Andy Holding's Wednesday Horse Racing Tips

Although chalked up as a fairly unconsidered third favourite, there are grounds to believe VERONA OPERA (best price 6-1) deserves to be a good deal shorter in the market, but either way, she still rates solid each-way value as long as the dead eight runners all face the starter. A slightly frustrating maiden over hurdles until getting off the mark at the fourteenth time of asking at Ayr last time out, Stuart Crawford’s mare impressed by the manner of victory at the Scottish venue and with the well-beaten fourth that day, Bruichladdich, going on to boost the form at Hexham yesterday, she appears to have fine prospects on ground and track that will suit.

The experiment of trying MUQARRED (best price 4-1) over 1m 4f last time backfired, but he looks to have a decent chance of getting himself back in the winner’s enclosure dropping down to a trip which clearly suited him the time before. Making his fibresand debut two weeks ago, Roger Fell’s inmate clearly relished the deep surface given how well he travelled through the race and even though he was eased down in the closing stages, he still ran out a comfortable four length winner. Furthermore, he clocked a similar overall time and sectionals than the ones Hammer Gun posted over a furlong shorter on the very same card, so on that basis, the son of Speightstown should be right in the thick of the action.

Bordeaux Bill is a proper nice horse in the making, but whether he deserves to be so short in the betting up against HELMSLEY LAD (NAP) (best price 2-1) is another matter and Malcolm Jefferson’s charge rates the value call to cause a little bit of a surprise. Similar to the favourite, he’s proven around today’s track as he showed with a smooth victory two starts ago, and even though he failed in his bid to make a successful hurdling bow next time out at Kelso, the combination of very testing ground and two useful opponents in the shape of Seemorelights and Red Indian just found him out. However, he did impress by the way he travelled and jumped through that well-run affair, and with several in behind that day going on to prove the value of the form subsequently, the son of Fair Mix can make a big impact here back on better ground.