Summerghand

Summerghand did well to come from the rear in the six-furlong handicap to finish second behind 40/1 shot Tinto. Held up early on by Daniel Tudhope, he travelled well through his race. Still just about last of the 11 runners passing the two-furlong marker, he picked up well when his rider asked him to, coming through among horses to take second place. The winner had gone for home on the far side, and it never looked like Summerghand was going to catch him, but he did well to get as close as he did. The winner, as well as the third and fourth, raced up with the pace and towards the far side from early. They raced, respectively, from stalls 4, 3 and 1. Summerghand came from the rear and, emerging from stall 11, raced towards the near side. There was a tailwind on the day, and Newmarket is a speed-favouring track anyway, so Summerghand can probably be marked up a fair bit on the bare form of this run.

David O’Meara’s horse is six now, and this was his 38th race, but this run suggests that he is at least as good as ever. He has run well at Newmarket in the past – his record on the two Newmarket tracks reads 122 – but neither track really plays to his hold-up style of racing, and he could be seen to even better effect back at Ascot, where he has also run well in the past. The Wokingham is a logical target for him again, he finished fifth in the race last year, and he will be of interest again if he goes there this year.

Newmarket, 5^th June 2020