Crus Control!

David has released a positive bulletin about our two challengers that head to France ahead of this weekend's big meeting at Auteuil.  I am told that both Grands Crus and Or Noir de Somoza arrived safe and well last night and have already schooled this morning.  They both jumped nicely and David is very pleased with them and looking forward to tomorrow.  Grands Crus will face nine rivals as he bids to win the Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil (French Champion Hurdle) at 3.15pm (GMT), while Or Noir will compete in the Prix des Drags Steeplechase half an hour earlier.  Grands Crus will be ridden by sixteen times champion jockey A P McCoy and Or Noir de Somoza will be partnered by Regis Schmidlin.

Grands Crus bids for French Champion Hurdle glory tomorrow at Auteuil

David has released a positive bulletin about our two challengers that head to France ahead of this weekend's big meeting at Auteuil.  I am told that both Grands Crus and Or Noir de Somoza arrived safe and well last night and have already schooled this morning.  They both jumped nicely and David is very pleased with them and looking forward to tomorrow.  Grands Crus will face nine rivals as he bids to win the Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil (French Champion Hurdle) at 3.15pm (GMT), while Or Noir will compete in the Prix des Drags Steeplechase half an hour earlier.  Grands Crus will be ridden by sixteen times champion jockey A P McCoy and Or Noir de Somoza will be partnered by Regis Schmidlin.

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There was no doubting who the star of the show was at Royal Ascot yesterday.  Fame And Glory won the Ascot Gold Cup for master trainer Aidan O'Brien by an emphatic three lengths in the hands of Jamie Spencer, although it wasn't so much the winning margin that impressed, but the manner in which he quickened in the last couple of furlongs.  He landed a major gamble in the process (backed from 9/4 to 11/8) and if he keeps sound he could even threaten Yeats amazing record of four wins in the race.  Some of the bookmakers immediately afterwards were offering 66/1 that he matches his illustrious stable companion's feat and that seems like a big price to me when you consider the lack of top quality stayers around to challenge him at the moment.

There is a great picture of footballer Michael Owen in the Post - Michael is almost in tears following the victory of his Brown Panther in the King George C Stakes at Royal Ascot yesterday.  I see there was a £90,000 to £20,000 bet struck about the winner...ironically enough, that would not even be a week's wages to some of the top footballers around at the moment.

I was most amused to read Laura Thompson's observations of ladies day in today's Racing Post.  She says of the racegoers, "the priority for most was finding a drink, someone to chat up and a mirror in which to examine the rivulets of water running throught their fake tan like glistening orange tears".  Laura has summed it up to perfection...indeed, why hold racing there at all?!

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I notice that John Francome was at the offices of West Berkshire council on Wednesday objecting against the proposed construction of two wind turbines near his country estate.  Why don't they just place John McCririck nearby?...he seems to create enough wind for everybody, although it is arguable that he would be an even bigger blot on the landscape!