2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday Preview – DS
2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday Preview
We were out of luck with the badly hampered Zanndabad in the Chester Cup but hopefully some of you backed A Piece Of Heaven. We have a busy day tomorrow, Dave Stevos’ 2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday tips are below.
12.55 Lingfield – William Hill Handicap (Class 4)
Not the most exciting of starts to the day with a class 4 handicap but there’s one in here that could go well at a price. Towerlands is best known for his exploits on the AW and he landed a class 4 handicap at Wolves off 80 over 9.5f four starts ago.
Since then, he ran a cracker to finish a close third off his revised mark of 85 on Lingfield’s AW track in a class 2 handicap in February before disappointing in a lesser event at Wolves and then back at Lingfield in the valuable All-Weather Vase.
The question is whether he can prove to be as effective on turf and while he was running off much lower marks when he last raced on grass, four runs on good and good to firm ground have yielded two second placed finishes.
The form of his fine third on the AW here in February has worked out well (a neck behind the then 88 rated Respond, now rated 96) and to be fair to him, he wasn’t beaten that far in the Middle-Distance Vase last time. At odds of 16/1, a small e/w interest is advised.
2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday Tip: Towerlands e/w @ 16/1
1.15 Haydock – Swinton Handicap Hurdle (Premier)
Just when you thought the NH season was over… To be fair, this is a decent race and cases can be made for quite a few. The one I eventually came down on is the Jack Jones trained son of Forever Now, Mr McLoughlan.
A winner of three of his eight starts over hurdles, this 6yo was last sighed running into sixth over C&D in the Pertemps series two mile final. He was beaten 8.25l but it was a race where it paid to be close to the early pace and I think it was a better run than his finishing position suggests.
All three of his wins have come on ground with good in the description so conditions will suit and the assessor dropped him 2lb for that run here last time. I believe this lad will be much better suited by a truly run race, which this should be, and Jack Tudor is usually pretty good on hold up types. At odds of 22/1, Mr McLaughlan is the e/w selection.
2026 haydock Saturday Tip: Mr McLaughlan e/w @ 22/1 (5 places) NAP
1.28 Lingfield – Oaks Trial Fillies’ Stakes (Listed)
Just five run here and none are priced bigger than 17/2 so we’ll be swerving this race. Given how dominant Aidan O’Brien was in the Chester trials you’d have to fancy Cameo to run a big race and the unbeaten Little Symphony has an obvious chance too but this is a no bet race for us.
2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday Tip: No Bet
1.58 Lingfield – Derby Trial Stakes (Listed)
Six run here and the unbeaten Dubawi colt Maho Bay is the 13/8 fav for Godolphin and Charlie Appleby. The question is, will he stay? If his pedigree is anything to go by, he won’t but I probably would have said the same when he won over 1m2f last time and also when he won over 1m3f on debut at Kempton.
Isaac Newtown represents Aidan O’Brien and Coolmore and he can’t be discounted but he’ll need to improve markedly on his moderate seasonal comeback run at Newmarket 24 days ago. William Haggas runs his Sea The Stars colt Maltese Cross, rated 96 after his Newbury novice win over 1m2f last time. He should relish this longer trip.
Exciting Prospect
Bay Of Brilliance looked a hugely exciting prospect last year, but his best runs came on rain softened ground. The value play here could be Balzac. Yes, he came up short in the Blue Riband at Epsom last time but it wasn’t a bad effort and the way he ran suggested that he is going to improve for this longer trip.
He’s a half-brother to Claymore, a two-time 1m4f winner for this yard and his dam is out of a 1m4f listed winner so his pedigree suggests there could be more to come at this trip. At odds of 25/1, a modest e/w interest on Balzac is advised.
2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday Tip: Balzac e/w @ 25/1
2.20 Ascot – Victoria Cup Handicap (Heritage)
Looking at today’s results, it looks like a high draw is favourable. The one that made most appeal to me at a price is the Richard and Peter Fahey trained 5yo Golden Mind.
By Galileo Gold, this horse signed off last season with a 33-1 shock win off 99 in a heavy ground handicap at Doncaster (6f). It’ll be very different ground today but he won his maiden on good to firm at Leicester back in 2023 and there is encouragement to be taken from his two previous runs over this C&D on quick ground.
The first of those came in the 2023 Listed Chesham Stakes when he was beaten just 0.75l into third behind Snellen. Last July he ran in a heritage handicap here off 100 under Warren Fentiman and he finished an excellent 2.5l fourth behind the upwardly mobile Two Tribes (who we backed), who is now rated 13lb higher.
Golden Mind warmed up for a crack at this massive pot with a fine second off 102 at Musselburgh 35 days ago and with Fentiman’s claim he is effectively 2lb lower here. He’s been handed a lovely draw (I hope) in stall 23 and if he repeats the form he showed when fourth here last year, he is capable of hitting the frame at odds of 28/1.
2026 Lingfield & Ascot Saturday Tip: Golden Mind e/w @ 28/1 (6 places)
2.40 Lingfield – Chartwell Fillies’ Stakes (Group 3)
With a rating of 93, Sunlit Uplands has a fair chunk to find with the likes of Copacabana Sands and Dash Of Azure but the ex-Rae Guest trained filly (he still part owns her) was a nose away from nicking precious black type on her last start in a 1m listed heat at Lingfield.
Previous to that she came up short in soft ground listed races in France and at Nottingham but I think she is going to be better suited by these quicker conditions. Yes, her last win came on soft at Sandown but she previously won on good at Haydock and her only other start on good to firm saw her finish second in a York novice (her first run of last season).
She goes well fresh, she hasn’t got a huge amount to find to finish third and I would imagine she’ll be ridden to achieve that position. Hopefully, they go an honest gallop and if they do, Sunlit Uplands will hopefully arrive on the scene late and nick some black type.
