Victoria Cup Preview

The Victoria Cup at Ascot (4pm Saturday) is one of the premier handicap races throughout the flat season and always attracts a big field and a lot of interest from punters. This season looks to be no different, with 29 going down to post for the race right now, and a wide open betting heat expected on the day.

The favourite for the race may well be the most interesting runner of all and that is a horse from the Clive Cox yard named Louie De Palma. He is now a six year old, but we haven’t seen him race since he was a two year old, meaning this will be his first run for 1381 days. You have to take his fitness into account if you are backing him, but after being off for so long Clive Cox will have left nothing to chance.

The interesting angle with this horse is that his owner must have thought it was worth keeping him in training, and paying four years training fees despite not seeing him run for so long. At six he is still in his prime and with so few miles on the clock, just three races in fact, there could be a lot more to come from him. When he did run he won a maiden and an Ascot handicap in nice fashion before finishing 2^nd in a Group Two race, so he clearly has ability. Win, lose or draw he is a fascinating runner this weekend and one I am really looking forward to seeing, let’s hope he can get back on the track and running for his very patient connections

The horse that looks to have the best chance of winning the race, and one I am really excited about this season is Kynren. He finished third on debut last season before winning three races at Carlisle, Newmarket and Redcar to round off his season. He has only raced once this season and that was when he finished 3rd in the very competitive Spring Mile at Doncaster. That race may have stretched him a little too far, and the seven furlongs here could be what brings out even more from him this season.

While two of his races have been won on soft ground, he has won on good to firm so the quicker ground he is going to encounter here should not be a problem for him. With just five races under his belt there is a lot more to come from the David Barron trained horse and he looks like one to follow throughout the season. Whether his best trip is seven furlongs or one mile remains to be seen, but with the way he travelled before tiring at Doncaster, he looks like a horse that will enjoy the seven furlong trip on Saturday.

Many horses have a chance in this wide open race, and while Louie De Palma is an intriguing runner, Kynren looks to be a nice progressive horse and he can take the Victoria Cup this weekend.

Tip: Kynren @ 12/1 with SunBets