#Alastair Donald

Durston has enjoyed plenty of success since moving to Australia Victory for Durston in the prestigious Caulfield Cup provided Highclere Racing with one of the biggest winners in the syndicate's 30-year history - and it came following a "phenomenal recovery" from key setbacks. The son of Sea The Moon was bought by Highclere as a two-year-old maiden…

It is not only the England football team who are bidding to bridge a long gap between top-level triumphs at a venue. Leading owner and breeder Jeff Smith may have won countless big prizes in the past four decades, but he has not landed one of the Group 1 prizes at the Newmarket July Festival since the brilliant Chief Singer saw off all the best…

There appeared to be a definite advantage to race on the stands' side of the track on the straight course on the first two days at Royal Ascot, but the Royal Hunt Cup was different. As is normal for a big meeting, there were quite a few unlucky losers, but I've heard the name Astro King mentioned more than any other, and that's probably because…

Horseracing's premier Flat meeting ends with a race run over a distance more suitable to the Cheltenham Festival, in conditions more in keeping with the Welsh National. The Queen Alexandra, Britain's longest Flat race, has attracted a maximum field of 20 runners, most of whom can be given a winning chance. Chester Cup winner Falcon Eight, whose…

Rogue Millennium (red) bids to take another step forward in her career The Oaks at Epsom might not have looked the strongest edition going into the race but Nashwa's victory in the Prix de Diane at Chantilly last weekend has given it a boost. Nashwa probably did not stay a mile and a half when third at Epsom and looked more at home over the shorter…

Ascot's straight course tends to favour sprinters who are ridden cold - it's a long way home without cover on this wide track - and a glance at the race comments for winners of the Wokingham since 2011 features'held up' on eight occasions. The two anomalies have come in the last two years as Cape Byron (2019) and Hey Jonesy (2020) were always up in…

It is unusual for a 17-runner handicap on ITV to revolve around a short-priced favourite but Gaassee dominates the Old Newton Cup market and is the only place to start. The positives to his chance are easy to find. Gaassee has won four on the bounce and boasts a Group 1 entry later in the season in the Irish St Leger, while his sole soft-ground run…

Glen Shiel: winner of last year's British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot The Bengough Stakes provides the perfect opportunity for talented handicappers to take the step up to Group 3 level. Recent winners include Tropics (2013), Cape Byron (2019) and Dakota Gold (2020), although the presence of Blue Point and Shalaa in the roll of honour suggests…

Happy Romance and Sean Levey (near) win the 2021 Hackwood Stakes Since the establishment of British Champions Day, the Hackwood Stakes has forged a close link with the big end-of-season meeting. The Diadem became the Champions Sprint in 2011, and since then four of its 11 winners had run in the same season's Hackwood. Two did the double, Deacon…

William Haggas: has a big chance with Mahrajaan If you go back to before 1998, the Magnet Cup as it was known then was often won by a lightly raced, progressive three-year-old, but the shape of the race has since changed entirely. Only one three-year-old has won it since 2001 and that was Wigmore Hall in 2010. He went on to win the Grade 1 Northern…

There is more to life than just Group 1s for championship-chasing trainer William Haggas. He still takes joy in lifting the traditional big handicaps and has won most of them, from the Lincoln and Victoria Cup in the spring to the Ayr Gold Cup and November Handicap in the autumn, plus numerous others in between. However, the Cambridgeshire is one…

Khanjar (left) and last year's winner Bielsa both have strong claims for Ayr Gold Cup glory Kevin Ryan's record in the Ayr Gold Cup is legendary. Successful five times with Advanced (2007), Our Jonathan (2011), Captain Ramius (2012), Brando (2016) and Bielsa (2021), the Malton trainer is four-handed in his bid for a sixth win. Bielsa heads the…

Emaraaty Ana's performance in last month's Nunthorpe Stakes was exactly what connections had hoped to see prior to his bid to land a second running of the Group 1 Betfair Sprint Cup. In finishing third to Highfield Princess at York, Emaraaty Ana produced more evidence that his early season lacklustre form was being left behind and he was coming…

Previous runnings of the Supreme Stakes may be crucial to finding the winner of this year's race, with last year's second Double Or Bubble and 2020 winner Happy Power the clear choices in the betting. Double Or Bubble brings standout top-level form to the table, having been a solid fifth behind Alcohol Free in the July Cup at Newmarket last month…