Kevin Blake's Oaks day tips

With the Epsom Classics upon us, Kevin Blake returns with selections for Friday's Oaks Day card; At The Races' tipster takes aim at the Diomed Stakes and Nifty 50 Handicap - as well as the big race at 4pm

>Sky Sports Racing's Kevin Blake nominates a hat-trick of best bets for Oaks Day at Epsom on Friday, including a fancy in the fillies' Classic.

>The Epsom Classics are here! Plenty of people try to talk the races down, but Epsom retains a great amount of magic that cannot be replicated anywhere else. The track is so unorthodox, but it really does represent the most ruthless test of a racehorse anywhere on the planet.

>As unorthodox as it is, it is a very rare occasion that the best horse over 12 furlongs doesn't prevail on the day in the Classics there. Epsom have put on a feast of action over the two days and hopefully I can help find you a winner or two, starting on Friday.

>The Betfred Diomed Stakes (2:40) has attracted a very competitive field and I'm siding with the Karl Burke-trained ICE MAX once again. Readers with a good memory may recall that I selected him at a big price in this column when he finished a good third to Lambourn in the Huxley Stakes at Chester.

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>He has run since at Goodwood and again acquitted himself well considering he might have hit the front a little early that day. He showed a liking for this course and distance when a close second in this race last year and he looks likely to run very well again. The later he is delivered, the better his chance.

>The Betfred "Nifty 50" Handicap (3:15) is an ultra-competitive contest and I'm taking a chance on one at a bigger price in the shape of the Tom Dascombe-trained AULD TOON LOON.

>The seven-year-old isn't the easiest to catch right and his waiting style always requires luck in running, but he has shaped well in his last two starts and looks to be bubbling up nicely. The rain that has arrived will hold no fears for him and he might well outrun his big price.

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>The main event of the day is the Betfred Oaks (4:00) and it rates as a fascinating renewal of the great race. Aidan O'Brien holds a very strong hand and what is most notable about his two main contenders Amelia Earhart and Cameo is that they are very much sure stayers. That is a crucial asset in the modern Oaks.

>Amelia Earhart is very solid based on what we saw from her at Chester, but her price sums her up well. Cameo was trading at an appealing price for quite some time after her victory at Lingfield, but has shortened right up now and the value has been sucked out of her price.

>However, one that still appeals as being a fair price is the one that I would have as being the form pick in the race, the Joseph O'Brien-trained THUNDERING ON. A daughter of Frankel out of the Group 1 winner Thundering Nights, she has improved with each of her four starts culminating in an impressive victory in the Salsabil Stakes at Navan.

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>It was a well-run race and she has to wait quite a long time to find racing room in the straight, but once she did she quickened up very well indeed to put the race to bed in a matter of strides. That appeals as being quite strong form and the promise for even better to come is obvious given the arc of her progression so far.

>Physically, she is a suitable type for this test being a neat, handy type of filly. She will have no issues with the rain that has fallen and the longer trip appeals as being within her range. The market has yet to give her the respect she deserves, and she looks to have an excellent chance under Dylan Browne McMonagle.

>2:40 EPSOM, FRIDAY - BETFRED DIOMED STAKES ICE MAX 3:15 EPSOM, FRIDAY - BETFRED 'NIFTY 50' HANDICAP AULD TOON LOON 4:00 EPSOM, FRIDAY - BETFRED OAKS THUNDERING ON