Ascot Tips: The Cheka

After Royal Ascot, Champions Day is the biggest date on the calendar for the Berkshire course. To ensure horses have the best conditions possible, huge amounts of the straight track have been fenced off in recent months so that fresh ground can be used on Saturday.

There is at least 5 meters of fresh ground on the far side of the track but it’s the 2 meters under the stand that interests me. The stalls for the QIPCO Sprint Stakes (2.20) are on the stand’s side which means horses coming out of the highest two stalls have a fresh strip of ground to race on.

Of last year’s 16 runners, the first three home came from stalls: 14-8-12. All the action developed against the stand’s side rail. Drawn in stall 15/15, The Cheka has a big advantage.

Not only has he got the stand’s rail to run against, he’s also the only prominent runner drawn high. Everything on his outside needs to be held up and you have to go all the way to Libranno in stall 4 to find another front-runner.

Runner-up in the July Cup, The Cheka proved he can cut it at the top level and handle testing conditions. He won the Cammidge Trophy back in March under similar circumstances, when he made the most of a good draw.

He ran a rare bad race in the Ayr Gold Cup but as his trainer commented, horses are not machines. I’m happy to forgive him one poor performance and reunited with Neil Callan, who has never finished outside the top-2 on the horse, he rates good value at 20/1 (Paddy Power).

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