3 Stratford Runners

Good news for all fans of the jumps...the National Hunt action is back with three meetings this afternoon from Perth, Stratford and Southwell...race planning at it's very best once again!  David has three runners this afternoon as Perspicace, Purple 'N Gold and Junior Package do duty at Stratford.  Perspicace (pictured above) has joint top-weight of 11-12 having won his last couple of starts over timber so he has been in good form although this will require another improved performance from a career-high mark.  Purple 'N Gold contests a very competitive handicap chase and he rarely runs a bad race although he could perhaps do with a bit further these days, while Junior Package needs to improve on what he has shown thus far although conditional jockey David Noonan claims a handy 3lbs off his back.

Jockey Jamie Spencer flies over to New York to take the ride aboard Deauville for Aidan O'Brien in the Belmont Derby this evening.  O'Brien also saddles Long Island Sound in the race, while Ballydoyle contests the Belmont Oaks.  The amount of travelling these horses do is quite unbelievable and it is testament to them that they should be so consistent.

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I will be glued to the final of the men's tennis at Wimbledon this afternoon as Andy Murray takes on Milos Raonic.  Murray is a 2/7 shot so I am sitting pretty having backed him at longer odds much earlier in the tournament.  I was amazed to see that a pair of tickets to the final were being sold for £43,500 - that is £21,750 a seat...obscene!

What a weekend for sport with the British Grand Prix taking place this afternoon from Silverstone - the race starts at 1pm.  Lewis Hamilton has admitted that he and team-mate Nico Rosberg once wanted to kill each other - if they carry on driving like they are, they could well end up killing each other!  It looks like a cracking race to look forward to although Hamilton is the obvious choice as he always seems to emerge from these on-track clashes the less distracted.

Meanwhile, there is the small matter of the European Cup Final as Portugal take on host nation France.  Unless Ronaldo turns up for a second game running I cannot see this going any other way than a French win.

Time to get back on my soap box...I cannot believe that Mohammed Amir is going to be allowed to play cricket again following his part in the corruption scandal of 2010.  He will play on Thursday at Lords and I think that is a disgrace.

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Thought for the day...a babysitter is a teenager acting like an adult while the adults are out acting like teenagers!

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