NAP of the Day: Christmas at Carlisle – in a heatwave in June?

After a difficult Royal Ascot, it was great to get straight back into the winners' enclosure courtesy of English Time (5/6) at Ffos Las on Tuesday. A good omen for Thomas Tuchel and Co in Boston later on? I hope so.

On a red-hot Wednesday afternoon, the NAP of the Day comes from the only English card, at Carlisle.

Is there a less appropriately-named runner than QUEEN OF CHRISTMAS at Carlisle on Wednesday?

There's a heatwave in the UK, featuring temperatures of 30 degrees and above. Four meetings - from Ffos Las, Kempton, Salisbury and Worcester - have been abandoned due to welfare concerns. Hmm...

All jokes aside, Karl Burke's two-year-old daughter of Mehmas, a €305k purchase, looks a good bet for this five-furlong maiden at the Cumbria venue.

There was a lot of chatter about this filly ahead of her run in a Nottingham maiden earlier in the month, won by subsequent Queen Mary runner-up Senorita Bonita.

Queen Of Christmas was a bit disappointing, finishing four-and-a-half lengths behind the winner in fifth of 10, but it looked a hot race at the time and after Royal Ascot, there's even more reason to believe so.

Horse Racing Odds

The selection, a "quality filly" according to her trainer to Sporting Life, was Ascot-bound herself, if obliging at Nottingham. Of course, she didn't, so comes here instead.

I'm expecting a lot of improvement and if her stellar homework is translated on the track this time, she ought to take a bit of stopping in what looks a modest-enough event.

Of her four rivals, all of whom are debutants, it's Louis The Fifth who's feared most. Michael Bell's son of No Nay Never also cost a pretty penny - €215k to be precise - and she's already garnered a bit of support in the early betting market.

Geoff Oldroyd is a trainer who does extremely well with a small string and his 320k guineas filly In The Black is interesting. The daughter of Havana Grey is another to watch in the market.

By Jove Grace and Sod Hall Lane aren't hopeless, far from it in fact, but they simply don't make as much appeal on paper.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Queen Of Christmas come in for lots of money, so my suggestion is to take odds-against while you still can.

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