Epsom

Regal Reality is now an eight-year-old, and probably hasn’t quite won as many times as a horse with his talent should have, but he is still capable of smart form and that should be good enough in what doesn’t look an overly strong renewal of the Diomed Stakes.

It is his record on fast ground which makes him of further interest, with three of his five career wins coming on ground that Timeform described as good to firm. Admittedly, he was below form on his recent reappearance at Newmarket, but that was in a stronger race than this in soft ground at Newmarket.

Regal Reality didn’t appear to like underfoot conditions on that occasion, while he also left the impression he would take a big step forward fitness-wise. The drop back in trip shouldn’t be a problem and, a winner at Goodwood earlier in his career, the undulations of Epsom hopefully won’t pose a problem.

Mountain Peak – 15:20 Epsom

The Dash is one of the most furiously-ridden sprint handicaps in the calendar and mixed with fast ground the natural speedsters will surely come to the fore.

There are plenty in with a shout, but Mountain Peak may be underestimated at his current odds given his record under such conditions. He finished runner-up in this race 12 months ago (good ground) from a 3 lb lower mark, appearing to have the race in the bag only to be caught close home.

The angle with him is that all of his wins on turf have come on ground that Timeform described as firm or good to firm, so he is clearly at home on a rattling quick surface. Mountain Peak failed to beat a rival home on his reappearance at York, but he was a big price that day, and he faded as though badly in need of the run.

Given his performance in this race last year, it is likely that this has been one of his main early-season targets and, having been handed a fair draw in stall 13, expect him to be ridden positively and last out much longer this time.

Scampi – 16:30 Epsom

Scampi took a long time to get his head in front but he proved progressive once doing so last season, recording three wins, including one over course and distance.

Two of those wins came on turf, both of which on ground Timeform called good to firm, and he looked rusty on his return from seven months off in testing conditions over a mile and a quarter at this course when finishing around six lengths behind his main market rival Caius Chorister.

Scampi bounced back to form with a stylish success at York last time, relishing the return to good-to-firm ground and having a fair bit more in hand than the official margin suggests. He went on the bridle for a long way before being produced to lead around a furlong out, easily moving clear in the closing stages in the style of a well-handicapped horse. A 6 lb rise looks about right and with the track and ground in his favour, another big run is expected.

More from Sporting Life

• Racecards
• Fast results
• Full results and free video replays
• Horse racing news
• Horse racing tips
• Horse racing features
• Download our free iOS and Android app
• Football and other sports tips
• Podcasts and video content

Safer gambling

We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.

If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.

Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org