Sunday Racing Tips from Andy Holding

Once again, this year’s Cheltenham Festival proved the Irish juveniles to be a good bit better than their UK counterparts and with connections of VERA VERTO (NAP) (best price 11-4) prepared to come over here in a bid to plunder yet another four-year-old prize from the home contingent, Gavin Cromwell’s filly is strongly fancied to make the journey over worthwhile.

Up against the likes of Icare Prince, The Tide Turns, HMS Seahorse and Brazil in the first half of the campaign, she clearly faced no easy task in competing alongside a quartet who have all gone on to do good things further down the line. Back at a more realistic level at Navan last time out, the daughter of Prince Of Lir was made to work harder than her odds suggested, but with herself and main opponent in the final half a mile pulling well clear of the rest in a fast time figure, her performance can be judged a good bit better than it did at the time. Moreover, the well-beaten third, Only Sky, went on to boost the form at Cork a few days ago and with her handicap mark of 119 by no way appearing too severe given the standard she’s achieved so far, this look a golden opportunity for her to keep up the excellent good work of her handler.

You’d be hard pressed to say DINNY LACEY (best price 3-1) is a win machine, but the one thing he does have in his favour here is quality form at today’s track and with this race representing a huge drop in class to what he’s been use to of late, James Motherway’s inmate is fancied to take advantage.

A winner at the Greenmount Park venue back in 2020, the eight-year-old hasn’t managed to duplicate that success since, but in mitigation, he has been set some pretty stiff tasks, including races like the Munster National and Tim Duggan Memorial on two of his three latest starts. In the most recent of those assignments, the blinkered-first-time gelding showed up prominently for a long way and he looked like he might scoop the prize until an awkward jump at the second last rather sealed his fate. Still, finishing third of 14 to Spyglass Hill with many other useful chasers in behind reads well in the context of today’s race and with better ground also seen as a welcome relief, the son of Presenting can be guided to victory by his excellent conditional, Mark McDonagh, who’s riding at a 36% strike rate at present.

MR SCRUMPY (best price 8-1) has to be forgiven a rather poor effort at Wetherby last time out, but if you are prepared to cast that run to one side – and there were mitigating circumstances – Jedd O’Keeffe’s has more than several reasons why he’s likely to outrun his odds.

Not unfancied at the Yorkshire track following several promising efforts over fences, the son of Passing Glance was sent around the inside on the swamp on a day when it paid to look for better ground out wide and soon became apparent that he was galloping through treacle compared to the majority of his rivals. With a vail firmly drawn over that display, his other three chase performances are all perfectly respectable and with the first of them achieved over today’s course up against the

likes of Papa Tango Charly, Karl Phillipe, Killer Kane, Dreams Of Home, Flower Of Scotland and Small Present, who have all gone on to win since, a repeat of something similar off a 9lb lower mark should be good enough to see the eight-year-old shaking a tail feather or two.