17:20 Ayr

Ladbrokes 'Free Rewards With Instant Spins' Handicap Stakes

1m2f · Flat · Class 6 · Good To Firm · 9 runners · £3,664 · Monday, 27 July 2026

Result

Race report

AI top pick wonat SP 3/1F·4.00

1st
Royal Blaze (GB)AI top pick · 51.4
Greg Fairley·Ewan Whillans
3/1F·4.00
SP
2nd
Falcon Nine (GB)
Kieran Shoemark·Iain Jardine·beaten 0.3 lengths
4/1·5.00
SP
3rd
Penelope's Sister (IRE)
Paul Mulrennan·Jim Goldie·beaten 3.75 lengths
7/2·4.50
SP

Race time

2m 7.08s

Race time recorded.

In-running (Royal Blaze (GB))

“raced in the pack - progress under pressure from 2f out - in front inside final furlong - stayed on to assert close home”

Settled · 1pt level stake = 3.00 pt return on the winnerTipping P&L →

Furlong's verdict

Reading the form…

AI-written, grounded in our data on this race. May be wrong. Verify before staking. Opinion, not advice.

Pundit corner

Racing Post · third-party

Pundit pick: Ravenscraig Castle

Ravenscraig Castle is our selection, rated 73 to lead this Class 6 10f contest at Ayr on good to firm, 7 lb clear of Falcon Nine in second on our figures. Royal Blaze and Betty Bassett also stand out as leading dangers in a full field of thirteen. He is without a win in his recent starts, which tempers confidence to medium, but the rating advantage still makes him the one to beat.

Editorial from Racing Post analysts via the Racing API — not generated by Racing Alpha. Formbook forecast prices are estimates, not market prices.

Why the model rates this top

Royal Blaze

Greg Fairley · Ewan Whillans · 5yo

Top-rated of 9

score 51.4 · +4.9 clear of next best (46.5)

Scores compare runners within this race only

The Racing Alpha rating combines four signals. Below is the breakdown — components driving this pick first.

Freshness10% weight
100very strong
21d since last run (race-fit window)
Trainer20% weight
58average
Ewan Whillans: 3/13 winners last 14d (23%)
Form20% weight
49below average
Last 6: 4-4-8-3-9-1
Ratings50% weight
40below average
OR 60 — highest combined rating in the field

MarketNo market price available yet.

v1.3 rating — a field-relative score, not a win probability; for market-derived value see the Fair column in the runners table. Weights and method on /about. Tips are opinions, not advice.

Draw bias — Ayr 1m2f

full course data →

Moderate: high (outside) favoured (IV 1.20).

Low (1–5)

IV 0.76

Mid (6–9)

IV 1.06

High (10–13)

IV 1.20

Today: Ravenscraig Castle (draw 10) and Recobella (draw 12) get the bias; Just Dottie (draw 5) is in the least-favoured band.

IV = impact value: 1.00 is neutral, above it a stall band wins more often than its share of runners predicts. 57 qualifying races at this course and trip, 3-year window.

Runners · sorted by finishing position

Pos	No.	Horse	Form	Wt	OR	RPR	TS	AI	SP
1	1	Royal Blaze J: Greg Fairley · T: Ewan Whillans · draw 9 5yo · G · btp	448391	9-09	60	—	—	51.4	3/1F·4.00 SP
2	5	Falcon Nine J: Kieran Shoemark · T: Iain Jardine · draw 8 6yo · G · chb	772492	9-07	58	—	—	43.0	4/1·5.00 SP
3	2	Penelope's Sister J: Paul Mulrennan · T: Jim Goldie · draw 3 6yo · M · b	79854	9-09	60	—	—	40.4	7/2·4.50 SP
4	4	Ravenscraig Castle J: Andrew Mullen · T: Iain Jardine · draw 10 8yo · G · grb	26485	9-07	58	—	—	42.7	8/1·9.00 SP
5	12	Golden Valour J: James Sullivan · T: R Mike Smith · draw 13 10yo · G · bp	578536	8-11	48	—	—	32.5	22/1·23.00 SP
6	11	One More Bottle J: Barry McHugh · T: Lizzie Quinlan · draw 4 5yo · G · bb	20870	8-12	49	—	—	23.1	16/1·17.00 SP
7	6	Just Dottie J: Tom Kiely-Marshall(5) · T: R Mike Smith · draw 5 8yo · M · b	4134	9-06	57	—	—	44.6	5/1·6.00 SP
8	9	Daring Leader J: Jason Hart · T: Christopher Kellett · draw 11 5yo · G · b	78381	9-05	56	—	—	38.7	7/1·8.00 SP
9	7	Betty Bassett J: Tom Eaves · T: Christopher Kellett · draw 1 4yo · F · bbFT B	24600	9-06	57	—	—	30.5	100/1·101.00 SP
—	—	Zebra Star J: Shay Farmer(5) · T: R Mike Smith · draw 6 6yo · M · gr	09549	8-09	45	—	—	32.7	—
—	—	Lightning Galaxy J: Connor Beasley · T: Michael Dods · draw 2 4yo · G · btpFT TP	09959	9-04	55	—	—	38.2	—
—	—	Recobella J: Jake Dickson(5) · T: Philip Kirby · draw 12 5yo · M · ch	35251	9-05	56	—	—	41.6	—
—	—	Annandale J: Lauren Young(5) · T: Jim Goldie · draw 7 8yo · G · ch	241334	9-07	58	—	—	46.5	—

OR = official rating · AI = model score (0–100) · form reads oldest → latest

Frequently asked questions

Who won the 17:20 Ayr on 27 July 2026?

Royal Blaze (GB) won the 17:20 Ayr at SP 4.00. Ridden by Greg Fairley. Trained by Ewan Whillans.

Did the Racing Alpha AI tip win the 17:20 Ayr?

Yes — the AI top-rated horse, Royal Blaze, won the race (AI score 51.4).

What were the placings in the 17:20 Ayr?

Top finishers: 1. Royal Blaze (GB) (4.00), 2. Falcon Nine (GB) (5.00), 3. Penelope's Sister (IRE) (4.50).

What was the winning time for the 17:20 Ayr?

The winning time was 2m 7.08s.

Best price shown is the highest decimal price across bookmakers we track. Odds update every few minutes; settle at SP if unavailable. 18+ only · Bet responsibly · BeGambleAware.org