Andy continued his good form with a 4-1 winner yesterday and he has four bets this afternoon.
3.00 Haydock
FIRE BRIGADE (best price 4-1) ran a good bit better than his final finishing position suggested in the valuable and competitive Silver Bowl Handicap over today’s C&D last time out and with the ground this afternoon riding on the slow side, the conditions should allow this progressive three-year-old to feature more heavily in the finish. Impressive when scoring in a fast time at Newmarket the time before (soft), Michael Bell’s gelding was quietly fancied to make an impact in his stiffest task so far to date, but as the Lancashire venue often favours front runners when the ground is on the quick side, he had little or no chance of being competitive given his hold-up style of racing. However, the way he finished off his race that day suggested he still remains an interesting runner in these sort of events going forward, and as he’s likely to let himself down more on the good-to-soft ground, his useful turn of foot should be seen to better effect in the closing stages.
4.40 Yarmouth
Having taken the scalps of some nice types in a maiden at Windsor last time out, Chiefofchiefs is clearly going to be a popular choice for many on handicap debut, but he is up against some wise old foxes here who know the ropes in these sorts of events, none more so than KING OSWALD (NAP) (best price 11-2). Since fitted with cheekpieces, James Unett’s inmate has left behind one or two indifferent performances and his win here two starts ago suggests he’s currently a force to be reckoned with when conditions are in his favour. Racing over the C&D for the first time, the son of Street Cry quickened up really smartly in the latter stages and, in leaving his six rivals for dead inside the final furlong, he posted a speed figure which belied his rating of 56. Although he failed to supplement those gains off a 6lb higher mark at Bath last time out, he was victim of a poor tactical ride from his relatively inexperienced pilot, but at least he made the sort of headway up in the closing stages to indicate he still remains in excellent heart. Despite today’s small field, they should go a decent pace and if he’s switched off and produced at the right time, the four-year-old can deliver a knockout blow late on.
8.10 Kempton
A really competitive-looking fillies handicap on paper, but the pair that offer up the best value at the morning prices are RAVEN’S LADY (best price 9-1) and SHENANIGANS (best price 15-2). The former was a bit below-par at Ascot last time out, but there’s a decent chance she will bounce back to something resembling her best form now that she returns to her happy hunting ground. Yet to finish out of the money on her three previous visits to the Sunbury venue (212), Marco Botti’s filly ran a blinder when chasing home the very useful Sibilance here back in April and a repeat of that level of form should see her very competitive here this evening. The latter also has a couple of decent runs under her belt at tonight’s track and she comes into the mix following an encouraging display on her seasonal reappearance at Doncaster last time out. On ground that she wouldn’t necessarily have liked, Roger Varian’s filly still ran a brave race to finish a close-up third behind the useful Mjjack and with that horse going on to advertise the strength of the form with a resounding success at Haydock over the weekend, the daughter of Arcano looks destined to have some sort of say in the argument this evening.
