Donn McClean

THIS afternoon’s William Hill Ayr Gold Cup has been all about the draw all week. At the public draw on Thursday morning, everybody wanted to be high.

The right-hand side of the board was full after stalls had been allocated to just over half the field, and the last man out, Hoof It, was left with stall one.

It may not be so straightforward, mind you. True there has been an apparent bias in the last few years. In 2013, the first five home were drawn 14 or higher.

Last year, everybody wanted to be on the near side, and four of the first five home in the Gold Cup were drawn high.

That said, only eight horses raced on the far side last year, and one of them, Minalisa, finished second overall. And in 2012, on heavy ground, the winner emerged from stall eight and the fourth horse emerged from stall two.

Also, they have moved the stands rail in for this year’s renewal, so far in that the safety limit for the race had to be reduced from 27 to 25.

Yesterday in the Bronze Cup, the majority of the runners came down the centre. The bias may not be as pronounced in this year’s renewal as it has been in the recent past.

Lexington Abbey was second last out of the hat at Thursday’s draw. In fact, he was last out, but Hoof It had had nobody to shout a stall for him, so he was put back in, to be left with the stall that nobody else wanted.

Kevin Ryan chose high boxes for his first two horses out of the hat, Blaine and Glory Awaits, but he was left with one or seven for Lexington Abbey. He chose seven.

Interesting contender

Even so, Lexington Abbey remains a really interesting contender. He ran a cracker in the Silver Cup last year behind Huntsman’s Close. He was the only three-year-old in the race last year, and he finished well to take fifth place, just a neck in front of Mission Approved, who led home the far side group.

It is probable that Kevin Ryan has had the Gold Cup in mind for the Sleeping Indian gelding since then. He has run five times this season, but he hasn’t run since he was beaten a short-head by Greeb at Nottingham in July.

He had beaten Greeb five weeks previously over the same course and distance, admittedly on 2lb better terms, but he just got going a little late on his latest run and just failed to catch Charlie Hills’ horse.

The handicapper raised him just 2lb for that to a mark of 97, and it is interesting that Ryan left him off the track after that, presumably with the Ayr Gold Cup in mind.

It was a risk, that mark was always going to be close enough to the cut, but Ryan always had the option of the Silver Cup again if he didn’t make it. As it turned out, he just got into the Gold Cup field, number 25 of 25. Last man into the race, last man out of the hat.

He is a relatively lightly-raced sprinter, he continues to progress and he has the potential to progress further. He can go well fresh, he ran a cracker on his debut this season at Doncaster to finish a close-up fourth behind Tatlisu, so the fact that he has been off the track for 64 days is more a positive than a negative.

And the booking of Pat Smullen is obviously a positive. Smullen rode him in the Silver Cup last year.

He hasn’t ridden him since, but he has ridden him twice now in total, he obviously knows the horse well, and he is a top rider. It is obviously a wide open race, but Lexington Abbey looks over-priced at 20/1.

NEWBURY

Laurence is joint-favourite for the Dubai Duty Free at Newbury, but Luca Cumani’s horse also looks over-priced at 7/1. Cumani often targets this race, he has won it three times in the last eight years, and Laurence was impressive in winning a 10-furlong handicap at Beverley three weeks ago.

The Dubawi colt had been threatening to win a decent handicap off his mark of 85, he had been unlucky on his previous run at Newmarket off the same mark, and he showed a nice turn of foot and kept on well to win nicely at Beverley from a progressive filly of William Haggas’ in Sealife.

The handicapper raised him 7lb for that, but he gets to race today under just a 5lb penalty, so he is 2lb well-in. More than that, however, he is only three, he is on an upward curve and he has the potential to go a fair way higher even than his new handicap mark. By Dubawi, he ran well on easy ground twice last year as a juvenile, and he could run a big race today.

RECOMMENDED

LEXINGTON ABBEY, 20/1 (generally) 1 point each-way,

LAURENCE, 7/1 (generally), 1 point each-way.