William Hill Free Bet and Newmarket July Meeting Tips 7/12

We've got one of the first key fixtures of the July Meeting set to run on Thursday and some high-quality action is going to unfold over the seven race card. Several Group level contests will be up for grabs while a few flights of juveniles take to the track – many of whom for the very first time.

CLICK HERE FOR YOUR FREE BET WITH WILLIAM HILL!

The going has recently been reassigned a status of good to soft, soft in places as the July course was able to avoid the majority of the deluge that the rest of Britain has been feeling over the past several weeks. Approximately 3mm of rain fell today though the forecast is dry throughout the the bulk of Thursday with showers expected to hold off until the evening.

Many runners here will be looking to take advantage of the softening up of the ground and a last minute inspection of the going stick should be made before locking in any substantial wagers on the day.

In the opener, we've got the Group 3 Bahrain Trophy and the race is likely to come down to a batle between Valiant and Shantaram with the latter of them getting the edge. Two sons of Galileo will be looking to take their claims here and Shataram scored his first victory at Newmarket and looks bang in form. Valiant has won two from two and gets Ryan Moore returning for the ride again but he will be looking to produce a bigger effort than was shown last time.

He managed to score but against a slim field of five and only after running on well in the last 30 yards. Against slightly more seasoned company like this, he will need to show more quality.

A very tricky race is next up in the second – a Group 2 encounter for colts and geldings going 6f. Coolmore saddle Gale Force Ten with Ryan Moore getting the mount here but the betting choice is expected to be Richard Hannon's Sir Prancealot. He finished a disappointing fourth when sent off as the favourite in the Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Ascot. Look for him to get back on track with just a few contenders to tackle as opposed to a ridiculous field of 22.