Goodwood Wednesday - Yet To Become My Fave Meeting Of 2025!

Just a little something extra for Glorious Goodwood this week – fingers crossed, it’s a tough meeting to call?

Wednesday

Not the easiest Goodwood card by any stretch of the imagination, and with Fields Of Gold a prohibitive price for the Sussex Stakes, that’s one less race we can look at. With nine runners currently declared I am hoping we can sniff out an each way opportunity in the opener at 1.20pm, but as is my way, I am going to profile the race to seek out any trends that may help us – dull as ditchwater I agree, but if it finds us a good bet I am hoping you can live with that (or just skip straight to the tip)?

Goodwood 1.20pm

A mile and a half awaits the three-year-olds here, and in the last 15 runnings the facts are: All 15 winners had finished in the first six last time out (with 13 finishing in the top three), 14 were priced at 20/1 or shorter, 14 had raced in the last 60 days but only one winner had raced in the last 15 days, and that’s about it. Using those as filters, we end up with a shortlist of six which isn’t very helpful, so we are forced to use the “top-three” option to lose one more. I also note that 14 of those winners had raced over a mile and three or further before, and 14 had never raced beyond one mile four and a half furlongs, and adding those to the mix cuts us down to three, namely Kurakka, Cape Breton, and Sudu. Of the three trainers concerned Roger Varian has an outstanding record, running three horses in this race and winning with French Duke last year and Nagano in 2021, and as he clearly knows the sort needed, Sudu gets the vote at 8/1 as I write – each way of course.

Goodwood 2.30pm

Back to the better class races now, and Lady Iman looks the one to beat ahead of the five furlong Molecomb Stakes at 2.30pm, despite racing on level terms against the colts thanks to her 3lb Group Three penalty. The winner of her first three starts, two over this trip and one over six, she looked to be cruising at odds-on at the Curragh in the Group Two Airlie Stud Stakes but ran out of steam close home to go under by two lengths, and I am as confident as you can be in these races that the drop back in trip will prove ideal.

Goodwood 4.55pm

With very little else standing out to me I am left to profile another handicap to give us three on the day – though be warned, small stakes are advised. The World Pool Oak Tree Stakes at 1.55pm is our poison to end with, a seven furlong all aged handicap with £100,000 in total prize money. Again I have looked at past runnings, in this case all 13 of them, and have found out that:  All 13 finished in the first six last time out, all were priced at 18/1 or shorter, 12 were aged six or younger, all came from the first nine in the betting at the off (I have to use early prices so fingers crossed), all had run in the last 60 days, 12 came from a draw of 15 or lower, and none had previously won over a distance further than a mile. Using those we end up with a shortlist of five, namely Cracking Gold, Fine Interview, Leadman, Defence Minister, and Stanage. Of those, only David O’Meara has trained the winner of this race before, with to distance wins to his name and the booking of William Buick an eye-catching one, Leadman will do for me.