Sean Levey Saturday rides blog - October 3, 2026

1.50 - Aramram

Aramram hasn't missed a dance this year - he's a hearty devil who always wears his heart on his sleeve for us. He tries every time, and there's no doubt he has form at Ascot. But we're at the stage now where we don't know what sort of form he's going to bring to the track. If he brings his best form, he'll be there or thereabout.

Looking at the field, there doesn't look like a real standout in there, which is a positive for us. You know, there's a lot of horses in there who have been running really well, but that keep hitting the crossbar and will need to find a bit more to win here, so we've got every chance. 

3.00 - Fitzella

I've then got Fitzella in the next, and this is a horse that's got a lot to find on what she's done so far this year. But she was a very nice horse the year before this, and she has nice form at Ascot which is a big help. If she can find that form from a year ago, then I'd expect her to run well here. 

It's a very competitive race though - Division heads the betting and is a very interesting horse who ran really well last time. William Haggas' horses are flying at the moment, there's no doubt about that - so he'd be the one to beat. 

Fitzella is one of Hugo Palmer's, and I have had rides for Hugo before - not a huge amount, obviously, because he's usually got horses in the same races as the people that I ride for. But he's a very good trainer and he's done very well since he partnered with Mihcael Owen up north. It's nice to get a nice ride for him at a nice meeting, and I suppose you never know.

3.35 - River King

I finish the day with River King who is just a lovely horse. I've always liked him. I always thought he was going to be a great handicapper, and while he has run well on quick ground, he's a horse that I would argue is better with a bit of cut in the ground. And as a result, with the summer being the way it was, it's meant he's missed a lot of opportunities through the ground, particularly in those dry spells.

I thought he ran a lovely race at Doncaster off the back of a long break. it should put him perfect for this race. And we know he likes Ascot because he ran well here at the Royal meeting. This is the big race of the day at Ascot, and I'd say he's probably my best chance of the day. It's quite an open race and something that changes things quite a bit is that I'm drawn incredibly low, alongside the favourite. That isn't where you'd normally want to be - Ascot can be hard to gauge, especially when there's a big field such as this, but I'd still put him down as my best chance of the day.

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