Saturday was Irish Oaks day, and it did not quite deliver the feature it promised. Thundering On, the horse we napped and the one who towered over the field on our ratings, was declared a non-runner, and the Group 1 was a lesser race for her absence. We will come to the rest of the card as the results settle, but there was plenty to take away from the day, and we start where the card did.
1:10 Curragh: Anchor Road beaten, but this is a race to remember
The 7f maiden we led our preview with, the one full of newcomers taking on Anchor Road, has run, and it did not go the way the favourite's backers wanted.
Anchor Road was sent off the even-money favourite, and the tactics were different this time. On debut, in that strong maiden behind Abraham Lincoln and Haffner, he was given a patient introduction and then found the gaps closing when he wanted them. Here he was able to get across early and bowl along in front, exactly the sort of positive ride that should have shown him in his best light. It made no difference: he was collared, and he was not good enough on the day, coming home third.
The two who picked him up both travelled beautifully in behind, and one of them looked special. Porto Vecchio, the Dermot Weld-trained Frankel colt, won it and did so with real style, quickening away in a manner that marks him down as one to follow. Victory Speech, Aidan O'Brien's second string, ran a lovely race in second and franked the debut promise, while the stable's more fancied runner, the Ryan Moore-ridden Speakers Corner, could only manage fourth.
In truth it probably turned into a bit of a sprint, and only those two were able to pick Anchor Road up, so we are not throwing his effort out. We expect him to revert to type next time, dropped in rather than sent forward, and there should be a race in him. But the takeaway is the race itself: Porto Vecchio was very impressive, Victory Speech backed up his debut, and we think this is a maiden that works out well. One firmly to keep an eye on.
1:35 Market Rasen: Master Haku edges Loriko in a proper scrap
The 2m4f novices' hurdle we were keen to see Loriko in came down to a two-horse fight up the run-in, and it was a good one. Master Haku, trained by Gordon Elliott and ridden by Sean Bowen, just got on top close home to beat our top-rated Loriko, the pair going all the way to the line with little between them and pulling well clear of Show Your Hand in third.
A beaten favourite reads like a disappointment, but this is not the worst result for the Skelton team. Loriko was beaten by a horse rated 4lb higher on official figures, and he was conceding 5lb to that rival on the day, so there is no shame in the defeat at all. Had he gone and won, he could have gone up as much as 10lb. Beaten, he should not be raised nearly as steeply, though we still expect him to climb to around 125.
That is a fraction frustrating for his mark, but only a fraction. When they do go handicapping with him we think he will be nicely treated, and he stays a hurdler we want to be with. Master Haku is just as interesting the other way. If he settles around that same 125 mark he looks well handicapped for Gordon Elliott, and he is the type to make hay in staying handicaps through the summer before the proper National Hunt season gets going. Two staying novices to take out of one race, and both go straight into our notebook for handicaps.
The rest of the card, race by race with result grids, plus our full day summary, is below for Premium and Pro members.