Thursday Racing Tips from Architect

The Andrew Balding-trained KOY KOY (best price 15/8), who’s been in my notes for a long time, looks set to build on the promise he displayed last term is quite a strong fancy to maintain his upwardly-mobile profile and successfully make a winning handicap/seasonal debut here in the Deepbridge Handicap. 

Having shaped promisingly in his first two starts against good opponents, he opened his account at Newbury in emphatic style by an easy six-lengths. However, it is his close-up second to Saga at Ascot which makes him a well-treated horse in today’s field given the winner is now rated 97 who pushed subsequent 2000 Guineas Coroebus back in August last year. Trainer Andrew Balding, who’s had two winners and a place from five runners in this race in the last ten years, has an excellent strike-rate at the course too. The recent rain should be ideal and he’s drawn well in stall three to attack from an early stage assuming David Probert has those tactics in mind which vastly showed improvement from this Colt by Acclamation last time. His price is becoming a little bit on the skinny side but the clutch of positives about his chances does make him of serious interest as from what we have seen of him, he’s offered every bit of implication that he’s going to be a lot better than a handicapper. 
 

A lot of these have sound claims but PRIDE OF AMERICA (NAP) (best price 5/1) is worth an each-way interest for shrewd handler Amy Murphy. This Gelding by the classy American Post looked promising when trained by Harry Dunlop in which he was deemed good enough to contest the Derby Trial. He could never land a blow behind English King that day when only sixth and missed the whole of last year but returned for his yard following wind surgery and a tongue-tie applied to win from the front at Newcastle before a good second at Pontefract last time. His performance can be marked up to quite a bit of extent considering he set a strong gallop and beat off all rivals bar one and has essentially been left on the same mark here. On that evidence he remains really well-treated off 83 considering he split two horses rated 86 and 98 and, dropping down in grade if ridden in the same manner, he may well make it two-from-three for the season under SIlvestre De Sousa as surely has to be high on the shortlist. Four places generally available. 

Warren Greatrex’s ten-year-old MULCAHYS HILL (best price 16/1) is probably past his best nowadays but he’s mostly been running well in better events than this throughout his career and he’s so well-treated back over hurdles that he is given one more chance. He was actually in the process of running well over fences last time until falling at the tenth and reverts back to the smaller obstacles off the same mark of 118 which is 14Ib lower than when he last ran over hurdles. That last run in this sphere was in a class three and he was rated as high as 144 in his prime. Connections might be using this as a confidence booster but he’s been given a break to get over his latest fall and if the combination of the drop in grade and better ground has a positive outcome, he has the back-class to really make an impact at double-figure odds with four places generally available. 

BLATANT (best price 4/1) ran quite well on debut in the Brocklesby when seventh and took a major step forward from that appearance to chase home Ocean Cloud next time. The winner advertised the form by running well in the opener at this meeting yesterday and he’s been given the plum draw in stall one. Trainer Eve Johnson Houghton and Charles Bishop have just their only runner and ride on the card and with all the experience of those couple of promising starts to draw upon, this Colt by Brazen Beau should have a massive say in the outcome.

DE VEGA’S WARRIOR (best price 16/1) has improved with each start thus far and having caught the eye on stable debut for Mick Appleby when tentatively handled to finish fourth at Southwell, he did little wrong when second on his first go over this trip last time, doing all of his best work in the latter stages. The winner has subsequently disappointed but this three-year-old is improving all the time and with this course likely to play to his strengths, he has every possibility of exceeding market expectations as the outsider of the field with more to offer over this distance.