Views from connections ahead of Friday's action from Epsom

2.00 Epsom - Betfred British EBF Woodcote Stakes

Nick Bradley Racing have four darts to fire at the Betfred British EBF Woodcote Stakes.

The popular syndicate won the contest in 2021 with Oscula, who was en route to greater things as she went on to win multiple Group races, including the Oak Tree Stakes at Goodwood.

This time the white and black-starred silks will be carried by four fillies from four different stables, with the Karl Burke-trained Teej A the shortest in the market.

The daughter of Mehmas was second on debut in a Nottingham maiden, after which she headed to Chester to contest a six-furlong maiden and prevail by two and a quarter lengths from Brian Meehan’s Rashabar.

“We run four and the big chance is Teej A, she won nicely at Chester and got the run of the race there,” said Bradley.

“Clifford (Lee) takes the ride as she’s Karl’s first string, she’s drawn in six – I’d have liked to be a bit lower, but I think she goes there with a good chance.”

Craig Lidster will be saddle J Street, a Washington DC filly who was fourth on debut at Beverley in a five-furlong maiden.

“She’ll improve plenty for that run, she’s well drawn in stall two and the more the track dries out the more it will suit her,” Bradley said.

“I think she’s got a bit of a chance, she was quick away at Beverley and I think she’ll be in a good position early and it’ll be a case of how many horses get past her in the home straight.”

Whiskey Glasses is the runner from Ollie Sangster’s stable and comes into the race having finishing sixth on her debut on the all-weather at Kempton earlier in the month.

Bradley said of the filly: “Whiskey Glasses is drawn eight, she was poorly drawn at Kempton on debut but she showed good gate speed there which was half the thinking behind running here. She will win a maiden, no problem, whether or not she’ll win tomorrow – it’s hard to say she would.

“She’ll break smartly, we’ll see if we can get a position early doors and take it from there.”

Lift Lady is the final Bradley runner, a Kevin Philippart De Foy-trained filly who may not line up if the ground is not suitable.

“Lift Lady shows plenty of speed at home, she’s a good filly,” said Bradley.

“She didn’t run well at Leicester and we’re blaming that on the ground, we need the track to dry out but I do think she’s more than capable of winning a maiden.”

Elsewhere in the race is Richard Hannon’s New Charter, second on debut at Newmarket in mid-May, with Ralph Beckett’s Megalithic engaged and Assertively the other Burke runner.

Kevin Ryan’s End Of Story, Eve Johnson Houghton’s Tanager and Alice Haynes’ Atherstone Warrior complete the field.

3.10 Epsom - Holland Cooper Coronation Cup

With a proven liking for Epsom and a solid return under her belt already this season, Emily Upjohn is fully expected to put up a staunch defence of her Holland Cooper Coronation Cup crown on Friday.

The John and Thady Gosden-trained mare was favourite for the Oaks on this card in 2022, but suffered an agonising defeat, failing by just a short head against Tuesday after stumbling and losing plenty of ground at the start.

The daughter of Sea The Stars corrected her Epsom record in this race 12 months ago, beating the classy colt Westover by a cosy length and three-quarters under Frankie Dettori.

Mixed fortunes followed at Sandown and Ascot, and she had a 245-day absence to overcome when running in the Sheema Classic in March. Not surprisingly she needed the outing in finishing fifth, but all appears to have gone smoothly since.

John Gosden said: “She worked very nicely last week and I’m pleased with her. It was a very good run I thought earlier in the year in the Sheema Classic, where they played with the pace. I liked the way she finished her race off and she wasn’t beaten far.

“It’s not easy with fillies in March, training them in the winter, and she’d been off since the previous July, so she needed to get back on track. She ran a lovely race and she’s done well physically since then.

“This was always the next step for her. We are trying to follow the same sort of path as last year when she went on to Sandown for the Eclipse and was beaten only half a length by Paddington. I don’t know what happened when she ran in the King George after that, but about four of them ran appallingly that day. Take nothing from the winner there, but it was a very strange race.”

Of her liking for Epsom and that narrow Oaks reverse, Gosden, who was speaking to the British Champions Series, added: “She handles Epsom well and was a touch unlucky in the Oaks, but that’s life.”

Emily Upjohn is set to be a warm order, with the Aidan O’Brien-trained Luxembourg next best followed by last year’s French Derby fourth Feed The Flame for Pascal Bary.

Ryan Moore rides Luxembourg and has a healthy respect for the opposition.

“It is obvious that Emily Upjohn is very much the one to beat here,” he said in his Betfair blog.

“She was probably at her best when beating Westover in this race last season, she shaped well enough in the Sheema Classic on her return and any drying conditions would just add to her chances.

“But Luxemburg doesn’t have much to find with her if he is on his A-game, although he has to bounce back from a modest run in Meydan last time, admittedly. He is a three-time Group One winner and, while his best form has come over 10 furlongs, he showed he stayed this trip when seventh in the Arc on deep ground a couple of years ago.

“If the favourite can be beaten, I’d hope my horse is the one to do it, but I do also respect Feed The Flame, as he was very good when he beat Adelaide River in the Grand Prix de Paris last year. He is dangerous.”

The Westover colours of Juddmonte will be carried by the useful Harry Charlton-trained mare Time Lock, who was supplemented for the race.

“She’s a mile-and-a-half older mare and options are few and far between,” said Barry Mahon, Juddmonte’s European racing manager.

“We just felt it suited her programme well, it didn’t look like there’d be a huge amount of runners, so we just thought it was a nice fit and not too far from home. The track is an unknown, but she handles the undulations at Newmarket well so hopefully she’ll be able to handle Epsom.”

Completing the six declared runners is the William Haggas-trained Hamish, unbeaten in his last five starts but who has a definite preference for cut in the ground.

4.30 Epsom - Betfred Oaks

Aidan O’Brien’s Ylang Ylang is vying for Classic glory as she takes her place at the head of the market for the Betfred Oaks. The Frankel filly was last seen finishing fifth in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, beaten only a length under Ryan Moore on what was her first run as a three-year-old.

During her juvenile season she showed plenty of ability when taking her first two races and signing off at the top level with success in the Fillies’ Mile, though there was a dip in form in the middle as she was last of nine in the Moyglare Stud Stakes.

O’Brien attributes that to an over-keenness and was pleased to see her settle both in the Fillies’ Mile and the Guineas.

“We weren’t sure whether Ylang Ylang would get the trip as she was keen and that is why her disappointing runs came in the middle,” he said.

“When we got her back and taught her how to relax, she was like a middle-distance filly and that is what she was like in the Guineas as well. We were very happy with her in the Guineas. We thought going to the Guineas that she was an Oaks filly given the way she had been working and that is how she ran.

“Ryan was very happy with her. He let her find her feet and he felt she came home very well.”

Of her beaten runs in the Moyglare and Rockfel, where she was ninth and third respectively, O’Brien added: “She won her first two races and then on her next two runs was a little bit keen and disappointed.

“Her run in the Moyglare was a shocker. She was able to reverse it when she got into the right mindset and I imagine some of the fillies that were behind her in the Guineas were ahead of her in the Moyglare, so it’s amazing the way things can swing around.”

O’Brien has a second runner in Rubies Are Red, a Galileo filly out of Red Evie, making her a full-sister to the superb Found – winner of the 2016 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Rubies Are Red is yet to win a race, but has placed in all three runs so far and was an eyecatching runner-up in the Lingfield Oaks Trial when half a length behind the reopposing You Got To Me.

O’Brien said: “Rubies Are Red is unusual in that she is a sister to Found. She had a run last year and surprised us – she was third and then this year she went to Leopardstown and one of Joseph’s (O’Brien, Galileo Dame) beat her.

“The plan had been to go to Lingfield so rather than going for another maiden, we stuck with the plan. Ryan said she was very green at Lingfield and he nursed her. Because of that, she got back a long way but when he straightened her up she really came home well.

“She is definitely an Oaks-type filly. Her running style is like Found’s in that she takes her time and comes late.”

Ralph Beckett has four fillies in the field, with You Got To Me joining the King and Queen’s Treasure, Cheshire Oaks winner Forest Fairy and Seaward, who was third on the Roodee.

“Forest Fairy was very backward and immature and she had an issue at two and so didn’t come to us until October,” Beckett said of the most-fancied of his runners.

“We were surprised that she was able to win like that first time out (by six lengths at Wolverhampton), and then because her work on turf at home was good, we decided to take her to Chester for the trial. You would hope she’d come forward again for that, based on her inexperience.”

Of Seaward, the trainer added: “Seaward has trained well since the Cheshire Oaks and I was quite keen to come. I’d be less keen on her chance if the ground is slower than good.”

You Got To Me will run in a different bit and though she beat Rubies Are Red at Lingfield, Beckett is mindful of the improvement likely to come from that horse.

He told the British Champions Series: “We’ll do a few things differently to manage You Got To Me, and we’ll be putting some different kit in her mouth.

“She’s a tall, sparely-made filly who doesn’t carry a lot of condition, so she doesn’t need much training, but she appears to take her racing well. She did well to hold on at Lingfield after going so hard, although Aidan’s filly Rubies Are Red came from Brighton virtually and will be tough to beat."

Treasure was at one stage headed for the Ribblesdale at Royal Ascot instead, but now will represent the King and Queen at Epsom having been bred by Queen Elizabeth II, whose Dunfermline won the Oaks in 1977.

Beckett said: “As for Treasure, we had been edging more towards the Ribblesdale, but we’ve had a change of heart. She’s trained very well since then and ground on the easy side will be in her favour. It will be very exciting to have a runner in a Classic for the King and the Queen."

Dermot Weld will run Ezeliya, an Aga Khan owned-and-bred filly who beat subsequent Irish 1,000 Guineas fifth Purple Lily when last seen in the Salsabil Stakes at Navan in late April.

“The form was let down a little bit in the Irish 1,000 Guineas, but I’m satisfied with my filly,” the trainer said.

“She’s a medium-sized filly with quality and I expect her to run a good race. She’s never been over a mile and a half, but she gives every impression that the trip will suit. We hope it will, but I can assure you she isn’t short of pace.”

Charlie Appleby is set to have a sole runner in Godolphin’s Dance Sequence, well beaten in the Guineas but previously second in the Nell Gwyn when defeated a neck by Pretty Crystal.

He told the Godolphin website: “She put up a nice performance in finishing second in the Nell Gwyn. We were happy with her going into the 1000 Guineas, but unfortunately the ground was quite quick which she didn’t really appreciate.

“Looking at the weather forecast with conditions the way they are, she’ll get her ground on Friday stepping up to a mile and a half for the first time, but with her pedigree and what she’s shown us at home both physically and mentally, she should hopefully seek further improvement stepping up to these trips.

“She goes there as a legitimate runner and a big player at the right end.”

Andrew Balding has a live contender in Secret Satire, a convincing winner of the Musidora at York, and the field is completed by Noel Meade’s Caught U Looking, the Karl Burke-trained Making Dreams and War Chimes for David Menuisier.

5.10 Epsom - Aston Martin Surrey Stakes

Bellarchi brings her experience to the table in the Aston Martin Surrey Stakes. The Grant Tuer-trained filly has run 19 times already after a busy juvenile season that saw her win three races and collect several placings in contests over five, six and seven furlongs.

This year she has returned in good form for owners Nick Bradley Racing, winning twice at Southwell and Ascot and then making the step up to Listed level at York last time out.

There she was sixth of nine over a mile in the Sky Bet Fillies’ Stakes, but was not disgraced and now returns at the same level on Oaks day.

“She’s a good filly, I think she’s way overpriced,” Bradley said of the chestnut.

“At York she was too far back, which was a combination of jockey error and my error. We tried to adopt similar tactics to Ascot, but the pace wasn’t there to be run at. We’ll sit close, I think the Stuart Williams filly looks smart and I like the Eve Johnson Houghton horse as well.

“She will definitely outrun her odds, I would like to think she’ll finish in the top three and I’d be disappointed if she didn’t. She has probably run more than the rest of the field put together. Do I think she can win off her mark? Yes, absolutely. Could she win? If things go her way.

“She looks exposed but a lot of this field have potential rather than have already done it, to me she has already done it. She’s overpriced, she’s drawn well, I think she goes there with a good each-way chance."

The Stuart Williams-trained filly in question is Pandora’s Gift, a daughter of Churchill who has been on the up since making her debut on the all-weather last year.

Beaten a length and a half on that occasion, she has since enjoyed a four-race winning streak. She was entered in the Sandy Lane at Haydock last weekend for another step up in grade, but the soft ground scuppered that plan and may scupper this one if more rain falls overnight.

Williams said: “I’d say she wants a bit better ground, I hope it doesn’t rain too much between now and tomorrow. Her participation might be in doubt if we have a lot of rain, as I wouldn’t want to run her on soft ground.

“I would really like to run her, she’s been a rapidly-improving filly every time we’ve run her so far. She’s worked nicely on grass at home and I don’t have any problem with her going on grass, but we haven’t had any ground like they had at Haydock last week.

“It would have been very, very testing and I hope it doesn’t rain any more and go that way at Epsom.”

Williams has entered Pandora’s Gift in the Commonwealth Cup at Ascot, but understandably would like to give the filly as chance to turn her hand to the turf before taking on that Group One assignment.

“There’s not a lot else, we’ve made a speculative entry in the Commonwealth Cup and we really wanted to see the lie of the land with a run on turf before going there,” he said.

“If we don’t run we may run out of options and it’d really be throwing her in the deep end to go straight into a Group One on turf and her first run in a straight line as well, she’s done all her winning around a bend.”

Eve Johnson Houghton’s contender is Balmacara, the winner of two Doncaster novices so far this term, whereas Ralph Beckett has the favourite in Greenham runner-up Zoum Zoum.

Richard Fahey’s Native American, Archie Watson’s Evade and James Fanshawe’s Heritage House complete the field.

Epsom Derby content

• Timeform Q&A: Big questions answered
• How bad is stall one for City Of Troy?
• Horse-by-horse guide and Derby verdict
• Who will benefit from testing conditions?
• How to approach the City Of Troy conundrum
• Who will truly stay the Derby distance?
• Fran Berry's fancies
• Derby Preview Podcast
• When Aidan O'Brien has worked his magic before
• Simon Holt: Remembering Sir Henry Cecil

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