Epsom Derby Festival: The favourites for the Coronation Cup

The Derby Festival is just a matter of weeks away, and excitement is rife in the world of British flat racing as another two Classics take centre stage at the prestigious Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey — the Oaks and the Derby itself, the latter being the biggest and richest contest on the British calendar.

Aside from those two premier races though, and the official celebrations of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee which will also steal some of the limelight, the two-day meeting promised to deliver plenty of high-quality racing — with the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup not to be overlooked.

First contested in 1902 to mark the coronation of King Edward VII, the Coronation Cup is the only other top-group contest at the Derby Festival and takes place on the first day’s card alongside the Oaks. It is also raced over the same distance as the two Classics (1m4f), meaning it attracts previous entries of the Oaks and the Derby.

So, with that in mind, read on as we take a look at the favourites in the Betdaq horse racing betting ahead of 2022 renewal of the Coronation Cup.

Manobo

With Charlie Appleby confirming that last year’s Derby winner Adayar is set to miss the Coronation Cup after suffering a setback in training, Manobo is the new ante-post favourite for the Group 1 contest — flying the flag for Godolphin in Adayar’s absence.

As short as 7/4 with some bookmakers, Manobo has spent much of his career thus far racing outside of the United Kingdom — winning two outings at Newbury and Kempton before heading off to France, where he won the listed Prix Turenne at Saint-Cloud and the Group 3 Prix Chaudenay at Longchamp.

His most recent appearances have been out in Meydan, where he made it four victories from as many races under rules in the Group 3 Nad Al Sheba Trophy. But his winning run came to an end in March, finishing second to Stay Foolish in the Group 2 Dubai Gold Cup.

Manobo’s being heavily back to bounce back on British soil, and he should take all the beating with William Buick in the saddle.

Pyledriver

Pyledriver’s form is certainly not the most convincing heading into the Epsom race, as the current Coronation Cup holder had disappointing trips to Saudi Arabia and Meydan earlier this year — finishing 11 of 14 in the Neom Turf Cup before a fourth-place finish in the Dubai Sheema Classic.

But it’s not the first time the William Muir and Chris Grassick-trained horse has had to recover from some questionable form, his race record is proof of that, and Muir has claimed that he could not be happier with the five-year-old ahead of the defence of his Coronation Cup crown.

“He’s in good form, he went to Newbury (to work) on Sunday and I was as happy as I could be. I was delighted with it because he has had a break and he has come back and just shown he is exactly where he was before his other races all through the winter,” Muir said.

Alpinista

Sir Mark Prescott’s Alpinista looks like great value for money at a general 4/1 chance. The five-year-old massively came of age last season, winning all five of her races in 2021 — with a Group 2 Lancashire Oaks win on her second appearance before three-successive Group 1 victories in Germany, including an almost three-length win over soon-to-be Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Torquator Tasso.

She hasn’t been seen since winning the Allianz – Grosser Preis Von Bayern in Munich last November, but Prescott has confirmed that she is fine and will head straight to Epsom for the Coronation Stakes — with l’Arc de Triomphe their end goal for what promises to be an exciting season.

A daughter of the legendary Frankel, and on a run of three straight Group 1 victories in five successive wins, it would be foolish to rule this horse out ahead of the Derby Festival.