Declan Rix

Updated 9.03 - all selections online

A top-class Saturday card at Newbury - live on Sky Sports Racing - kicks off with the Group 3 Sky Sports Racing Aston Park Stakes (1.25), where Group 1-winning mare Kalpana makes her seasonal return as a strong favourite, but take her out of the betting equation and ARABIAN FORCE (without Kalpana) gets the nod for me.

A fine, big, galloping chestnut son of Lope De Vega, you can see why connections ran him over 14f in Listed Noel Murless Stakes on his final start at three, having shaped like a stayer in the making in the Great Voltigeur Stakes on his previous start. While visually it appears like he stayed at Ascot, his performance figure dropped, leading me to believe he’ll be happiest over 12f this season. It may also have been the end of a long campaign for the horse.

On his 2026 comeback run in France in the Listed Prix Lord Seymour, he shaped well in what was a steadily-run affair. He still managed to clock 32.71s for his final 600m, however, possibly suggesting he is a quicker animal this year. Given his size and stature, he entitled to step forward for that effort, especially coming from such a top stable and I can see him chasing home Kalpana, albeit he’ll face still competition from French Master and West Wind Blows.

The former of those, however, showed his best form over 14f and 2m last year on my figures, although he made a nice comeback himself over 12f just 15 days ago, while West Wind Blows has been busy enough this spring and returns quickly to the track after 13 days. With four-year-olds winning five of the last 10 runnings, a win or second to the classy and quicker Kalpana will do for me.

SONG OF THE CLYDE hasn’t got the lofty rating and sexy profile of some in the Listed Highclere Castle Gin Carnarvon Stakes (3.10 Newbury), but sectional data from the race suggests he can comfortably lead this field under Hector Crouch, should the jockey wish to do so.

That would be my armchair jockey advice to Crouch, to put his mount in the race early and allow his natural pace to be his best weapon. The selection’s opening three furlongs of his Newmarket comeback run 30 days ago were 13.70s, 10.88s and 10.90s, and that is the kind of pace most in this field aren’t capable of showing, on what we know of them so far.

If getting away on terms, I hope Crouch can let his mount stride on, all while filling him up on the front-end but at the same time taking plenty of horses out of their comfort zone.

Furthermore, being drawn wide in 11 may possibly be a positive if Newbury’s last fixture is anything to go by, with the likes of Alparslan and Linwood making good use of a rail to run against late in their races on Greenham day. A golden highway for Song Of The Clyde and Crouch would be most welcome.

It’s a big step up for the Clive Cox-trained three-year-old, but his trainer has few peers in this division, while he doesn’t have to carry a penalty like Middle Park Stakes winner Wise Approach (5lb) or Ardisia (3lb). Albert Einstein hasn’t yet showed on the track what he is showing at home, while Royal Fixation could blow this race apart on these terms but looked quite a small filly in a good juvenile season, so we’ve yet to see if she has trained on for her new connections.

Finally, MEZCALA impressed me hugely in winning the Spring Mile at Doncaster back in March and can follow up in the Boyle Sports Home Of The Early Payout Handicap (5.00 Newbury).

Although getting an 8lb rise from the handicapper for his win 49 days ago, a fair chunk, I think he could’ve been raised more such was the dominance of his victory. To win as he did up the straight mile at Doncaster without getting much cover was a big performance and I think he can follow up before going on to be a big player in next month’s Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot.

The ATR Future Form reading from the Doncaster tells us we had four next-time-out winners from the race so far, as well as three placed runners, so hopefully it’s a sound piece of form, but either way he was an utterly-dominant winner.

His draw in stall 1 could’ve been kinder, but we are close enough to Bullet Point in stall 4, while Classic in stall 7 has gone forward before too.