Gm, Equinauts

York starts tomorrow and we’re got a a public service announcement:

We know a lot of you can get your hands on O&T badges, they’re genuinely handing out fines this year lol.

Stick to the bars!

Let’s dive in.

HEADLINE ROUNDUP

🌧️FINALLY, RAIN

After what feels like about six months of staring at a weather app and watching racecourses turn into baked potatoes, the heavens are finally threatening to open the floodgates.

We’ve already had a little rain up North, and now the dark skies loom over Equinties HQ (Newbury).

Now, look. We’ve already made it clear, we LOVE this weather and our biscuit tans look sexy af. But we’re punters at the end of the day, and we’re now halfway through the Flat season without having a good go at betting the slop jobs.

It’s not just our pockets suffering. Racing has had to deal with the consequences, with courses watering the living daylights out of their tracks just to keep the ground good to firm. Quite an amusing situation really: the country is in drought, while racecourses desperately try to manufacture their own rain.

Just look at the state of Cheltenham:

But it looks like now the mud lovers can finally start to wind up at home.

Rain is finally forecast to arrive this week, ending the extraordinary dry spell and, fingers crossed, giving our turf the proper drink it needs.

But how will it affect York?

Well, they’ve been watering too, and the going has already changed to good/good to firm. Any more rain and we imagine it’ll be on the slow side of good.

Perhaps not enough to give us our beloved edge, but we have all day to do the rain dance.

Bring it on. 🌧️🐎

🤡BUY BACK

It was Coolmore and Godolphin again, going head-to-head in a record-breaking bidding war at the Arqana August Sale yesterday, with Coolmore eventually landing a WOOTTON BASSETT colt for a massive €4.6m.

And here's the slightly unreal bit: Coolmore had already sold the colt’s dam for 900,000gns while she was carrying him in the womb.

That’s right, the JUSTIFY mare DEADLY NIGHTSHADE had been sold by Coolmore, in foal, for 900,000gns. She headed off to her new home in France, where she duly got on with the breeding business.

Then, while she was carrying the future €4.6m yearling, her brother started tearing up the racetracks.

Enter SCANDINAVIA...

And suddenly that 900,000gns mare was looking like a rather expensive one to have let go.

Although she herself didn’t do anything of note on the track, the mare comes from an exceptional Coolmore family. Her dam is a GALILEO half-sister to GIANT’S CAUSEWAY, while another sibling is the dam of Group 1 winners including GLENEAGLES and JOAN OF ARC.

Magnier admitted Coolmore were effectively “the clowns” for selling the mare in the first place, but they clearly weren't going to make the same mistake twice.

Godolphin pushed them all the way, with auctioneer Bernard Condren seemingly doing his best to wind things up, booming: “You either race him or chase him, gentlemen.”

Coolmore didn't blink, eventually setting a new Arqana August Sale record and smashing the previous €3m mark.

The sale itself was hot too, with turnover hitting a record €65.5m, up 14% on last year's previous high. Insane.

Coolmore selling the mare for 900,000gns and then eventually paying €4.6m for the horse she was carrying might just be the most expensive case of “we probably shouldn't have sold that” you'll see for a while.

More:

🟢 🩷BALDINGS BEST

Balding’s best babe KALPANA heads to York as the one to beat after beating six-time Group 1 winner CALANDAGAN in the King George at Ascot last time.

We asked X if they thought KALPANA was the best horse he’d ever had. We think so. The Juddmonte 5yo has been in excellent form this season and, unbelievably, makes her York debut!

Defending champion MINNIE HAUK is looking to bounce back after a disappointing run of form, including an 18-length defeat by KALPANA last time. She doesn’t look the same horse but notice, her best form is always in the cut. She hasn’t had it once this season.

The Irish Oaks winner JOHANNA WALSH is another major contender for Joseph O’Brien after bolting up by four lengths at the Curragh, while Lancashire Oaks winner TATTYCORAM and Irish Oaks runner-up INIS MOR add further Group 1 form to the field.

Wathnan’s Ribblesdale winner EARTH SHOT, Epsom Oaks runner-up LEGACY LINK and SPARAN NUA complete the line-up, with Aidan O’Brien also represented by SUGAR ISLAND.

KALPANA is the 5-4 favourite, with MINNIE HAUK at 7-2 and JOHANNA WALSH at 4-1.

Who are YOU backing?

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