Ain’t Nobody captains Kevin Ryan’s Ayr Gold Cup team

Handicap blot Ain’t Nobody appears Kevin Ryan’s biggest hope of claiming a sixth victory in the Ladbrokes Ayr Gold Cup.

It is 18 years since the Hambleton handler broke his duck in the prestigious sprint handicap with Advanced and he has since claimed back-to-back runnings with Our Jonathan (2011) and Captain Ramius (2012) before adding to his tally with Brando (2016) and Bielsa (2021).

Ain’t Nobody is officially 13lb well-in in this year’s renewal, having finished an excellent second to Australian speedball Asfoora in the Nunthorpe at York since the publication of the weights.

The three-year-old was unable to get seriously competitive when set a second Group One assignment in the Sprint Cup at Haydock a fortnight ago, but he is nevertheless a leading contender for this weekend’s £180,000 feature.

Adam Ryan, assistant to his father, said: “He’s drawn in stall one but at the end of the day your draw is your draw and you find out how good or bad it is as racing goes on. Down through the years, it comes to Saturday and you find out where the best place to be is.

“He’s in great order and to be fair, with his draw at Haydock we kind of knew our fate from the get-go as there was quite a big bias that day.

“It’s not very often you get the chance to be nearly a stone well-in and it was the obvious choice to come here. His form speaks for itself, but invariably you kind of need a Group horse to be winning these sort of handicaps.”

Ryan’s hand is strengthened by the presence of Hammer The Hammer, who has already won three times this season and finished second at Royal Ascot before disappointing as favourite for the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood, while Bergerac and We Never Stop are capable of going well at bigger odds.

“Hammer The Hammer is a fast-improving horse we’ve always liked. It didn’t work out at Goodwood but it was very dead, tacky ground that day and he goes to Ayr in great order,” Ryan added.

“Bergerac has run well in this race before and ran well in the Silver Cup last year. He’s the perfect horse for these big handicaps and as he’s getting older he probably wants this six furlongs now and a bit of juice in the ground, so hopefully conditions will suit and he’s been running well.

“I thought We Never Stop ran a more promising race at York last time. He probably needs to take a step forward again, but on his best form he’d have a chance for sure.”

The likely favourite is the Michael Dods-trained Northern Ticker, who carries a 5lb penalty for winning a similarly competitive heat at York four weeks ago.

A head second that day was his more experienced stablemate Commanche Falls and he is again in opposition, but needs to bounce back from a below-par showing at Doncaster last weekend.

Dods, who is bidding for an elusive first Ayr Gold Cup success, told Racing TV: “We’ll keep throwing darts at it and one day we’ll get there.

“After he (Northern Ticker) won at York the plan was always to come here.

“Commanche Falls ran the other day at Doncaster and the ground got too heavy and he didn’t pick up on it. He seems well, but it’s not an ideal thing running on Sunday and then coming here.”

Richard Spencer also has a strong hand, with International Handicap and Stewards’ Cup hero Two Tribes joined by Twilight Calls and Run Boy Run.

“We pinpointed this race for Two Tribes after Goodwood and everything has gone to plan so far. He’s in really good form, he’s been thriving at home and he should be right there,” said Spencer.

“Twilight Calls has been going nicely in his work and looks in a good place with himself. He is on the most realistic mark he’s had for a while and I think he could outrun his odds.

“Run Boy Run has really hit form – he ran a great race at Doncaster the other day (fourth in Portland Handicap) and the stiff six furlongs at Ayr should suit him down to the ground.”

Other contenders include Alfa Kellenic, who completed a six-timer in the Silver Cup 12 months ago and makes her seasonal debut and first start since joining Ivan Furtado.