Latest News:

Saturday 26 March 2011

Decent sprint at Lingfield



The 5f distance of the Hever Sprint Stakes could pose a problem for most and the one of the only one's who may revel in it is Star Rover and the 25/1 available is ew value, another to consider is the sprint king David Nicholls Silaah who has been over in Dubai and he is capable of leading from the front from the stall 2 draw. It is of course a listed race but its close as to who is the best in on handicap marks...maybe Rowe Park is the answer there. Several however prefer further and the race may be over before they get going as this 5f here is pretty sharp.

Jeremy Gask says of ANNE OF KIEV she has been in sparkling form this winter and though stepping back to to 5f from her close second in Listed Company last time I think she can still be very competitive here. Like her, there are a few in the race that would prefer 6f but hopefully she can stay in touch and use her trademark finish to see her through. I have tried to keep her sharp at home and she looks a picture.

Hitchens will improve for his last run and he must be thereabouts come the end, however this is very difficult to call but I'm going to go for Silaah to try and hold on up the straight andI'll be having a small ew saver on Star Rover as a lively outsider.




Friday 25 March 2011

Black Caviar makes it Eleven wins !



Once again Black Caviar has struck, this time at Mooney VaLley to make it 11 - 11, watch it below.


Trainer Peter Moody was quick to ensure all the accolades went to his superfilly rather than himself.

"What do you say? She's just gone and done the job again - full credit to her, it's hard to take credit for any part of it. She's just a machine, I had no concerns - he probably had to wake her up as it's a bit late - she should be at home having a camp! She's very laid back and got the job done nicely, I thought - it's great to be a part of something that's so great for racing."

Thursday 24 March 2011

Qadar to roll back the years ?



Qadar although a 9yo has been showing of late that he hasnt lost any of his old dash and he is on a decent mark on past form, he won here off a 100 in 2007 and is now on 74. He was finishing well last time, also here, after swinging wide on the home bend and in the end he finished 3rd two lengths behind the winner Norville who he now meets on 6lb better terms. He is not particularly well drawn in stall 11 but there should be a hot pace on if Waabel or Vintage can get to the front and that could set him up for a late dash up the home straight.
It's a tricky little handicap however and any of these could win with a bit of luck so I wouldnt go overboard, however I'm hoping Qadar gets the breaks up the straight to catch the pacesetters with his turn of foot.

Wednesday 23 March 2011

Up a bit, down a bit



After the flurry of activity on the blogs during Cheltenham week were all back down to earth now and things have cooled off for a short while until Aintree on the NH front, so why not take time to see whats coming up on the flat at the end of the month. There will be a few big sprint handicaps over the first weekend so it will pay you to have read through my Master List of horses to follow for the 2011 flat turf season so that your ready to take advantage of any betting opportunities.

Now back to the review of last weeks sprint races on the All Weather and firstly we look at  the win for last weeks blog slection Pelmanism who won the Class 5 6f Handicap at Kempton by the shortest of margins and as a result he has been raised 3lb on the All Weather. In truth in another 50 yards he could well have been 2 lengths up on the 2nd Best Trip (runs 23/03 over 5f) who once again led the field a merry dance, he too was raised 2lb on turf but his mark was left the same on the AW at 73. Al Gillani who had been running well of late could only finish 8th this time and he has been dropped 2lb to 63.

Rio Cobolo won the Class 5 Handicap at Southwell the following day for his new connections and Dandy Nicholls says that the horse is open to improvement, although he won off his highest ever rating here. He has now been raised 4lb on turf to a mark of 76 and it will be interesting to see where the sprint maestro aims him this season.

On Thursday at Wolverhampton Sir Nod won the 6f Class 5 Handicap by 1 1/4 lengths but it was the 3rd placed Cavitie who looked a shade unlucky as he had no sort of run through the race and he finished well despite the problems he attracted. Andrew Reid's charge is on a mark of 57 and is left on that by the handicappert so he should not be underestimated when he is next seen(entered at Kempton this Saturday)

Dont forget this weekend sees the return of Black Caviar to the track in Australia (see previous post) and its also the Dubai World Cup at Meydan with the Al Quoz Sprint and Golden Shaheen which are the sprints to get our teeth into.

Tuesday 22 March 2011

Black Caviar attempts to equal Nijinsky



Australian sprinter, Black Caviar, seeks to make it eleven from eleven in the $500,000 William Reid Stakes this Friday at Moonee Valley and in doing so she would break a very old record held by Nijinsky by winning all eleven of her career starts to date in listed races.
Black Caviar is truly an exceptional horse and so far she has established a weight carrying win record for a mare at 58kg, surpassing the 56.5kg carried to victory by Maybe Mahal back in 1978, she also tied a modern weight carrying record (58kg) with her 10th victory in the Newmarket Handicap and matched Shaftesbury Avenue's 58kg in 1991. She also gained the fastest Newmarket race finish in its 137 year history with a record time of 1:07.36 in what seemed like a virtual canter and she would equal Phar Lap's 1930's 14 race win record if she where to win the William Reid this friday, the TJ Smith Stakes(9th April), the BTC Cup(14th May) and the Doomben 10,000 on the 28th May. A tall order but who knows what this horse really is capable of ?

Royal Ascot officials have been courting connections in order to bring her over to the uk, however her trainer has said "I know the people from Royal Ascot are interested in Black Caviar but I don't think anything is going to change in regards to her campaign,".
Her ninth win in the Lightning Stakes has been the springboard to many a Royal Ascot in the past with the likes of Choisir (2003), Takeover Target (2006), Miss Andretti (2007) and Scenic Blast (2009) all winning at Flemington before heading for dear old blighty, but it now looks like it will be next year before she conquers the Northern hemisphere.

She could have a challenger by then in the shape of MOSHE her year younger full brother.  Moshe had his first start in late November last year, winning easily at Bendigo. He then won well at the Valley before resuming with an odds-on defeat behind top-class Decision Time in the Fireball Stakes at Rosehill. He then ran in the Moreton Hire Handicap were he stormed past the leaders in the straight to win by more than a length. Asked about "family expectations" his trainer said: "I was probably glad he didn't come out and win by five or six lengths. He can't help that he's a brother to Black Caviar, He's been an immature horse. That's why he didn't race till three. Black Caviar was the same; maybe it's in the genes," .

If you do get a chance to watch Black Caviar's race this friday then make sure you do so as it could be another step in racing history.


Saturday 19 March 2011

Garstang 1 .v. Estonia 0



Garstang gets a chance to get back on the winning trail today in the Lingfield Class 5 Handicap at 5.15 over 5f. Garstang is drawn in stall 1 and meets Estonia (3 course wins) on 1lb better terms than when they met back in January when he won by half a length from Picansort with Estonia a further neck back in 3rd. This time however Luke Morris is on Estonia and George Baker takes the ride on Garstang and it is hoped that Garstang can get a good break from his number 1 draw to give him the advantage over the late finishing Estonia. Luke Morris must obviously feel he can get a better tune out of his mount but form is form and it is likely that Garstang can prevail again and he should be an ew price.
On the subject of price Garstang was 12/1 on the Attheraces betting forecast last night, 4/1 second fav in the Racing Post today and between 9/2 and 9/1 outsider now depending on which bookmaker you choose.....very strange !
Although it is a small field there are others that will figure namely Black Baccara, Freddies Girl and Sherjawy and Kieran Fallon will be trying to get Black Baccara beyond 2nd spot for a change.

Thursday 17 March 2011

Up a bit, down a bit



You may or may not have noticed the "Donate" button that has appeared on my blog posts, dont worry I dont want you to empty your pockets ! However I have been providing information, thought and comment on Sprint racing for the past year now without any payment and therefore I thought I would like to give you the opportunity to express your gratitude the next time one of my selections romps home.

If you have been following the various pages in the last few weeks you will have been rewarded with 2 wins for All Weather Horse to follow Wheres Reilley at 4/1 and 7/4, a 14/1 winner Rileyskeepingfaith from the Sprinterstogo 2011 Master List and on wednesday evening 9/4 winner Pelmanism in the daily blog post amongst others.

Anyway cant blow my own trumpet all day long and we shall now take a look back over the last few weeks and the handicappers reactions to the winners and losers.

First up is Six Wives who won a Class 5 Handicap at Wolverhampton on 28th February by half a length from Jigajig went up 2lbs for his efforts in a competitive sprint which was run at a fast pace. This was her highest winning mark and she is entered to run next wednesday at Kempton. The second Jigajig did well considering he had the worst of the draw and he looks booked for a win granted better luck with the draw. He is also in that race at Kempton but that may be best left to Boragh Jamal and he will appreciate a return to this track where he has won 3 times in the past.

On 2nd March at Kempton the 4yo Pelmanism won the Class 5 Handicap by 2 1/4 lengths from Boragh Jamal with Best Trip in 3rd. The winner didnt get a very good start but once in the straight he got himself together and was able to get going late on to win this going away. As a result he was raised 6lb to 70 but he is related to 5yo Tiddliwinks who won off 96 on the All Weather so his rating should not pose a problem just yet and in fact it hasnt as he won again last night. Boragh Jamal in 2nd had the others well beaten and not having been raised for this first run since December this 4yo relative of Green Park and Whitbarrow should be capable of winning soon.

Where's Reilley who has been highlighted here in the past was able to finally get his head in front on the 8th March at his best track Southwell, he won by 4 lengths from Incomparable and the manner of his win caused the handicapper to raise him 11lbs to 79 but he managed to get another win under his belt under a 6lb penalty before the full hit took effect.

On Saturday 12th March at Lingfield the Class 2 Handicap over 6f went to the 10yo Flipando who won by a 1/2 length from Medicean Man. The winner had won off 93 on the AW in the past so had the form to do it but you got the feeling that the others had lost it rather than him winning it. Medicean Man hadnt run for 161 days and interestingly he had won first time out last season beating the Abbaye winner Gilt Edge Girl by a short head off 83 and here he was running off 99. He should come on for the run as his trainer said pre race that he was not fully wound up as he has a long season ahead and also this is not his surface.

May I remind you to have a look at the Master List featured on the stand alone pages - Timeform horses to follow 2011 has included a couple of the sprinters featured within.

Wednesday 16 March 2011

Nearly there now !



Of course I'm referring to the Flat season, not the end of the Cheltenham festival ! However I am losing a little bit of enthusiasm for the latter with day three approaching, but at least Ive only lost £10 so far.

This Sunday sees the flat kick off in Ireland at The Curragh and there are few English trained runners being sent over from the yards of Fahey, Ryan, Simcock and Boyle to contest the Irish Lincolnshire. Fahey also sends a 2yo Lost City for the maiden at 2.35 where he may be able to get a handle on where his 2yo's are at and he said this about the horse recently who he trains for Alex Ferguson "He's not a typical early-season two-year-old. He's been shaping OK at home but he will improve for the run and hopefully improve throughout the season. He has been showing the right signs but he will improve. He's not one of those excitable two-year-olds, he's quite a relaxed type but he's shaping all right."

Nearer to home and at Southwell today it was interesting to see Rio Cobolo win on his first start for David Nicholls since leaving Paul Green, he won here off 72 which is a PB for him and his trainer thinks he can improve on this performance.

If anyone gets chance to read this before the 8.50 at Kempton tonight then Pelmanism would look to have a good chance in the 6f sprint handicap. He took a while to get going last time here after a slow start, but when he did he fairly motored away to win in good style and its unlikely a 6lb penalty will halt his progress on this surface.

Day 3 of Cheltenham sees an intrigueing contest in the World Hurdle and it will be fascinating to watch and I'm going to leave the festival to those who are in the know. 

Tuesday 15 March 2011

Cheltenham Challenge Day 2



I didnt do too badly on the first day considering my total lack of form study for this festival......so its onwards to day two.

The National Hunt Chase kicks off proceedings and you need a good amateur on your side in this and Ive always liked Richard Burton not leaSt for his performance in "Whose afraid of Virginia Woolf"....joking aside this guy is a top jockey and 20/1 about McCain's Glenwood Knight could be ew value. Of course in this day and age there are plenty of good amatuers about but Richard knows how to win round here and I will side with him.

After yesterdays great day for Ruby Walsh it wouldnt be hard to hard to see him winning the Neptune on So Young but he is likely to be shorter than Ronnie Corbett once the Irish lads get stuck in.

The RSA and you cant get away from the obvious chance of Time For Rupert ? Nobody can say that no horse is a certainty at Cheltenham, just look at Quevega yesterday. Time For Rupert has won his races well and the form has been franked in no uncertain terms and he is the nearest you will come to a certainty on day two and the others will surely be fighting over place money.

The Queen Mother and Paul Nicholls Woolcombe Folly should go well in this at 8/1 as the going will put paid to a lot of the fancied runners and he has Big Zeb to beat.

The Coral Cup is a minefield and there have been some big priced winners in the past and Aachen could be a lively ew outsider for Venetia Williams carrying 10-3 with claimer R T Dunne claiming a further 5lb albeit that the horse hasnt run for over a year. Jamie Moore on Dantari is also interesting, however the winner is likely to be Call the Police or Aegean Dawn.

Havent got a clue about the Fred Winter and Im going for a home win in the bumper with fav Knight Pass who looks decent and Double Double and Oscar Magic can also figure in this.

Good luck and dont spend all your winnings on one race !

Day 1 is over !

Well you've either had a good day or a bad one, but looking on it as a neutral it was a great days racing.

I see two of Pricewise advised ante post bets came in Al Ferof 1 pt win at 25/1 and Captain Chris 1 pt win at 16/1, so if you followed the "Holy One" you were well in. Of course its probably easy to pick these sort of winners when you have every form tool known to man at your disposal and your job depends on it.

Divers for me was a really good winner of the last and he looked to be tanking along, makes you wonder just how good Time For Rupert is who beat him, Vino Griego and Quantitativeeasing pretty easily back in November here.

The Supreme Novices was run in a faster time than the Champion Hurdle, and it would be interesting to see who came up the striaght the fastest between the finishers in both races, anyone do any timings ?

Thought Nina Carberry who is an excellent rider might have given Garde Champetre just a tad too much to do in the Cross Country, he was after all top weight, it was 3m 7f marathon and you still have to get up the hill. Sizing Australia did well but he was getting a stone and 3lbs off Nina's mount and in my view this was a race lost by the second rather than a race won by the winner.

Bensalem was a worthy winner of the 2.40 and it was a kick in the teeth for everyone who said beforehand that a horse that had suffered with pleurisy could not win at the festival, a great training performance then by Alan King. Great Endeavour ran a gallant race at the head of the field before falling but I'm not sure why he had to be rushed up to the front in the early part of the race having missed the break, couldnt he have eased into it ?.

Also not sure who the pace setter benefitted in the Champion Hurdle ?

Quevega proved to be unbeatable in the Mares Hurdle and has everyone got their money down for next years romp and finally the Hobbs team must now be doing some Wishful Thinking for the Jewson Novices Chase on Thursday.

Roll on tomorrow !




Monday 14 March 2011

Cheltenham Challenge Day One !

Well I said last week after the preview evening that I was going to see how I got on this week at the festival having barely watched any National Hunt racing this winter.

SUPREME NOVICES HURDLE
Cant have the favourite in this as its too short for this cavalry charge, I dont have any idea of what the winner is going to be but one that looks overpriced is RATHLIN who won last time out and his trainer said afterwards "This is a gorgeous, gorgeous horse. He scoped badly a few days after he ran at Clonmel last time but all of my horses were sick at the time. We`ve always thought the world of him". On arrival in the UK he says on his website "Rathlin runs tomorrow in the first race the Supreme Novices hurdle and although he is lacking in experience which could see him a little slower over the daunting obstacles, we are sure the experience of Jason Maguire will more than make up for his inexperience. He is in our opinion a really decent sort who deserves to take his chances, here’s hoping he shows his full potential and puts in a big performance for all connections". He's 66/1 with Victor Chandler and 50s with virtually everyone else.
The Henderson horses have to be respected and Barry Geraghty suums them up as follows " Make no mistake, these are both top-class novice hurdlers and it was with no great certainty that I made my decision. But I rode both a week ago last Saturday and Spirit Son just left me that bit more impressed.
The work showed me that he had improved a little bit, he carried me and took me through the work really nicely and just gave me a very good feel.
Also, I think his public form has a much more solid look to it given that he beat Cedre Bleu 20 lengths at Exeter last time and that one looked very smart when he beat our Fred Winter candidate Titan De Sarti ten lengths at Newbury the time before. I do think that Spirit Son is a horse that is improving and has a big future.
I have huge respect for Sprinter Sacre and it’s impossible to really know how good he is because he’s won his last two so easily and has only been beaten once in five outings and I’ve been on him in all of them. It’s simply that he hasn’t beaten the calibre of opposition that Spirit Son has. Either way, it's a great spare ride for AP".

ARKLE TROPHY
Only got 1 horse on my mind for this and that is MEDERMIT.

3M HANDICAP CHASE
Big field for this and although last year I said I would go for Bensalem this time around, and he's off the same mark, Ive decided to go with SUNNYHILLBOY who stayed on to finish 2nd in the 2m 5f Byrne Group Plate last year and Jonjo has done well with his chasers here in the past.

CHAMPION HURDLE
Personally I dont think this is a very good field for a Champion hurdle and on that basis I'm going for DUNGUIB who to me looked as though he should have won the Supreme Novices last year but for a bonkers ride from his jockey, ok he is on the beast again but surely he must have learnt from his mistake and he only has 10 opponents to negotiate this time and 9/1 is good value in my book.

CROSS COUNTRY
Its easy for a jockey to get confused on this track never mind the horse and its best to stick with those that have done it before and none of the field does it better than GARDE CHAMPETRE who is a worthy fav.

DAVID NICHOLSON MARES HURDLE or to be known in future as The Quevega Charity Race, should go to ........QUEVEGA !

Hope everyone who is going to the festival or just watching it on the TV has a great day and is able to keep their head above the water. I wouldnt get too keen on my selections though and if you want to read someone who is in top tipping form, gives solid advice on a daily basis and is a good read to boot then you should click onto Wayward Lad's blog which has a link at top right of this page.

Go on my son !!

Saturday 12 March 2011

Wonder mare wins again !


Her trainer Peter Moody said after the race "Like I said last time, what do you say? You get lost for words because she's just awesome. I said to Luke to be as kind as you can for as long as you can because we don't have to be three in front at the furlong just an inch in front on the line. I'd like to think we've kept our cool all week and that extends to the horse. The public perception is the thing that scares me - I know she's going to give her all and the only thing that would bring about her downfall is injury.

Tuesday 8 March 2011

Cheltenham Preview Evening

Here is a review of events at Mondays Cheltenham Preview evening at Maghull Town Hall.
The evening was hosted by the jovial John Morris with John Parrott, Matt Williams and Ken Pitterson giving their respective take on things.

Well the Town Hall certainly lived up to a venue befitting that name as when the PA System was turned on to commence proceedings we had to endure "Push and push, step forward and back" the PA system had somehow got mixed up with the downstairs aerobics class ! and we had the delights of the panel doing their Mr Motivator routines to the repetitive thumping beat. That was funny for the first 5 minutes but 30 minutes later the joke had well and truly worn a bit thin and someone was despatched to try and pull the plug...... literally !. Unfortunately the bloke that went wasnt quite man enough as we heard him being kicked out of the room over the PA by the burly keep fit woman Instructor !!
Eventually however calm was restored and it all came to an end and the aerobics lesson finished and the 200 or so people packing the hall could get what they had paid for, some hot tips for Cheltenham ??

First up on Day 1 was the Supreme Novices and most of the panel agreed that Cue Card was the way forward for this. Similarly in the Arkle only 1 horse dominated the conversation and that was Medermit ( 2 favs...... were not getting told much here, can we have the aerobics back please !).

Next was the Festival Handicap Chase and John Parrott made a big case for Pipe's Great Endeavour and there were negatives for Bensalem. Ken Pitterson thinks Weird Al is a big ew player for this, if he runs and he also mentioned Nicholls Definity which got nods of approval. The Champion Hurdle next and no surprises here as most seemed keen on Binocular with the horse having been primed for this race alone, Khyber Kim was given as a solid ew alternative, Peddlers Cross didnt have much support and it was felt that Binocular should have the measure of him.

Day 2 starts with the Neptune Novices Hurdle and Matt W was keen on Rock on Ruby ew for this and if it turned up soft then Oscars Well, whereas John P and Ken P were both for So Young with the latter saying the Irish have a strong hand and he expects this to go their way. The RSA Chase had Matt W saying that Time for Rupert was a banker for him, he pointed to his 17 length beating of Quinz at Cheltenham and that horses subsequent Racing Post Chase win. Ken P said that Wymott was a good ew and John M Magnanimity also ew. The Queen Mother and all seemed to side with Big Zeb as the one to win this and the only other horse mentioned was the ew alternative of Woolcombe Folly by Ken P. Next was the Coral Cup which Matt W ducked and John P selected Call the Police and also said Dynaste could be a Pipe handicap plot for this and suggested an ew. Ken P went for Aegean Dawn and John M For Non Stop. The Fred Winter there were a few mentioned, John P suggested Celtus and Kumbeshwar and the shrewd Charles Byrnes Domination, all ew. Matt W came up with O' Grady's Sailors Warn EW who finished 2nd to Unaccompanied in Ireland. Ken P also went with Kumbeshwar and Celtus and John M went for Whitby Jack which was strange as he doesnt even mention it for the race in his cheltenham preview book. Last but not least the Cheltenham bumper and Matt W said he could not better anything Ken P could say about Bumpers and Novices, and that he was the man for this. Ken P then put forward Knights Pass to be another home winner for this race and was complimentary about his chances.

Day 3 The Jewson Novices Chase and Matt W and John P think whichever Hobbs horse turns up between Wishful Thinking and Captain Chris should be respected, both are owned by the same person so probably wont run in the same race although Hobbs has said they will. Ken P was pretty certain Wishful Thinking would run in this race and he also mentioned Loosen My Load and Mr Gardner EW, a bold jumper, John M also went for Mr Gardner. The Pertemps Final and John P thinks this could be another for the Pipe team and put up Chartreux and or Dynaste to do the business, Matt P went for Benbane Head EW, Ken P Alfie Spinner and Kilcrea Kim and John M Barafundle. The Ryanair Chase and Matt W said he had good reports about Tranquil Sea and if it was to come up softish he would be very keen on him, John P picked Poquelin if the going was Good and referred to his 4 wins at the track, he also mentioned Kalahari King at 8/1. Ken P went for Alberta's Run last years winner to maintain the previous winners at Cheltenham hold on this race. John M suggested Weird Al if running. The World Hurdle brought about the best argument of the night with Matt and Ken P siding with Grand Crus and John P Big Bucks, John M mentioned Zaynar and the rest of the panel were bemused by this selection.


The final day and the Triumph kicked off proceedings with Matt W being keen on Unaccompanied, Ken P was also keen and gave mentions to Third Intention EW and Zarkander who he thinks will win. The County Hurdle and Matt W put forward Gordon Elliotts Dirar who won the Ebor last summer and he thinks he will be in on a light weight for this, Ken P went for Snap Tie EW and John P sided with Mullins Final Approach. John M suggested Tito Bustillo. The Albert Bartlett next and Matt gave this a miss and both John P and Ken P went for Champion Court with John P also suggesting Nicholls Join Together and Ken P also suggesting Hendersons Mossley and John M Spirit of Adjisa. Last but not least the Gold Cup itself and Matt W thinks Imperial Commander for this, Ken P put a dampener on it though saying he had heard rumours that the horse just wasnt the same this year and he and John P put forward the 6yo Long Run. Matt said that he thought Midnight Chase had an EW chance as did John M.
Well thats it, you can look back in 2 weeks time and see who was right and who was wrong,  I myself have not bothered with jumps racing this winter and I have watched less than 10 races, however I'm going to challenge myself to see how my selections compare with the professionals above with only 1 weeks preparation and you can keep watch of how I get on right here on the blog.

Good luck to everyone !

Thursday 3 March 2011

Up a bit, down a bit

Another week goes by and it wont be long now until we are welcoming in the turf flat season and what a season we have to look forward to from day one at the end of this month !

However we still have the AW season to finish and last week we had some decent sprints all things considered and we start with the Class 5 5f Handicap at Kempton on Wednesday 23rd February which was won by Desert Strike by 1 1/2 lengths from Six Wives. The winners rating was raised 6lb to 74 and the second 1lb to 73 and of those behind Lord of the Reins in 6th was dropped 1lb to 62, he was drawn 1 and in the past he has won off marks of 73 and 75 here over 5f and his turn mightnt be that far away.

The Class 4 Handicap on the same night run over 6f was won by Ebraam the 8yo who came with a well timed run to win by 3/4 of a length from Jack Rackham and and the consistent Sioux Rising. The winner was raised 4lb to a mark of 88 and the second 1lb to 78, the 3rd and 4th Clear Praise were left on the same marks of 83 and 81 respectively. The latter looked a horse to follow on his previous run here and he may have benefitted from being held up so he may improve again if adopting those tactics next time.

Lingfield on Saturday the 26th served up the best AW racing of the week and the Blue Square Sprint Series Final Handicap over 6f went to Norville who made virtually all in this competitive event. As a result he has been upped 6lb by the handicapper to a mark of 74 and the second Rio Royale who was 1 3/4 lengths behind was raised 1lb to 64 with the 3rd Qadar left on the same mark. The latter did well considering in the past he hasnt usually run 2 good races together and he may be capable of winning again in a lesser race than this. Waabel finished 7th and he can be forgiven this run as he was drawn 10 and for one who likes to be in the front he was always going to find it a struggle from that draw and he remains on the same mark of 79. The race itself was run in a time of 1min 10.54 which was slightly faster than the Listed contest.

Later in the afternoon the aforementioned Listed Cleves Stakes run over 6f was won by David Barron's second string Waveband by a neck from Anne of Kiev with Duff a short head away in 3rd. There was very little in it come the finish and the winner who made all stuck to her task well, as a result she has been raised 6lb to a mark of 96 with the Second going up 2lb to 95. As there was only 3 lengths covering the first 9 home its difficult to glean anything from the race as there was a fine line between winning and losing, however Anne of Kiev continued her improvement.

Tuesday 1 March 2011

Tweet Tweet !

The 6.40 at Kempton is a Class 5 sprint handicap run over 6f, there is a fairly short run to the first bend here and in that respect the draw can sometimes be a big influence on the result.
The 11 runners line up in draw order as set out below :
11 - Pelmanism
10 - Boragh Jamal
 9  - Little Perisher
 8  - Best Trip
 7  - Sherjawy
 6  - Italian Tom
 5  - Pose
 4  - Jungle Bay
 3  - Garstang
 2  - Al Gillani
 1  - Cape Melody
However away from the draw Garstang would appear to be back to his best form after his two wind operations and although second last time out at Lingfield it was a good effort off 73 to finish behind Waabel as there was 2 3/4 lengths back to the 3rd and he was up front throughout. The winner didnt frank the form in the final of the series on Saturday but that was only to be expected as he didnt have the best of draws in any event in that race. Garstang himself could have won at Lingfield last time had he not lugged to his left when turning into the straight and there is every chance given some luck in running from his 3 draw that he could win this under Luke Morris having won twice here in the past. He drifted alarmingly in the betting at Lingfield so dont be put off if that happens again.
Jane Chapple Hyam has been doing well with her AW runners (8 wins in 2011) and Jungle Bay who finished 2nd to Norville last time out off 72, (the winner had a mark of 64) had the form franked by the winner over last weekend when Norville won the Sprint final by 1 3/4 lengths off a mark of 68. He has looked like 7f will suit but he stays with 6f here and he will be finishing with a flourish up the straight and will be hoping that the gaps appear at the right time. He has been dropped 13lb since arriving in the UK.
Al Gilliani ran well last time out and that could be a signal for him to return to form from a favourable mark, also Boragh Jamal from stall 10 is another to consider with Manton News saying the following about her "Consistent filly who found five furlongs a little short here last time, although she did win over that course and distance earlier. She should prefer this extra furlong and has a favourable high draw to help her. Sporting chance". 
All in all its another trappy sprint handicap that any of the runners could win with luck on their side and I wouldnt put anyone off doing some sort of perm tote bet on the above highlighted runners.