Ladies first as Musselburgh puts on a show

The East Lothian track has recorded its ninth consecutive Ladies Day sell-out and has even caught the eye of Grand National winning jockey Ryan Mania, who will help judge the day’s Best Dressed Lady in the £3,000 Queen of Style event.

Racing highlight at Musselburgh’s most glamorous meeting of the summer is the £20,000 Stobo Castle Ladies Day Cup (4.00) and the weights are headed by the classy Mutual Regard, a welcome raider from the Newmarket stable of Sir Mark Prescott and a promising second to Johnnie Delta on his recent reappearance at Ayr.

Long-distance traveller Street Entertainer is the likely favourite and David Pipe’s versatile dual purpose stayer was an effortless winner back on the turf at Nottingham last Sunday and will make a bold bid to defy his 6lb penalty .

Paul Mulrennan certainly likes the look of his chances on him. “I haven’t ridden him before but he won well and should go close with a 6lb penalty,” said the jockey. “The trip at Musselburgh is the same and he is clearly a horse at the top of his game. I’m looking forward to the day and it’s great to see the course putting on such good prize money. I also ride a nice little two-year-old in the first called Mecca’s Angel who showed a lot of encouragement on her debut when fourth at Thirsk.”

Among the seven others set to contest the race are Jim Goldie’s pair Merchant Of Dubai and Aleksander.

Ladies Day sponsors Stobo Castle also support the Madeleine Cup Handicap (2.20), in which Mark Johnston’s Mushaakis will be well fancied to boost the Middleham trainer’s already healthy strike rate at the East Lothian venue.

A successful performer on the polytrack, Mushaakis returned to the turf to run second behind Clock On Tower at Beverley. The going was on the soft side of good on that occasion and Joe Fanning’s mount will be better suited to faster conditions at Musselburgh.

M and F Funeral Services return to Musselburgh to sponsor the £8,000 5f sprint handicap at 3.25. Eric Alston’s Red Baron, runner up on his last four outings, will be fancied to finally go one better but course winner Mercers Row is narrowly preferred. Trained in North Yorkshire by Karen Tutty and partnered by her daughter Gemma, Mercers Row regained form at Catterick last time with a creditable second behind the well handicapped Lost In Paris.

As soon as the designer hats and frocks are packed away for another year, Musselburgh gets ready to do it all again tomorrow when it stages its richest meeting of the season, the £155,000 William Hill Scottish Sprint Cup.

The feature race, with an increased £70,000 prize, was traditionally part of Ladies Day but Musselburgh boss Bill Farnsworth is banking that a switch to a Saturday slot will create a crowd-pleasing fixture which can evolve to be the UK’s richest five furlong sprint. He said: “With the Scottish Sprint Cup our long term ambition is to develop it into a £100,000 race, which would make it the UK’s premier five furlong event. It will take time but I am confident we will succeed.”

Musselburgh

1.50 Mecca’s Angel

2.20 Mushaakis

2.50 Somewhat

3.25 Mercers Row

4.00 Merchant of Dubai

4.30 Cara’s Request

5.05 Jupiter Fidius

5.35 Patavium

Sandown

1.40 Biography

2.10 Benoni

2.40 Llyrical

3.15 Downturn

3.50 Great Timing

4.20 Tinshu

4.55 Cash Is King

York

2.00 Wiki Tiki

2.30 Sublimation

3.05 Montaser

3.40 Jaga Time

4.10 B Fifty Two

4.45 Smarty Sock

5.15 Mama Quilla

Aintree

5.55 Goal

6.30 Thanks For Coming

7.00 Bow Badger

7.35 Jack The Gent

8.10 Any Given Day

8.45 Just Cameron

9.15 Social Realism (nap)

Chepstow

5.30 Legend Rising

6.05 Little Choosey

6.40 Lady Sylvia

7.15 The Mongoose

7.50 Bramshill Lass

8.25 Auld Alliance

8.55 Play Street.

Goodwood

6.20 Jack Of Diamonds

6.50 Queen Of The Tarts

7.25 Goodwood Mirage

8.00 Dragon City

8.35 Dairam

9.05 Sejalaat