COURSE form is a factor. It is rarely a negative if a horse has shown good form before at a particular track when he or she is returning to that track. But there are some tracks at which course form appears to be more important than it is at others. Ascot is one, the straight track in particular. (Worth keeping in mind for next week obviously.) York is another.

You can understand why Spanish City is favourite for the JCB Handicap at York today. He has won two of his three races since he has been gelded and he ran an eye-catching race in the Victoria Cup at Ascot in his only defeat.

He is progressive and he is lightly-raced and a 3lb hike for his last (albeit narrow) win at Doncaster is not harsh. But he is short and he has never run at York.

After the Victoria Cup, you could have marked Roger Varian’s horse down as a horse for Royal Ascot and, sure enough, he does hold an entry in the Wokingham. However, while he could be effective over a stiff and well-run six furlongs, seven furlongs is probably his trip. The International Handicap on King George day at Ascot looks like an ideal race for him.

We don’t know that he will not be able to operate at York, but he is short in a highly competitive handicap for a horse who is not yet proven at the track.

PROVEN

Golden Apollo is proven at the track, and he could represent some value against the favourite at almost four times his odds. Tim Easterby’s horse has only finished eighth and fourth respectively in his two runs this season to date but he had no luck in-running on his seasonal debut in the six-furlong handicap at the Dante meeting in which George Bowen ran riot. He had to be switched on the run to the furlong pole and he appeared to finish with plenty of energy.

He didn’t have a clear run last time either behind Gilgamesh over seven furlongs, and he raced towards the far side among horses, which probably wasn’t an advantage.

He has a length and a half to find with Get Knotted on that run – he had Salateen and Lualiwa behind him – but he didn’t have as good a run through the race as Michael Dods’ horse had, and he still has the potential to find it. Get Knotted goes well at York too and the handicapper has dropped both by 1lb. They both have chances.

By Pivotal, Golden Apollo goes well on easy ground, but he proved when he won the six-furlong three-year-old handicap on this card last year that he can operate on fast ground too. He should get the fast pace today that suits him well, he will race from stall nine, the stall that housed the last two winners of this race, and he appears to be at least as adept over seven furlongs as he is over six.

FLATTENED

Zap is also proven at York and Richard Fahey’s horse could run well in the six-furlong handicap that Golden Apollo won on this day last year.

The Mayson gelding was a little unlucky not to win a three-year-olds’ seven-furlong handicap at the Dante meeting. Slowly away and dropped in from his outside draw, he was held up at the back of the field early on but he came with a run down the stands’ side that looked set to carry him to victory. His run just flattened out a little inside the final furlong and he went down by a head in the end to his stable companion Clubbable.

That race is working out well. Clubbable was beaten at Epsom on Oaks day next time but the Cheveley Park filly came out on Wednesday and won a handicap at Chelmsford off a 4lb higher mark than the mark off which she won at the Dante meeting. Also, Cavatina, another Cheveley Park filly, who finished fourth in the York race, came out and won next time at Leicester, and she well off a 10lb higher mark to finish third behind Maksab and Yafta at Newmarket last Saturday.

Zap has since run disappointingly at Goodwood, but he was weak in the market before that race and he reportedly suffered from heat exhaustion. You can easily put a line through that run.

If he hadn’t run there, if he was coming into this race on the back of that run at the Dante meeting, you have to think that he wouldn’t be a 20/1 shot. The drop to six furlongs could be a positive, given how his run flattened out last month, and he won his maiden on his racecourse debut over this course and distance.

He is drawn high again today, but the six furlongs is a straight six furlongs, he doesn’t have a bend to negotiate like he did last time over seven. The fitting of blinkers for the first time could sharpen him up nicely and it could be worth backing him in a good each-way race at a decent price.

RECOMMENDED

GOLDEN APOLLO, 1 point win, 9/1 (generally)

ZAP, 1 point each-way, 20/1 (generally)