Jake Price's Saturday Betting Tips For Racing Action at Ascot & Wetherby

TIP 1: DANCE AND GLANCE - 1pt Win

Best odds of 3/1 at bet365 while publishing.

Last season I was a big fan of DANCE AND GLANCE, and I know that connections are excited about translating that good Hurdles form over fences this campaign – so if he can do that on debut at Ascot, he will surely have to be going very close.

Last season this 6yo finished a well backed second behind Manuelito (130) at Newton Abbot on his reappearance, which was a run to tee him up for the Lavazza Handicap Hurdle on this card. He ran a grand race in fourth that day behind the highly progressive Alexei (158). With his sights lowered somewhat at Ascot in December however he finally recorded a well-deserved success, beating All In You (127) by a head in very determined fashion.

He returned to the well at Sandown in January where this time All In You was able to reverse that form on better terms, but he then ran a fine race in fifth when contesting the William Hill Hurdle at Newbury, despite the heavy ground that day being the opposite of what he wants.

After a bit of a deserved break he returned to action at Haydock in April for their Challenger Two Mile Hurdle Series Final for which he had qualified at Sandown, and this is where he saved his best performance of the season – as he was able to pull an impressive four lengths clear of We’re Red And Blue (125) to land a very nice pot for connections. Whilst the iron was hot they then returned for the Premier Swinton Handicap Hurdle back at Haydock a month later, and despite a 6lbs rise he again ran very well for third place, only beaten 1.75 lengths by Moon Chime (137) and Laafi (141).

Considering the strength of that form, a 1lb rise to a mark of 127 looks very lenient, and you would have to comment that Dance And Glance surely has much more left to give even if he were to return to two-mile Handicap Hurdles. What is so exciting however is that there could be even further improvement to come now going Chasing, as he is a half-brother to two Chase winners including Movie Legend who won a Class 2 at Doncaster, peaking at a mark of 135. Anthony Honeyball seems to have his string forward enough for him to do himself justice at Ascot on Saturday.

TIP 2: LA CONQUIERE - 1pt Win

Best odds of 13/8 at bet365 while publishing.

Whilst Dan Skelton undoubtedly gave Kateira a run at Chepstow earlier in the month in order to get her ready for this race which she won last year, I do think that two-runner contest 12 months ago was a bit farcical considering Golden Ace never turned up. Considering Kateira has largely done nothing in the interim over a full range of different trips too, I think she is worth taking on at such a short price.

The play then at the odds surely has to be LA CONQUIERE for Jamie Snowden, who looks the exact type of pacey, quicker ground Mare that should take a race like this well within her stride. Last season she won her Hurdles debut this exact weekend when running on Good ground at Uttoxeter, and she did tremendously well to beat subsequent Listed winner Dream Shadow (126) by three-quarters of a length despite coming from a much more compromising position of the duo.

Next time she then oozed class up at Newbury in their Listed Mares Novices’ Hurdle on Hennessy weekend, where she showed tremendous pace under Gavin Sheehan to go and beat subsequent Grade 2 winner Charisma Cat (132) by 3.5 lengths. At this point I thought she would be a Mare good enough to win the Mares Novice at the Cheltenham Festival, and her preparation for that race was ambitious – as she went to Ascot in January for an open Grade 2 Mares Hurdle.

Due to her Listed win she was actually trying to give weight away to vastly more experienced rivals that day, and in the end she was beaten half-a-length by Ooh Betty (130). Perhaps the fact she didn’t win that Grade 2 is a blessing in disguise in regard to Saturday however, as else she would have had to carry the maximum penalties for this Listed race.

She didn’t seem to handle Cheltenham when 14th of 22 in the Mares Novice, and she ended her campaign when ambitiously ran in the Aintree Grade 1 Top Novices’ Hurdle against the boys, but this Listed contest back on a flatter track at Wetherby should provide ideal conditions. Jamie Snowden has prepared her for this early season contest, and the 2lbs she gets from Kateira can only help. It is also worth noting she has a 6lbs swing with Ooh Betty, so everything looks right for her to run a career best.

TIP 3: TRUSTINTIMES - 1pt Win

Best odds of 11/4 at PricedUp while publishing.

I am not afraid to admit that I think I got TRUSTINTIMES wrong towards the end of last season, as I thought that he would improve for the increase in distance to 2m4f. Thankfully I only had to pay for that mistake once at Aintree where he simply did not stay, but upon further inspection I actually think this Horse possesses plenty of speed, and as such this two-mile target at Ascot should be right up his street.

After winning his Maiden and Novice at Uttoxeter last Spring, he made his reappearance at Ascot last year in November, when running in a 2m Handicap Hurdle. The market didn’t want to know about him, but he ran a brilliant race to take up the lead once Manuelito fell, and go on to beat Fortune De Mer (134) by a length despite hitting the last flight. He certainly showed a good turn of foot to quicken up that day, and the Horse in second won on his next start and was fancied for the County Hurdle at Cheltenham before getting injured.

Our selection next went to Kempton in December for their Christmas meeting, and once again he showed loads of pace to pull well away from the third Wandering Ego (123) – but unfortunately, he bumped into Williethebuilder (140), who began a bit of a sequence of improvement and is now rated 16lbs higher. The good thing about him reopposing at Ascot on Saturday however is that Trustintimes will be 16lbs better off at the weights, so surely that will be enough to see him reverse that Kempton form line.

As mentioned above he tried 2m4f at Aintree in April after a bit of a break when not staying, but he has now been completely prepared for this race back at Ascot – as he had a prep-run on the Flat at Nottingham 17 days ago over a mile. That trip is clearly far inadequate, but once more he showed a brilliant turn of foot to finish in fourth place. If you watch the replay of that contest, you would have no idea how he managed to finish where he does, until he does. That pipe-opener should have him spot on for this though, and off a mark of 127 he has to have top claims for Harry Fry.