Horse Racing Tips & Predictions: Liam Firkin Saturday Selections

A frustrating week with four horses finishing in second place at prices of 16/1, 14/1, 9/1 and 8/1 but we have an action-packed Saturday and here are your bets for this afternoon where I am hoping Lady Luck is a little kinder to us.

TIP 1: BROOKIE – 0.5 Pts EW

Best odds of 12/1 at William Hill at the time of posting.

Anthony Honeyball has had a good start to the season with nine runners having been sent to various racecourses which resulted in three winners. BROOKIE can add to that tally today if he is ready to fire on his seasonal reappearance which he has done on plenty of occasions in the past.

A winner two and three seasons ago when running off the back of a break along with a third placed finish at Cheltenham last season provides enough evidence that he goes well fresh and that combined with a falling handicap mark could make him dangerous in this field.

He is now 12lbs lower than when kicking off the 2025-2026 campaign and connections struggled for ideal ground conditions with him declared a non-runner on three occasions during the winter period. He gets the better ground that he prefers today and is in much calmer waters than his recent runs with him tried at Graded level for every run in this calendar year. Back into handicap company and on a right-handed track can see him go much better than his odds suggest with him securing wins at Kempton, Sandown, and Fontwell (figure of 8 track) in his career to date. I will be hoping that like many of Honeyball’s other runners, he is fit and ready to fire today and if that is the case then his price could look far too big come the end of the race.

TIP 2: ZILLOW – 0.5 Pts EW

Best odds of 28/1 at bet365 at the time of posting.

An interesting recruit to the Faye Bramley yard returns to the jumps for the 26-27 season and although his recent runs have not been up to standards he had previously set, he would be very well handicapped if finding form of old.

He is sat towards the bottom of the weights with him now officially rated 117. That same mark saw him win in Ireland when part of the Closutton team and he then went on to score again off a mark of 125 when running in Listed company at Fairyhouse.

Both of those successes now read very favourably with him having beaten rivals who are now rated 136 & 125 and conceded over a stone in weight to the former and the form appears even stronger when revisiting that listed event where Bowensonfire was back in second and is now rated 147 and has made a nice start over fences having won at Cheltenham last weekend.

Harry Kimber is booked for the ride on ZILLOW, and he has seen a little bit of money since opening at 40/1, and I would be keen to see his price continuing to trend in that direction given connections.

Those associated with this new yard will be interesting to follow for the duration of this season, and I would predict that there could be a few nice pots won along the way which is likely to be accompanied by a few gambles. This could be the first of them.

TIP 3: MINELLA SIXO – 1 Pt EW

Best odds of 14/1 at bet365 at the time of posting.

A horse that showed that he retains ability last season following a lengthy period on the sidelines but was sixth in a Listed contest at the Dublin Racing Festival before following that up with a runner up finish in a Pertemps qualifier next time out.

Connections have opted for a different route with him this season with chasing pursued as opposed to continuing over the smaller obstacles and that could lead to him being significantly well handicapped given what he achieved over hurdles. There is a 12lb discrepancy between the two official ratings with him holding a mark of 119 over fences versus his hurdles mark of 131. Having seen him jumping over obstacles there is nothing to suggest from Galway that the gap should be that wide. That run was an educational exercise with him not asked to make an impression on the outcome of the race and it was certainly over a trip too short. His jumping was neat enough and provided some more experience which could pay off today at Down Royal.

MINELLA SIXO is an out and out stayer and he now steps up to the 3m trip which will only further assist his jumping given that they will go at a slightly more sedate pace and to further assist at the weights he has 7lbs being taken out of the saddle by Harry Sexton.

This may seem a little over the top, but I don’t think it is madness to suggest that he could be the best weighted horse who is running anywhere in Britain or Ireland today and he will certainly be seeing some of my money.

TIP 4: HEART WOOD – 1 Pt Win

Best odds of 3/1 at William Hill at the time of posting.

Three winners across the card yesterday at Down Royal was a sign that the yard may be coming into some nice form, which is customary in this part of the season. They have HEART WOOD, the winner of the Ryanair Chase in the race and he will be fit for today with a lot of preparation having been done for this early season target.

Still only an eight-year-old which seems strange to type given the length of period that he has seemingly been competing but that could mean that there is a little more improvement to come and perhaps the best from this horse will be seen this season.

Connections will certainly be hoping that that is the case, but this would be a good starting point, and I think he should be shorter than the 3/1 on offer and this could be a starting point that sees him kick on to something like a King George at Christmas.