Newmarket, Thursday 25 June 2026: Tips and Best Bets

Newmarket, Thursday 25 June 2026: Tips and Best Bets

Good ground and sunshine at Headquarters today, which suits a card that looks competitive throughout. Three races worth attacking, one standout NAP. The going is described as Good across the board, so any horse that needs cut in the ground can be marked down immediately. Let’s get into it.

12:15 — Empress Fillies’ Stakes (Listed, 6f)

Selection: Havana Sprite (7/2, Boyle Sports / Betfred / LiveScore Bet)

Hector Crouch rides, and that is worth noting on its own. His A/E of 1.14 at Newmarket tells you he punches above his price at this track consistently, and he gets aboard the top-rated filly in this field. Havana Sprite destroyed a Bath novice by two and a half lengths last time with plenty in hand, and the assessors have put her at the head of the ratings here. The 6f trip on Good ground is exactly what she wants.

The obvious question is the grade jump, and that is fair. But the manner of her Bath success was the key thing: she had horses in front of her, picked them off, and kept finding more. That is a Listed filly in the making. John Tate’s yard has sent out five winners from their last sixteen runners, so the stable is ticking along nicely.

Glorious Game at 6/5 is the jolly, but a debut scorer at Windsor stepping into Listed company off one run is a big ask, first-time tongue-tie or not. Havana Sprite offers better value and has more experience of winning under pressure. What A Girl Wants has the best form on paper from her Irish campaign, but she was beaten out of sight on stable debut and the yard’s 14-day numbers (1 from 19) offer no confidence she bounces back today.

Verdict: Havana Sprite, 7/2, win.

12:45 — laywheeler.com Handicap (7f)

Selection: Superposition Each-Way (9/1, Boyle Sports)

Eleven runners, a proper competitive handicap, and the horse to be on is the one that won here last time. Superposition came from off the pace at Newmarket, knuckled down, and got the job done by a neck. That is exactly the kind of gritty winner that is capable of following up, and the track holds no fears. Good ground suits, the 7f trip suits, and he only goes up three pounds for that victory.

Jack Callan takes the ride and this is a track that rewards horses who know their way around it. Superposition knows his way around it very well. He is inconsistent, the data says so, but when conditions align he produces, and they align today. At 9/1 with Boyle Sports, this is a genuine each-way play in an 11-runner field.

The market leader Aalto is interesting with Ryan Moore in the saddle, and there is a reading of this race where he bounces back from a York run where he clearly was not himself. But the trainer Ian Williams has sent out one winner from 47 runners in the last 14 days, and that statistic is not something to brush past. Moore booking or not, the yard is not firing and that matters in a competitive handicap.

Mudbir with Buick is respected at 5/2, but first-time headgear and 47 days off means you are backing potential rather than form. Superposition won here last time and goes again on identical conditions. That is the cleaner angle.

Verdict: Superposition, 9/1 each-way, Boyle Sports.

1:15 — hnwines.co.uk Fillies’ Handicap (1m)

Selection: Crystal Pier (11/4, Boyle Sports)

Rossa Ryan has an A/E of 1.04 at Newmarket across 126 rides, meaning he delivers at this track relative to SP. He gets the mount on a filly who was a narrow runner-up off a mark of 75 last time and now runs off 79 in a seven-runner field. The 4lb rise is the concern, but the form is there and Robert Beckett’s yard has been operating at an A/E of 1.21 at this course over a significant sample. That is a real strike rate, not a fluke.

Crystal Pier handles 7f to 9f on a sound surface, so a mile on Good ground at Newmarket is well within her compass. She went close last time and the step back to a smaller field should help her, as she will not need as much luck in running.

Silent City is a fair favourite on her form, with two wins from five and a second at Newmarket off a mark only 2lb lower. The problem is 246 days off the track. That is a long time between runs and however good Roger Varian’s 14-day stats look (5 from 34), bringing a horse back fresh after eight months at a mile on quick ground is not a given. She may well win but 7/4 prices in that comeback risk.

Darzah tops the ratings but was well beaten at Sandown last time and the step back in grade may not be enough to paper over that. Crystal Pier is the value call at over 2/1.

Verdict: Crystal Pier, 11/4, win.

Today’s NAP

Superposition — laywheeler.com Handicap (12:45, Newmarket)
Odds: 9/1 — Boyle Sports (others: 17/2 Betfred, 15/2 LiveScore Bet)

Won over this exact course and trip last time out, and only goes up three pounds for a victory he earned the hard way, coming from off the pace and grinding it out. Good ground and 7f at Newmarket are his conditions, the form is recent and strong, and at 9/1 in an 11-runner handicap the each-way value is outstanding. The market is pointing elsewhere, which is precisely why this price exists.

Each-Way Recommended — 3 places at 1/5 odds