British Spot Plays: Epsom for June 5, 2026

After a recent heatwave, Britain is now mired in rain and cooler temperatures this week. That will undoubtedly affect who handles the softer conditions at Epsom this weekend for the Derby (G1) and Oaks (G1).

With the Coronation Cup (G1) moved this year to Saturday, I'll be taking a look at the Diomed (G3), a modest Group 3 for older horses at 1 1/16 miles, as well as the 1 1/2-mile Oaks on the Friday card.

After cashing on Where Love Lives in the National S. at Sandown last week, the British bankroll currently sits at $650.50. I will invest 5% of the outstanding balance to win on the following selections, beginning with a $33 play.

Race 3: Diomed (G3), 9:40 a.m. ET

Although #2 Chancellor (10-1) has shown a strong affinity for the all-weather in five starts since November (including a stakes win and a narrow loss in the Winter Derby (G3), I think the jury is still out on his turf ability.

He began his career on grass, winning two of his first three starts impressively, with a third in the Pat Eddery S. at Ascot in between. And the two that beat him there went on to finish one-two in the Summer (G1) at Woodbine.

He fared modestly in two starts to begin his three-year-old campaign, but reportedly was gelded and underwent a wind operation before reappearing on the all-weather in November.

Following Chancellor's success in the Tandridge S. on Feb. 7, jockey Rab Havlin said: "I think turf racing will suit him better, as on the all-weather everything is a big rush off the bridle. I don't know what the plan is now, but a bit of cut in the ground over a mile would see him at his most effective."

The Diomed appears a good spot to test Havlin's hypothesis, and Chancellor figures to be a bettable price.

Race 5: Epsom Oaks (G1), 11 a.m. ET

An interesting trend in the fillies' classics contested in England and Ireland this spring has been the choice of mounts made by Ryan Moore, the leading rider for Coolmore and trainer Aidan O'Brien. In both the English and Irish equivalents of the 1000 Guineas (G1), Moore chose wrong, picking Precise over True Love at Newmarket and then vice versa at the Curragh. The beneficiary in both cases was Wayne Lordan.

Could this happen again in the Oaks? Although I'm not counting on favorite Amelia Earhart regressing a lot, if at all, off her win under Moore in the Cheshire Oaks, I'm willing to take a significantly better price on #3 Cameo (8-1), Coolmore's Lingfield Oaks Trial winner and the mount of Lordan, in order to find out.

Cameo hadn't really made a case for her participation in the Oaks until Lingfield, and her dominant success over a modest group suggested at least two things. One, that she's a much better filly at distances beyond a mile; and two, she can potentially handle the undulating nature of Epsom, given some similarities to the Lingfield layout.

Cameo has some form to find off just one notable effort, but it doesn't seem out of the question from this view.