Tuesday’s best bets, by Chris Cook
So this morning, I picked up three picture books which my daughter can no longer bear to read and took them round to the local cafe, where they keep a couple of shelves of donated reading matter for the nippers. About nine hours earlier in New York, John Magnier of Coolmore fame reportedly sold a painting by Modigliani for $157m, a record for the auction house in question.
Is it a stretch to suggest a broad equivalence between these two disposals? Perhaps Magnier glanced up at the painting while coming down to breakfast one morning and thought: “Oh, we’ve still got that old thing. Let’s take it down Sotheby’s, see if someone else wants it. I can fill up the space with a couple of Chagalls.”
Or perhaps Mrs Magnier made the final decision about the picture, a reclining nude. “I’ve had it up to here with looking at that woman’s bum,” I imagine her saying. “Kindly get her out of the house.”
Magnier’s reputation is as a hard-nosed businessman, so many will assume that he is simply deciding to take the value, having made a very sound investment in acquiring the painting for less than $30m. That profit of over $100m will surely be the biggest news in Magnier’s working life this year.
Or perhaps the sale is an indication that, for all the intense sensuality and artistic significance of the Modigliani, Magnier’s greatest interest is in the equine works crafted by his own stud for display at the Curragh, Newmarket and Epsom. At Ballydoyle yesterday, I was struck by the sheer number of variations on the theme of Galileo, glossy bays with splashes of white down their faces and round their ankles, like so many preliminary sketches in an artist’s studio.
I should say that Magnier has never confirmed his ownership of the painting, though he has been widely described as the vendor and there seems to be no dispute about it. I asked Aidan O’Brien if he’d be following the sale but the painting was due to go under the hammer after midnight and the trainer was pretty sure he’d be asleep by then. Saxon Warrior is the (potential) masterpiece on his mind just now.
At Beverley today, Juneau (4.40) is the one that catches my eye at odds of 11-2. A nicely bred Mark Johnston filly, she ran into one when second on her handicap debut at Lingfield, the winner having since won easily from a 7lb higher mark.
Juneau gets to run from the same mark here and should be all the better for the experience and the return to this distance. A wide draw isn’t helpful but Joe Fanning will be familiar with such issues at one of his local tracks.
In the next, Contrebasse (5.10) appeals at 7-2. On breeding, Tim Easterby’s gelding ought to be a lot better this year, now that he’s been stepped up in distance from his maiden runs as a juvenile. He was pocketed by traffic trouble at Redcar 12 days ago but still hinted at plenty of ability.
The last at Chepstow has rather fallen apart through non-runners but Bailarico (8.20) is of interest at 4-1. Bred to need time and distance, he showed nothing until landing a point at Barbury in January. He’s since joined Warren Greatrex and gets in here on a basement mark with the potential to be thrown in, in view of his pedigree. Of course, he might also be tailed off by halfway by I think the odds justify the risk.
Quick guide Horse racing tips for Tuesday 15 May
Sedgefield 2.00 Miss Benefitz 2.30 Citadel 3.00 Francky Du Berlais 3.30 Gris De Pron 4.00 Tickerty Boo 4.30 General Mahler 5.00 Master Debonair
Beverley 2.10 Deep Intrigue 2.40 Ahlan Bil Emarati 3.10 Ce De Nullis 3.40 Racquet 4.10 Fieldsman 4.40 Juneau (nap) 5.10 Contrebasse (nb) 5.45 Bayshore Freeway
Wincanton 2.20 The Detainee 2.50 Ruby Russet 3.20 Whatthebutlersaw 3.50 Indian Hawk 4.20 Bramble Brook 4.50 Rose Crown 5.20 Unioniste
Chepstow 5.15 Molly Blake 5.50 Maypole 6.20 Sir Roderic 6.50 Awesome Allan 7.20 Can Can Sixty Two 7.50 Miss Inga Sock 8.20 Bailarico
Southwell 5.30 Too Many Diamonds 6.00 Golden Vision 6.30 Galway Jack 7.00 Arthur’s Reuben 7.30 Settie Hill 8.00 The Lady Rules 8.30 Notnow Seamus
Tips by Chris Cook.