Andy Holding's Friday Racing Tips

RAASEL (best price 7-4) impressed in pretty much all departments when scoring in taking fashion at Bath on debut and he looks one to keep on side until proven otherwise.

Strong in the betting beforehand at the Somerset venue, Marcus Tregining’s colt travelled nicely in behind the speed to halfway and then when asked to knuckle down to the task inside the final furlong, he showed a good attitude to readily account for hot favourite Amarillo Star. Shaping as though the five-furlong trip was his bare minimum, the son of Showcasing should come into his own over today’s extra distance and being as he’s already handled soft ground well, underfoot conditions shouldn’t pose too much of a problem either.

As is always the case in races of this nature, a tricky one to solve with so many varied form lines to comprehend, but both MILD ILLUSION (best price 16-1) and MINHAAJ (best price 12-1) have showed enough from different ends of the spectrum to each warrant an interest.

The former certainly has plenty of experience and that knowledge was put to good use over today’s C&D last time when she made hot favourite Under The Stars pull out all the stops in a valuable sales contest. Impressing with the way she went through the race and how she handled the track, Johnathan Portman’s filly should be capable of surprising several sexier types based on her ability to cope with the track and ground conditions alike.

The latter is one the unknowns of the race, but there’s a decent chance that she could prove good enough if she shows the expected improvement from her initial outing. Outpaced and green at York on debut, William Haggas’ filly came home with a rare rattle to finish within hailing distance of the impressive winner, Art Power, and with the speed figure suggesting it was a fair heat, she clearly ran to a decent level at the first time out asking.

The early season form of Nigel Twiston-Davies shows no signs of relenting and ROBINSHILL (best price 2-1) is strongly fancied to provide the Naunton handler another winner. Having run well on his seasonal return over hurdles at Warwick, the son of Robin Des Champs found the return to fences and two miles more to his liking at Worcester last time out and that confidence-boosting success should set him back on the right path. Running off a mark 22lb lower than his highest winning rating, the eight-year-old is in the kind of form that should allow him to exploit the lenient perch.

A race where the front end of the market looks decidedly vulnerable, so with that in mind, both THESE DAYS (best price 12-1) and ATHLUMNEY HALL (best price 16-1) are taken as strong alternatives against the field.

The former has clearly has one or two issues being off the track for 186 days, but he only needs to return to the same level of form that saw him finish a creditable runner up to National Guard here back in March and he would have a great chance of breaking his duck. Moreover, his final effort when last seen came in a heat that contained the likes of I Am Superman (sixth in the Irish 2000 Guineas), Dadoozdart (won listed race) and Black Magic Woman (third in listed race) and with the potential of a subsequent wind-op bringing about some improvement, the son of Acclamation can play a part despite his high draw concerns.

The latter turned out to be a disappointment when sent off favourite at Gowran last time out, but his bad draw and troubled passage down the home straight were valid excuses and he’s probably better judged on his performance at the Curragh the time before. In keeping on well late on to finish runner-up to Make Me Sway at the Co Kildare venue, Gerard Keane’s gelding finished ahead of subsequent dual winner Mother Vincent and with a pedigree that suggests he should be at home on today’s surface, the son of No Nay Never can easily outrun his morning odds.

NIMITZ (NAP) (best price 7-4) has been a smashing servant for connections over the last few seasons and he hardly ever runs a bad race and this rates a decent opportunity for him to get back on the winning trail based on his recent exploits.

A real course regular who often plies his trade against some of the best 1m4f handicappers at the Co Louth venue, Charles O’Brien’s gelding arrives here off the back of a series of fine placed efforts in ultra-competitive contests and other than top-weight Hamley in the line-up, this has to rate a serious drop down in class. Dropped out towards the rear in usual fashion here 14 days ago, the son of Casamento still had plenty to do as the field turned for home, but in finishing his raced off best of all down the straight, he managed to get within a length of the more prominently ridden winner, Long Arm. Prior to that excellent effort, the ultra-consistent five-year-old had run another blinder against a top-quality field over the same C&D, and with his list of times figures against his name suggesting he’s got a fair bit in hand over tonight’s opponents at his best, all he needs is a decent gallop to shoot at to press home his advantage. Both Major Reward and Sweet Dime won very slowly run races on their last starts and will have to improve accordingly.