Friday Racing Tips from Steve Ryder

The John Butler trained Inaam (best priced at 11/8) is often hard to predict but he has put in three consistent starts over the past two months. The ten-year-old finished 3rd at Newcastle over 7f before winning at this track over 6f off a mark of 50. He won by a length that day under Daniel Muscutt and he should have followed up on Saturday over the same course and distance but he didn’t get a clear run off the bend.

That run came off a mark of 51 and Inaam gets to run here off the same mark which means that he is 1lb “well in” at the weights. He steps up in trip to 7f which should suit him well and I expect him to prove hard to beat in this race.

This looks a competitive 0-85 handicap but the horse who I feel is overpriced is Poetic Force (best priced at 12/1). The Tony Carroll trained nine-year-old won over this course and distance in January off a mark of 71 and he should hold strong claims off only a 4lb higher mark. He has since won at Wolverhampton off a mark of 73 before finishing 2nd at Chelmsford a week ago under a 4lb penalty.

Poetic Force in theory ran off a mark of a mark of 77 that day so the fact he runs here off a mark of 75 should mean that he runs well with bookmakers offering up to four places.

The Dan Skelton trained West Cork (best priced at 7/2) hasn’t taken to chasing this season but as a result he returns back to hurdling off an attractive handicap mark. The nine-year-old won the Greatwood Hurdle off a mark of 134 in November 2021 before finishing a close 5th behind State Man in the County Hurdle last season off a mark of 141. He went on to finish a length 2nd behind Anna Bunina in the Scottish Champion Hurdle on his next start off a mark of 142 which earnt him a rating of 144.

West Cork now returns to hurdling off a mark of 139 which makes him competitively handicapped and I expect him to run well here before another tilt at the County Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.