2026 2000 Guineas early angles and antepost betting tips

The jumps season may be in full swing, but Races Now co-host Adam Smith (@Smido11) always has one eye on his beloved flat game – particularly Newmarket's two season-opening Classics.

Here, in his latest Focus On The Flat column for Odds Now, Adam refreshes the memory on 2025's two-year-old crop and digs out his initial angles for the 2026 2,000 Guineas and 1,000 Guineas.

How to find an ante post Guineas winner

As those who have read or heard my bits and pieces over the years will know by now, he 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas are undoubtedly my favourite ante post races. Probably because I spend all winter looking forward to the first Group Ones of the flat season.

I concentrate much more on the Guineas ante post than I do the Oaks and Derby, and always have. I think the two-year-old form has a lot more of a say on the outcome of the mile Classics than those at Epsom. That’s pretty obvious given the Newmarket races often have a big impact on the Oaks and Derby ante post betting and the Epsom races are later in the season with their own trials.

There are two ways to skin the Guineas ante post cat. Concentrate on the juvenile Group Ones from the previous season or look for a two-year-old that didn’t quite make it to the top level races, might be going in under the radar and as such is a significantly bigger price. I usually side with the former approach.

There are thirteen Group One races for two-year-olds in Europe. In 2025, Aidan O’Brien won eight of them and quite amazingly filled the runner up spot in the five he didn’t win. So, it’s no surprise that Ballydoyle inmates have a stranglehold on the ante post markets for the 2026 Classics.

Quite incredibly given the dominance outlined above, the O’Brien inmate that tops the ante post betting for the first Classic of 2026 is a horse that has only won a maiden and a Group Three and hasn’t been seen since May 25th. More on him later.

Looking back at 2025's two-year-old Group One racaes

But given we are in the middle of December and racing minds might be thinking more Cheltenham than Cheveley Park, below are my notes on the 2025 two-year-old Group Ones in chronological order to help jog some memories.

Phoenix

Power Blue (10/1) shocked hot favourite True Love (1/4) in a five-runner field. True Love looked off. Lagardere and Criterium International winner Puerto Rico was back in fourth.

Morny

Small field but high in quality as Venetian Sun (3/1) beats the boys with Gstaad (11/10) and Wise Approach (15/2) in behind, in what turned out to be a very good renewal.

Moyglare

Precise (11/2), who might have been third choice on jockey bookings when ridden by Ronan Whelan, swooped past the field in great fashion.

National

Zavateri (15/2) extended his unexpected unbeaten record to four when mowing down Gstaad (10/11) late on. Saba Desert disappointed for Charlie Appleby, who usually sends a good one to this race.

Cheveley Park

True Love (2/1) bounces back from Phoenix flop with a straightforward win back against her own sex. Not a lot to report in behind.

Middle Park

Wise Approach (11/8) a well-supported winner for Charlie Appleby in what looked a below average renewal.

Boussac

Diamond Necklace (11/10) made it three wins from three and in the process became St Mark’s Basilica’s first Group 1 winner as a sire.

Lagardere

A poor renewal won by Puerto Rico (3/1) who might have been on the improve but would hardly have made it into the top ten Ballydoyle two-year-olds beforehand.

Fillies' Mile

Precise (5/4) backed like losing was out the question and won in that manner, making it two top level wins as a juvenile. Interestingly, her stablemate Composing was also really well backed (100/30) but could only manage sixth.

Dewhurst

Acomb winner Gewann (25/1) bounced back from Champagne Stakes disappointment with a shock triumph. Front running on the Rowley Mile rail tactics sure to have played a part. Gstaad the bridesmaid for a third time in succession when sent off favourite again (7/4).

Racing Post Trophy

Complete Aidan O’Brien domination but not in the order the market expected. Outsider of the Ballydoyle three Hawk Mountain (18/5) led home Action (3/1) and Benvenuto Cellini (7/4). The other two need not have turned up, 12 and 20 lengths back respectively.

Criterium International

Puerto Rico (4/7) went from fourth of five in the Phoenix Stakes on August 9th to Group Two and two-time Group One winner on October 26th. Although it must be said the Lagardere turned into a disappointing affair on the day and the Criterium International was even worse. Sent off odds-on and never looked in doubt.

Criterium De Saint Cloud

Pierre Bonnard (7/10) looked potentially very smart in the Group Three Zetland Stakes and duly built on that promise with an easy win here in the only ten furlong juvenile Group One in Europe.

Early leans for the 2026 2000 and 1000 Guineas

The 1,000 and 2,000 Guineas have very different looks to me at this stage.

I think the fillies Classic is all about Precise who finished the season with two fantastic performances in the Moyglare and Fillies Mile, looking all over a Guineas type in the latter. She’s 4/1 for 1,000 Guineas glory and I think there is a little bit of juice in that price. I’d have her shorter for sure.

Is there enough in the price to be getting stuck in six months before the race though? Probably not. But she’s the leading contender and the one to beat if turning up.

Meanwhile, the 2,000 Guineas market is absolutely wide open – 10/1 the field in fact.

Albert Einstein may not have scored at Group One level but, maybe more importantly for those who provide prices at least, appears to be the Coolmore chosen one this year.

In the 2025 edition of ‘finding different ways to paint a horse as the best they’ve ever had’, Albert Einstein was described as “as fast a horse we’ve ever seen”. That will be enough to see plenty of hype around this fella when he returns to the track. He looked nice in his two starts but certainly didn’t blow my socks off.

Second in the market is another non-Group One winner in Bow Echo, who finished the season unbeaten in three including bang impressive wins in Listed company at Haydock (backed as if losing was completely out of the question) and the Group Two Royal Lodge at Newmarket against a decent field. He’s a big player, bred for the job and will be trained for the job too.

I think it would be a disappointing renewal if Gewan, Puerto Rico or Gstaad where winning a Guineas. Zavateri didn’t like the track to my eye in this year's Dewhurst. Oxagon has had multiple opportunities to prove he’s up to scratch and failed. The one I would take out of the Dewhurst though is Distant Storm for Charlie Appleby, who was too far back and finished almost on the bridle. But overall, the Dewhurst was nothing to hang your punting hat on to my eye.

I could see any of the Racing Post Trophy front three of Hawk Mountain, Action and Benvenuto Cellini running well in a 2,000 Guineas but it’s just a case of which of them will run – if any. Similar comments would apply to Pierre Bonnard, who won his Group One over ten furlongs and clearly looks more of a Derby type, although O’Brien does often use the Guineas as a Derby trial.

Then we quickly get into the realm of the unexposed.

Item was due to run in the Racing Post Trophy but withdrawn on account of the ground. Charlie Appleby knows how to turn a Kempton maiden winner into a Guineas champion and both Talk Of New York and Hidden Force have each done the first half of that when wazzing up on the all-weather. Constitution River won a Curragh Group Two in August but hasn’t been seen since, and is certainly bred for the job. But you would like bigger prices than currently on offer for that trio on what we’ve seen so far.

Oh, and there’s a half brother to Baaeed knocking about by the name of Raaheeb, who bagged an Ascot maiden in September in the style of ‘anything he does this year is a bonus’ type horse. An exciting prospect indeed, but he’ll be wanting further and connections will be taking their time with him.

One maiden winner I really liked was the Gosden’s Enoch, who had pretty much no right to win his debut at Newmarket in late September.

Sandwiched between horses right out of the gates and as such travelled further back than ideal for a young horse on the Rowley Mile. At least six lengths off the leader at the two pole, still three lengths adrift inside the final furlong, Enoch sprouted wings and was well on top at the line.

He's a Frankel half-brother to three-time Group One winner Almanzor. Of those in the very much unexposed box, he is certainly of most interest to me. Enoch is probably bred for further but the fact he has only had one run and the Gosdens do like a trial as and when they have a Guineas horse, I could see him going well in a Craven before potentially shortening in price for the big one.

Back to the top of the market, Albert Enstein can’t be relied upon to be fit (last seen in May) or stay the trip (out of a five furlong winner). Next in the market are horses I don’t think are good enough in Gewan, Puerto Rico and Gstaad.

So that leads me to thinking Bow Echo is a solid proposition at 12/1. He beat some decent yardsticks at Haydock and Newmarket and will definitely be aimed at the race.

Plenty of water still to pass under the bridge, of course. But my juices are already flowing.

Smido’s first antepost selections for the 2,000 Guineas

1pt win - Bow Echo to win the 2,000 Guineas - 12/1

0.5pt EW - Enoch to win the 2,000 Guineas - 66/1

Total staked - 2pts