Billionaire Premier League owner, 55, earns huge win after 12/1 bet on Royal Ascot winner
BILLIONAIRE Prem owner Tony Bloom is coming home from Royal Ascot a few quid richer.
The
Advertisement
3
Tony Bloom had a winner at Royal Ascot on Friday
Credit: PA
3
The Brighton owner's horse Venetian Sun romped to victory in the Albany Stakes
Credit: Alamy
3
Bloom's nag drifted to 12/1 this morning before going off at 7/1
Credit: PA
Bloom, who has the Seagulls since 2009,
The former poker star started his own
Bloom co-owns Venetian Sun alongside Starlizard's Head of Football Ian McAleavy.
The filly was given a poor draw in Stall 1 under Clifford Lee in Friday's opening race.
Advertisement
READ MORE ON ROYAL ASCOT
But Bloom - who is renowned for his knack of beating the bookies - backed her big at odds of 12/1.
The two-year-old filly romped home under Lee, netting legendary punter Bloom a windfall after placing a "decent bet".
Bloom told Sky Sports: "7-1 looks a good price now, and she was 12-1 this morning as well.
"Given the confidence [trainer] Karl [Burke] gave us, we had to have a decent bet.
Advertisement
Most read in Football
"We had the worst draw in stall one and things didn't necessarily go right for her in the race, but she still won easily.
"I might be a bit biased but I'd like to think she's shown something special there.
Moment Royal Ascot racegoers hurl punches in vicious brawl in front of shocked punters
"We'll leave it to the boss [on her next race], but we're looking ahead to next season and to a potential 1000 Guineas, so that would be something really to look forward to."
Following Friday's race, victorious trainer Burke added on Venetian Sun: "She's a special filly.
Advertisement
"I was gutted we got the draw that we had and to be honest, she's won despite that because it's not really the way we like to ride her – loads of daylight.
"She's got a great turn of foot and she can get in amongst them and use it.
"She'll stay further, I think six or seven, she's got a great chance next year of being a Guineas filly but we'll enjoy today and plan for the future."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
2 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Royal Ascot punters win ‘life-changing' sum from £1 stake after run of freak results ‘not seen in years'
SEVERAL Royal Ascot punters were celebrating winning 'life-changing' sums from a £1 stake - after a run of freak results not seen in years. Those who took on and conquered the Tote Placepot on Friday were duly rewarded with a colossal payout. Advertisement 1 Cercene, left, was a shock 33-1 winner of the Coronation Stakes Credit: Shutterstock Editorial If you managed to pick a horse to place in the first six races and stuck a quid on it, you'd have won £26,424.30. Bookies were laughing as huge outsiders such as 33-1 Cercene won the Coronation Stakes. While 25-1 roughie Time For Sandals nabbed the Commonwealth Cup ahead of the likes of the well-fancied Shadow Of Light, Jonquil and Babouche. Favourite backers were licking their wounds after getting one over the layers on Thursday. Advertisement But it was definitely 1-0 to the bookies on day four after just two favourites - Ethical Diamond and Amiloc - won. There were just 18.15 winning units on the Placepot. And the £26,000 dividend was one of the biggest seen in years. However, the benchmark was set in 2022 when, on one day there, the dividend was £79,125.50 to a £1 stake. Advertisement Most read in Horse Racing Comment Exclusive Kev Matthews, Head of Racing at Tote, said: "Days like this are what the Tote Placepot is all about – a small stake can lead to a life-changing return. "Friday's dividend of over £26,000 is a perfect example. "We saw plenty of favourites turned over and a real mix of results, which gave Placepot players a rollercoaster ride all the way through to the final leg. "Huge congratulations to those who landed it." Advertisement The Placepot, which requires punters to pick a placed horse in each of the first six races, remains one of the most popular bets in British racing. With tens of thousands playing every day at Royal Ascot, today's results demonstrate the unique excitement and potential rewards of pool betting. FREE BETS - GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. . Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chases their losses Doesn't gamble if they're upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – Gamble Aware – Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here. Advertisement
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘Extraordinary' Royal Ascot row breaks out as livid trainer blasts his own jockey over ‘terrible' ride
AN 'extraordinary' Royal Ascot row has broken out - after a jockey slated his own jockey over a 'terrible' ride. French handler Jerome Reynier was absolutely furious with US-based jockey Flavien Prat's effort on Facteur Cheval in Wednesday's Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes. 2 Flavien Prat has won over £100million in his career but was slated for a 'terrible' ride by a furious trainer at Royal Ascot Credit: AP 2 Facteur Cheval was up with the red-hot pace early on - a move that proved costly as he ran out of gas and finished only sixth The six-year-old gelding, who has won almost £4million in his brilliant career, was sent off 25-1 for the 1m2f contest. But his trainer believed those odds were nowhere near a true reflection of his ability. And he clearly thought that the horse had a chance if Prat followed his instructions. However, that all appeared to go out the window early when Facteur Cheval chased breakneck 100-1 pace-setter Continuous. Facteur Cheval was later dropped back but unsurprisingly ran out of gas and finished a limp sixth of eight behind superstar winner Ombudsman. Reynier, still seething when speaking to the media days later, hit out at Prat's tactics - which, despite the disastrous effort, still netted the horse's owners £14,000. He said: "He (the horse) has come out of the race well, despite his jockey doing absolutely nothing to help him. "I think it was perhaps the worst ride given to one of my horses since I became a trainer. Most read in Horse Racing "In a race with loads of pace, he elected to lead the chase [of the pacemaker]. "He was the first to commit on the turn for home and launched his attack three wide with no cover and too far out. "He thought he was at Santa Anita or Del Mar where they have short straights and the tracks are flat. "And I don't think it was a judicious move to use a jockey who rides in that style. "It was just a terrible ride." French-bron Prat is one of America's top jockeys and had amassed prize money earnings there of more than £11m this calendar year alone. Over the course of his career in the States, Prat has recorded 1,995 wins and earned more than £150m in winnings. FREE BETS - GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. . Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Read more on the Irish Sun Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chases their losses Doesn't gamble if they're upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – Gamble Aware – Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.
The Irish Sun
6 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Royal Ascot is an absolute beast and keeps getting bigger – but Charlie Appleby can't buy a winner there
THE beast that is Royal Ascot just keeps on getting, erm, beastier. I don't think that's a word, but oh well. Across the board, attendances have been dipping at our biggest tracks after a post-Covid surge. But this meeting continues to buck the trend. 1 Field Of Gold has been the start of the Ascot show this week Credit: PA Crowds have been up on each of the first four days this week — no doubt thanks also to the sweltering weather. Ascot has thoroughly deserved to have its days in the sun, though. As much as I've become a dinosaur and roll my eyes at things considered 'Instagrammable', that's exactly what this meeting is . . . and people can't get enough. From the moment the gates opened punters were streaming in and queuing for 20 or 30 minutes at four designated selfie spots. The action has been good off the track, but even better on it. It's one of the great weeks of the year and people like to be a part of it. Long may that continue. The game's wealthiest owners spend millions to have runners here and the result, as ever, has been a top-class four days of racing with one day still to come. And, Jesus wept, it's been hot. So hot, in fact, the icing on the cakes in the press room was close to melting. You don't realise how tough we have it sometimes. Thanks in advance for your sympathy. There is no doubt in my mind who the star performer of the week was, and that's Field Of Gold. He won the St James's Palace by three and a half lengths and it could have been even more comprehensive had Colin Keane delayed his challenge a little longer. Those with a greater grasp of the formbook than me reckon he is the best miler since his old man Kingman 11 years ago — it's hard to argue on what he's done the last twice at the Curragh and Ascot. Most read in Horse Racing The galloping grey got the Johnny G show rolling, and what a difference a year makes. In 2024, Gosden was scrabbling around looking for a half decent horse, and all of a sudden he's got a stable full of them. In contrast, what a complete nightmare it's been for Godolphin's main man Charlie Appleby. His last winner at Royal Ascot was in 2022, when Naval Crown struck at 33-1, and he has now had 35 straight runners without a winner at the Royal meeting. He had lots of beaten fancies last year and this week it's been a similar tale of woe, with Notable Speech (4-1), Ruling Court (4-1), Cinderella's Dream (5-4f) and Shadow Of Light (6-4f) among those turned over at short odds. It certainly does not bode well for his two fancied runners Treanmor and Rebel's Romance today. It's three years in a row now that Appleby has got off to a fast start in the spring before spluttering to a halt in early summer. What on earth is happening? Are the horses peaking early and unable to back up? Appleby must be sick of the sight of all those top hats and tails by now. And it must hurt even more that Godolphin have had three winners this week, two trained by Gosden and one by Saeed bin Suroor. I bet Saeed is secretly over the moon — he has been starved of ammunition over the last decade having falling down the pecking order with Sheikh Mo, but he has shown repeatedly he can still get the job done on the big days. If it's the most important week of the year for trainers, it's probably more significant for the men and women in the weighing room. A couple of jocks who were in the wilderness coming here were Richard Kingscote and Kieran Shoemark, but both went home with winners under their belts. You could see the weight of the world melt off Shoemark's shoulders in particular after he guided 22-1 shot Never Let Go home in the Sandringham yesterday. Whatever you think about his ability in the saddle, the bloke has clearly suffered since losing the Gosden gig and you'd have to have a heart of stone to not wish him well going forwards. Mind you, one jockey who hardly did his reputation on these shores any good was the mercurial Frenchman Mickael Barzalona. Zarigana travelled like stink in the Coronation but he couldn't lift the hot favourite home, just a couple of weeks after losing another tight one at Epsom on popular punters' pick Calandagan. He was only appointed as the No1 jock to the Aga Khan at the start of the year but, after this latest dud, he'll surely be feeling the heat . . . and that makes two of us. FREE BETS - GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. . Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Read more on the Irish Sun Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chases their losses Doesn't gamble if they're upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – Gamble Aware – Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.
