UK Horse Racing Tips

The Coral-Eclipse, a Group 1 contest run over 1 mile 2 furlongs at Sandown, is likely to be a one-sided affair if the ante post betting is to be believed. The Gurkha, one of five Aidan O’Brien entries, was installed as 100/30 favourite on Sunday, but has since been backed as if defeat was out of the question, forcing his price down to 5/4.

The Co. Tipperary trainer has yet to make a final decision, but said on Tuesday afternoon that it was ‘very possible’ that the Galileo colt would run. The going at Sandown is currently good to soft with an unsettled outlook between now and Saturday but, while Aidan O’Brien admitted that soft ground ‘isn’t ideal’, The Gurkha easily won his maiden on soft/heavy going at Navan in April.

On paper, My Dream Boat, who ran on strongly to win the Prince of Wales’s Stakes, over 1 mile 2 furlongs on soft going, has fewer questions to answer than The Gurkha, but that hasn’t stopped punters from backing Aidan O’Brien’s charge almost to the exclusion of everything else. Despite never having won beyond a mile, The Gurkha receives an 11lb weight-for-age allowance from his nearest market rivals, My Dream Boat and Time Test, and must take all the beating.

Selection: Sandown 3.45 The Gurkha to win

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