*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
The Great St Wilfrid Handicap is the feature race of the year at Ripon and typically one of the most competitive sprint handicaps run anywhere in Britain. The latest running on Saturday looks set to attract another big field, though there is a clear favourite with Paddy Power as things stand in the shape of 11/2-shot Summerghand.
Summerghand has made two previous appearances in the Great St Wilfrid, finishing second in 2019 and fourth in 2022 when drawn on the disadvantaged side of the track. He followed his run in the race last year with three wins before the end of the campaign, notably landing another of the season’s big sprint handicaps, the Ayr Gold Cup.
Having also won the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood in 2020, Summerghand has been a fixture in this sort of heat for several years and his latest run at York was his best of the current campaign so far, staying on well to pass the post less than two lengths behind the winner.
Now 5 lb below the mark he defied at Ayr last year, he looks set for another strong finish to this season’s campaign.
- WELCOME TO PP NEWS: NEW TO US? CLICK HERE FOR OUR £/€20 SIGN-UP OFFER
Can Gosden runner Arrest the slide?
Sent off the 4/1 favourite for the Derby, the John and Thady Gosden-trained Arrest certainly looked a colt with a bright future in the spring when running away with the Chester Vase, forging clear in the final furlong to land the spoils by six and a half lengths.
However, Epsom turned out to be a non-event as he finished well beaten having looked totally ill at ease on the track, while he fared little better when dropped in grade for the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot last time, with a refusal to settle doing most of the damage there as he weakened out of the frame.
That leaves Arrest with work to do to get his career back on track in Saturday’s Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury, though he should at least have conditions in his favour, sure to be suited by the longer trip with a bit of ease underfoot.
The son of Frankel has been given a good break since Ascot and he’d looked so promising previously that it’s far too soon to be writing him off. A 16/1-shot in the ante-post betting for the St Leger, he could be significantly shorter if putting some smart older rivals to the sword in this Group 3 test.
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
READ MORE
- Gallop over to Paddy Power News for all the latest horse racing tips
- Flat Racing: Paul Jacobs’ 10 Horse to Follow over the Flat Season
- When is the Juddmonte International? York date, start time, runners and betting
- When is the Ebor Handicap? York date, start time, runners and betting
THE PADDY POWER GUIDE TO SAFER GAMBLING – EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
