Horse Racing Tips
Chester May Festival 2026: More Roodee Success For Hugo Palmer?
William Hill News tipster Steve Mullington marks your seven-race card on Day 2 at the 2026 Chester May Festival.
Top class racing continues on the Roodee on Thursday on what is also Ladies Day at the famous Roman racecourse.
Chester Tips Day 2:
- 1.30pm – Vintage Clarets (E/W)
- 2.05pm – Koodini
- 2.40pm – Golden Story (NAP)
- 3.05pm – Al Qareem
- 3.40pm – King Of Thunder
- 4.10pm – Hamadhan
- 4.45pm – Galilean Quality
Punters can look forward to the running of Group 3 Ormonde Stakes which often produces a finish to savour. Our horse racing expert Steven Mullington marks your entire seven race card:
1.30 – 5f Stellar Handicap
I may be going out on a limb here but there is no way VINTAGE CLARETS should be a 40/1 shot in a Chester handicap.
Admittedly the course and distance winner doesn’t have the best of draws and his current form figures aren’t much to write home about, but he comes alive at this racecourse and has to be given an each-way squeak.
2.05 – 5½f EBF Maiden Stakes
Hugo Palmer is well known for having his two-year-olds absolutely spot on for the Chester May Meetinng, making KOODINI a horse of significant interest in this maiden stakes.
On breeding alone, it’s highly probable that this Kodi Bear-gelding is going to be a quick animal, so he is worth a bet.
2.35 – 1m2½f Dee Stakes (Listed Race)
Karl Burke’s GOLDEN STORY (NAP) can break the recent Aidan O’Brien dominance of the Chester Dee Stakes.
The three-year-old chestnut colt won his sole start as a two-year-old last October at Doncaster in a one mile maiden stakes. Despite some early greenness and idling late, the youngster still won by one and a quarter lengths.
As he is already my ante-post Dante fancy, I am napping him up to beat the AOB pair today.
3.05 – 1m5½f Ormonde Stakes (Group 3)
Second to Illinois in this race last season, AL QAREEM (NB) will give as good as he gets in this Group 3.
This gutsy seven-year-old is a punters dream as he always puts in 100% in all of his races, with it being little wonder he’s a 13-times winner already. At around 12/1 in our odds at the time of writing, he’s an each-way play this afternoon.
3.40 – 7½f Handicap
Being gelded appeared to work the oracle for KING OF THUNDER last season when closing off his season with a victory at Haydock.
Hugo Palmer’s representative gets plenty of weight from his contemporaries in this line up and can make the most of it..
4.10 – 1m2½f Handicap
A deep dive shows me that HAMADHAN is in fact an Exors Of The Late HH Aga Khan cast-off who has made his merry way from Johnny Murtagh’s place in Ireland, over to the Jennie Candlish yard.
I’m hopeful the dual code trainer can find the key to this Lope De Vega-gelding and this race is a good starting point.
4.45 – 1m4½f Handicap
GALILEAN QUALITY had a nice warm up on the all-weather just 26 days ago, winning a two runner affair at Southwell.
The three-year-old also won a competitive little novice stakes over 1m2f at Pontefract at the end of last season, which should have given him a good grounding for the demands of the Roodee.
He’s definitely worth an interest in our Chester sports betting markets.
*Odds subject to change – prices accurate at the time of writing*
