Architect Tuesday Racing Tips

The Ladbrokes Best Odds Guaranteed Online Hurdle, in Ireland, has attracted a field of five who all have sound claims. However, the one who might come out on top is WOLF PRINCE (best price 4-1) who put a woeful chasing debut behind him when second back in this sphere seventeen days ago and can build on that with an even bigger performance here. 

Gavin Cromwell’s charge, a Grade-One runner-up as a hurdler, had a brilliant campaign as a juvenile, winning twice as well as placing four times, including when second in the Grade One Spring Juvenile Hurdle. He found life tough in his second season in that sphere, particularly in three highly-competitive handicaps last term but did manage to finish second in a pair of Grade Two’s. This talented five-year-old didn’t take to the larger obstacles last time but his fourth under a big-weight back in April was a fair effort and his latest second in another big-field handicap offered hope that he’s not a lost cause. Ideally, softer conditions would be more his bag but, having plied his trade at the highest level, he gets the vote open his account here with the weight he’ll receive from the likes of Jesse Evans, Wilde Receiver seen as a huge advantage with connections also reaching out to retain this useful claimer who took the ride last time. 

YOUR DARLING (best price 3-1) only scrambled home when last sighted and had become expensive to follow in that sphere besides that latest victory here but I am clinging to the hope that fences are the making of him given how highly-regarded he is by trainer Ben Pauling. He was once described as the best Henrietta Knight had worked with since Best Mate and he has been found an excellent opportunity to showcase what connections have always believed he could do. The excellent Luca Morgan claims his valuable five-pounds and I’m sure there will be many sour faces if he doesn’t make a winning chase debut against an average field. 

The Tom George-trained FANFAN DU SEUIL (best price 13-2) has only been seen four times in two years and lost his form a bit in his last three starts but there’s no doubt this six-year-old still has time on his side and given how highly tried he was in 2019, he is fancied to get back to the form that saw him beat the 135-rated Our Power when last spotted in this grade. 

He didn’t offer much in France or in his two starts on home soil last year but he’s an astounding twenty-four pounds lower than when finishing fifth of 21 in the 2019 Grade 3 Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and may well have won that race with a clear passage. He was also seventh in the Grade 1 Juvenile Hurdle at Aintree and was far from disgraced in three more highly-competitive events between class two and class three company. The last time we saw him on good ground was when a one-length second at Cheltenham in the JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle and he’s become extremely well-handicapped on his old form so, providing he’s ready to roll, he should at the very least reach the frame being the class act in the field.

The final race on the card at Newcastle might go the way of SPARTAN FIGHTER (best price 5-1), who is fully effective at this venue, where he’s often competed in higher-graded affairs than this including when successful over today’s course-and-distance from a ten-pound higher mark. He ran very well to finish on soft ground at Pontefract on his penultimate start before matching that form when a front-running third here last time from a pound higher mark. He’s drawn nicely in stall three and, with plenty in his favour, he’ll appreciate this drop in grade and looks great each-way material in the finale.