Midweek Pointers !

I dont normally do that much midweek, however there are 2 tomorrow that could be worth having a look at if you get the chance to do some form study in the morning. They are ABRAHAM LINCOLN at Epsom and LEGAL EAGLE at Haydock, funnily enough they were both previously trained by Dandy Nicholls. Abraham Lincoln ran a good 2nd to Tajneed before running at Epsom in the competitive 6f sprint that finishes off the Derby Day meeting. I thought he ran well there and was a little bit unlucky so he may fare better in this smaller field.
At Haydock Legal Eagle gets the assistance of Jamie Spencer over 6f, however he isnt particularly well drawn in 5 as they will surely come down the rail and I'm not sure if JP will therefore adopt the only tactic he seems to know of dropping him out the back, if he does then I cant see him winning as he's more of a grinder than a fast finisher, so this is more for in running players.

There are 1 or 2 sprints on Friday, so be sure to drop in again then.

Up a bit, down a bit

Its here again, the weekly look at the ups and downs of the handicapper. I did email the sprint handicapper at BHB Headquarters about his handicapping of the Wokingham, but I never received a reply.....poor show !

Anyway on with this weeks summary and lets begin with the Gosforth Park Cup at Newcastle, where like in Ireland at the weekend, there was a big draw bias on the stands side. This race was won by Captain Dunne who had banged his head last time when coming out of the stalls and he was able to bag the rail here and win by a head from Secret Asset, as a result he was raised 4lb to 104 and the 2nd went up 3lb to 97. Behind Fol Hollow finished full of running and was left on the same mark of 98. The race itself was run in 58.94s which was fast by 0.66.

Also at Chester on Friday night we saw Feeling Fresh win the Class 5 Handicap over 7f for Paul Green in convincing fashion. He had been off the track for best part of a year and won this despite suffering interfernce once in the straight. If he progresses again he could well be up to defying the 4lb rise in the weights taking him to 64.

On Saturday the Group 3 Chipchase Stakes at Newcastle went to Barney McGrew by 2 1/2 lengths on the favoured ground near the rail, however if you run well in these races you have to take your punishment and he was raised 8lb as a result to 108, aged 7 it will be a while before he gets back to a realistic handicap mark again.

In the following Class 2 Handicap Johhny Mudball also came up the favoured stands side to win by 4 1/2 lengths from Poet's Place. He was raised a hefty 9lbs for this taking him up to 99, which seems harsh as this was the 3rd sprint race on the trot that the stands side dominated. All the horses that came up the middle struggled and as a result were all dropped 1 or 2lbs. River Falcon was dropped 2lb to 75 and this admirable old sprinter keeps running his race and he looks sure to go in sometime, he was running off 96 at the beginning of last season and if he gets the breaks he should win soon.

The Class 2 Handicap at Windsor over 6f went to Parisian Pyramid, winning by a length from Prohibit who was running in a first time visor. Prohibit hadnt run that well in the Wokingham but he was woken up here. The winner was raised 5lb to 96 and the 2nd went up 2lb to 98. The eyecatcher for me was Signor Peltro who met a lot of trouble in running and was flying at the finish and he remains on the same mark of 100. The 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 7th had all run in the Wokingham the previous Saturday.

So there we have it, there are a few highlighted one's for you to keep a lookout for and be sure to look in over the weekend for my appraisal of the sprint action.

Weekend Fallout

There were several horses running over the weekend that had contested the Wokingham the previous weekend, they were :-
KNOT IN WOOD 4th OR108 (Stands side)-4th in G3 at Newcastle
GOLDEN DESTINY 5th OR100 (Stands side)-3rd in C2 Hcap at Windsor off 99
EDGE CLOSER 8th OR102 (Stands side)-5th in C2 Hcap at Windsor off 102
RILEYSKEEPINGFAITH 11th OR102 (Far side)-7th in C2 Hcap at Windsor off 102
PROHIBIT 16th OR98 (Far Side)-2nd in C2 Hcap at Windsor off 96, (1st time cheek pieces + 5lb claimer)
BARNEY MCGREW 24th (Far side)-OR102-1ST in G3 at Newcastle - (Raced on favoured stands side)

In the Class 2 Handicap at Windsor Signor Peltro finished like a train from the back despite suffering interference on the way through and if he could get a clear run over 6f or 7f he would go close to winning next time out. Parisian Pyramid won the race with another consistent performance but he will go up again in the handicap and you wonder whether he would have any further improvement on this from his revised rating. Prohibit ran well in 2nd in the first time cheek pieces and he is capable of going well again if they have the same effect next time. Wildcat Wizard suffered interference when making his move.

Barney Mcgrew up at Newcastle had run no sort of race in the Wokingham but his trainer had said he had been showing something like his old self in the last week and he bagged the stands rail here which turned out the best place to be and managed to win a Group 3. Behind were Himalya, Knot in Wood and Sir Gerry, the latter looked like he had had one race too many in the last few weeks.

Johnny Mudball had been threatening to win all year and he produced the goods at Newcastle in no uncertain terms, like Barney McGrew earlier on he bagged the rail which was the place to be and from there he dominated this Class 2 Handicap over 6f winning by 4 1/2 lengths from Poet's Place. Behind were the likes of Lenny Bee, River Falcon and Baldemar however they all elected to go up the middle and were never in it and can be forgiven their runs.

At Chester the Class 3 Handicap over 5f went to Ryan Style in a decent time for Chester of 59.96 for local trainer Mrs L. Williamson and Coranation Street character Jason Grimshaw. Green Park finished an unlucky 2nd in the first time visor, the handicapper hasnt given him much respite all year, he's had 12 runs and started the season on 76 and still remains on 76 with his last 2 wins coming off 71. He's unlikely to be dropped for this and may even go up again, but we should keep an eye on his headgear as there was an improvement today for the first time visor.

In Ireland on Sunday Glamorous Spirit who I have flagged up on this blog several times as a horse with blinding speed took the others apart in a Group 3 over 5f. It was a tremendous performance for a horse rated just 87, but it shows that the gap between top class sprinters and handicappers is very minimal and its a wonder that other trainers dont take their chance in this type of contest. Fallon did the steering on this speedball and I remember him in the past riding similar races on Rud's Pet. However all though they have got the requisite black type for this filly its not going to make a good impression on the handicapper.

In the big handicap there Hawkeyethenoo won his race on his side of the track but was beaten comprehensively by the winner. Its difficult on this performance to see how he could win the Stewards Cup at Goodwood and he needs to go up about 5lb's in any event to even get in. It maybe that he had an off day but he certainly didnt show the acceleration that we have seen from him previously and there are probably others that we can concentrate on now.

Arise Sir Gerry !

Sir Gerry has come out of his race last week well according to John Bests assistant trainer and he goes for the Chipchase Stakes at Newcastle over 6f. I think he's probably better suited by a small field as he usually comes with a late rattle and because he gets up late the handicapper may not have his true measure. The Golden Jubilee was probably a step to far for him and this small field Group 3 could be within his capabilities.
Knot in Wood and Himalya also both ran good races at Royal Ascot and it will be interesting to see how they get on to see if the handicapper was right in his assessment of their respective races.

Also at Newcastle we have the Totescoop6 Handicap over 6f, Lenny Bee has the chance to confirm the form of his win at Beverley a race in which several winners came out of and which he was always in command from his favourable draw. In his next race at Musselburgh they went a bit fast for him and he seemed to be eased down close home and I'm not sure if that was his true running behind Hamish McGonagall. Here he has the assistance of 7lb claimer Dale Swift and only having had 10 starts he is open to further improvement. Johhny Mudball, Baldemar and River Falcon could give im most to do.

Over at Windsor the Wokingham form comes under scrutiny again, however one I was looking at selecting for that was unable to get into the race and that was Wildcat Wizard(see previous post). Consequently he may be fresher than the ones who contested that and he has the best of the draw here too.

At Chester Bertoliver has the chance to show his Epsom Dash form holds up, he showed blistering pace there and if he can get to the rail here from his number 4 draw he could hold too much pace for the others to make any impression and for that reason he is the selection for this 5f handicap.

At Doncaster Lucky Numbers could still be ahead of the handicapper, he didnt have a very good draw last time and that was coupled with a poor start so in the circumstances he won well there and he must be placed at least.

Up a bit, down a bit

In our regular look at the goings on of the sprint handicapper, we kick off this week with The Wokingham.
The winner Laddies Poker Two as we have discussed was very impressive and Jeremy Noseda has said he will now step her up in class for her next run, she went up 13lb for this to 108, so she's probably run her last race in a handicap.
Below her the handicapper didnt react that much, which is strange in my view. Striking Spirit has gone up a 1lb to 94 and he is the only other horse in the race bar the winner to go up in the ratings. If this had been an ordinary handicap 2, 3 or even 4 might have been raised, which makes this piece of handicapping odd. Here we haD a top Class 2 handicap, so a good performance in finishing placed would easily be good enough to win a Class 3 or even an easier Class 2 handicap.
As a result of the leniency shown, Palace Moon, who I thought was unlucky not to have finished 2nd, doesnt move off his mark of 105 and you have to remember he was giving the winner 10lb in this. In an ordinary year without the freak winner, had Palace Moon won this race he would have gone up at least 7lb, so in my view he and the 2nd are effectively runners without penalties and should be followed on their next run. It will only be Palace Moon's 2nd run for William Knight when he does run again as Knight had only acquired him 2 days before this race.
Behind the front three there was Knot in Wood (4th) who was dropped 1lb, Genki (6th) stayed on 103, Noverre to Go (7th) stayed on 96, Edge Closer (8th) stayed on 102 and Ingleby Lady (9th) stayed on 97.
The rest of the field were either dropped 1lb or 2lb and you have to remember this race was run in a course record time.

A couple of the runners may run over the weekend and it will be interesting to see how the form of the race works out over the coming weeks.

Earlier in the week a Class 3 5f Conditions Stakes at Beverley went to Group Therapy by 3 1/4 lengths from Enderby Spirit. As a result Jeremy Noseda's horse went up in the ratings by 3lb to 103, whereas the 2nd went down a 1lb to 97. Hamish McGonagall didnt really perform on the track and was left on the same mark which is understandable and we should still keep in mind on a flat track over 5f.

Thanks for keeping in touch with the blog to all regular readers and if there's anyone new looking in then feel free to become a follower and provide some comments.

Hawkeyethenoo a good bet for the weekend

HAWKEYETHENOO could be worth a bet when he runs at The Curragh on Sunday in Irelands richest sprint handicap run over 6f. He was favourite for the Wokingham as soon as he had come 2nd in the Epsom Dash over 5f, he made a gallant effort in that showing good speed and he was doing all his best work at the end, so 6f here should be right up his street. He is currently 6/1 with Ladbrokes and that would represent good value if you want to dip in now as this is not as competitive as the Wokingham and this is a progressive sprinter.

Palace Moon and Balthazars Gift are 2 to take from the weekend

Palace Moon in the Wokingham and Balthazars Gift in the Golden Jubilee are two to take from the weekend in the aslo rans.

Palace Moon finished 3rd in the Wokingham having only been at his new stable since Thursday of last week. He was out the back for most of the race and followed through the winner although he got a little bit checked on his way through. Fallon gave him strong driving but he responded well to the pressure with the jockey commenting afterwards that he may need a step up to 7f. This could well fit in with his breeding as this family all want between 6f and 7f although usually they have all performed better on Good to Soft. He had run ok the previous weekend behind Sir Gerry at Salisbury where he aslo got checked when making his move, however I would say this was an improved performance on that race. He is going to go up in the handicap for this, possibly 3lb which will take him up to 108. In an ordinary year he could well have finished a close 2nd granted luck in running as the winner was without doubt a Group horse in a handicap.

Balthazars Gift was drawn 14 in the Golden Jubilee, and when the stalls opened he headed towards the stand side where he then made good progress through the field and he ran on well towards the end. This was his first outing this year and he looks sure to improve on this although a Group 1 sprint may be beyond him now.

Choisir, Choisir, Choisir !

The Coolmore stallion Choisir dominated Royal Ascot's two big sprints on Saturday with his only two runners of the day. First up was the G1 Golden Jubilee Stakes over 6f, this was won by STARSPANGLEDBANNER trained by Aidan O'Brien by 1 3/4 lengths from Society Rock in a time of 1 min 12.57 secs. He had been the subject of rave reports all week about the times per furlong he had been recording at home, said to be 9 seconds. After the race O'Brien said "Weve never had anything like this fellow. He works like a quarter horse. You saw today what we see at home - and I dont want to be accused of hyping him. When a horse can do that kind of work, weve never seen it, and he is without doubt the fastest sprinter I have ever trained. To go that fast, furlong by furlong, you dont record those kind of times". Strong words indeed from the trainer of some of the greatest horses we have seen in modern times.

Next up was the Wokingham also run over the 6f and here we had coming into the race a horse who hadnt run for 610 days and who had only run 4 times in her career before. She had preveiously shown she was capable of winning this race when she last ran at Ascot and recorded a time of 1 min 13.10 secs when she was 3. On Saturday she was held up off the pace on the stands rail before being produced by Johnny Murtagh to win this competitive handicap with ease in a course record time of 1 min 12.27 secs. It was without doubt the best sprint performance we have seen for sometime and if she improves from this who knows what she could be capable of, Aidan O'Brien must have looked on in disbelief as the time of Starspangledbanner was bettered in some style by a horse that had been off the track for nearly 2 years.

To see one great sprinter in a day you would count yourself as blessed, but to see 2 within 40 minutes of each other was a memorable day and lets hope we see them both lining up for the July Cup in what could turn out to be the sprint race of the season. Johnny Murtagh having ridden both is the person who has the most insight as to which is best and someone is going to get one hell of a ride on Laddies Poker Two at Newmarket.

What of Choisir, who proved himself to be a great sprinter in his time and now he is truly a sire of great sprinters. Hopefully he will be around for many years to come as he is still only 11 years of age and we will see many more of his progeny gracing the racecouses of the world.

Top Sprint action today !

We are treated to some fantastic sprint races today and we will be looking at the following :
Golden Jubilee Stakes
Wokingham Stakes
Land of Burns Fiiles Stakes at Ayr
32 Red.com Handicap at Newmarket
CRUK Supported by Betfred Handicap at Haydock
Jeremy Noseda has the chance of a big race double at Royal Ascot and at the other meetings Franny Norton has his own chance at a double, more of that later.

THE GOLDEN JUBILEE - This Group 1 has 24 runners ! You wont get many of those with this size of field. Once again the draw will be to the fore and the far side which has been popular for winners all week will probably be no different today. Drawn on the far side we have as follows :
Lord Shanakil drawn 24 - 33/1
War Artist 23 - 18/1
Serious Attitude 22 - 33/1
Fleeting Spirit 21 - 8/1
Total Gallery 20 - 50/1
High Standing 19 - 12/1
Alverta 18 - 20/1
Varenar 17 - 33/1
Main Aim 16 - 16/1
Prime Defender 15 - 25/1
Up the nearside the pace may well come from Kinsale King and Starspangledbanner, the latter has apparently been recording amazing sectionals at home. I have no particular preference for anything and I would suggest backing one from each side if your going to have a go. As although high numbers look to be best all the pace may well come up the stands side, so its a tricky one. At a push I would do Marchand D'or EW.

WOKINGHAM STAKES
Another massive field and historically a difficult race to solve, over the far side we have as follows :
Noverre to Go 27 - 16/1
Marching 26 - 40/1
Jimmy Styles 24 - 16/1
Able Master 23 - 33/1
Genki 22 - 9/1
Mac Gille Eoin 21 - 50/1
Valery Borzov 20 - 40/1
Johannes 19 - 25/1
Judd Street 18 - 66/1
Kaldoun Kingdom 17 - 16/1
Evens and Odds 16 - 25/1
Knot in Wood 15 - 40/1
Damien 14 - 25/1
Others may well follow them over to that side but if your in the lower half you will be wasting a lot of ground tacking over in such a competitive race. There are some good horses drawn low and one that has been subject of heavy support in recent days is Laddies Poker Two (2) who receorded a very good time the last time she ran here, albeit it was 2 years ago. But if she records a time of anything like that then it wont matter what side she is on she should win. Genki has been put aside for this and ran a good trial last time at Newmarket when having a poor draw, he must go close as Roger Charlton's horses are going well at the moment. The race won by Medicean Man last time may have a say on the outcome, however Wildcat Wizard who I thought had the best chance from that race was unable to get in as a reserve. Its a wide open race as you would expect but the 2 at the head of the market are drawn on either side so I would go with both of those with an ew on Evens and Odds whose drawn in the middle and William Buick is a good booking by Nicholls.

LAND O' BURNS FILLIES STAKES
Sees Franny Norton start his day at Ayr aboard City Dancer and she has a great chance of winning this on her fourth start for Dandy Nicholls. She ran a cracker last time in the Epsom Dash where she was absalutely flying at the finish behind Hawkeyethenoo who would have been fav for the Wokingham had he got in it. She has been hinting at a return to form on all her runs and Glamorous Spirit will ensure a very fast pace today. I know she's not very well in with some in the context of this race but she has speed and horses can only go so fast and as we know there is not much between top handicappers and Listed performers and 14/1 represents a great price in my view with Norton's strength in the saddle.

32 RED.COM HANDICAP
Averoo came form last to first last time out and continued his rapid improvement and he certainly doesnt look like he's finished just yet. He's not got Kieren on today but the hill at Newmarket is sure to suit and he should be flying up it come the finish under Luke Morris, lets just hope he doesnt leave it too late.

CRUK SUPPORTED BY BETFRED HANDICAP
Franny norton finishes his day at his home track by getting down to Haydock from Ayr to ride 4 and Timber Treasure could be the one to be on. He showed improved form last time to finish 4th on what was unsuitable ground and he should go well today on Good to Firm over 6f for the Paul Green stable who are in fine form.

So thats it, hope you all have a good punting day.

Get on the Indian Trail ?

Indian Trail has been running well all season and if he gets a fast pace here, which looks assured as Nicholls has also entered the speedy Jargelle, he should be flying at the finish. He's dropped a few pounds as of late and it is also interesting that Adrian Nicholls has chosen to ride him. He shouldnt get too much trouble getting a run with only 7 other runners and 5/1 is a decent price.

Wildcat Wizard to weave some magic !

Wildcat Wizard grabs me as a good ew bet for Saturday in the Wokingham, he has high draw in 25, the race has been going the way of 4yo's in recent years and Tom Queally has been booked to do the steering in place of Jamie Spencer.
The stable think he has never been in better form and that he should be taken seriously on Saturday. The race at Ascot in which he was 2nd behind Medicean Man, Noverre to Go 3rd, produced a time of 1m 13.38s which would have been good enough to have won any of the last 3 Wokingham's on Good to Firm.
That race was won well by Medicean Man and Jeremy Gask thinks he is open to further improvement, however Jamie Spencer, as is his want, had Wildcat Wizard out the back that day before producing him with a run when it was all too late. I fancy that Tom Queally will have him sitting just off the pace this time, before producing him in the final furlong.
His next race came a bit too soon for him the following week when he finished 3rd behind Rileyskeepingfaith and he was also slightly interfered with there. Paul Cole thinks he is best suited by 7f and this race has always benefitted horses that stay that bit further as it is a stiff track.
The going at Ascot is heading towards being firm and the far side is the fastest part of the course it would seem and that is where the pace is likely to be.
Wildcat Wizard is good ew bet for the Wokingham and if you can get any of the 33/1 then it is good value as I think he will be in the thick of it come the end.
I will have some more views on the race together with a race at Haydock amongst others on Saturday Morning.

Hamish to make it three ?

Hamish Mcgonagall dominated a class 2 handicap at Musselburgh last time off 99 and although he has gone up 6lb since he gets into this race on good terms with the others, Look Busy has a good record at this course but she was best in last time and took advantage. However tomorrow Hamish should be able to dominate this small field from the front.

The Kings Stand

Well its finally here, Royal Ascot, I'm not convinced about the Aussie horse Nicconi, I wathched its gallop on RP TV and presumably the visor has been put on because it was spooking as it came up the track. Also looking at the times of the previous Aussie winners of that race in Flemington his was the slowest of them all and he only won by a head, still he's a good horse who may put us in our place.

After reading that the course is faster on the far rail than the centre its difficult to know whats going to happen even though there's only 12 runners in the field.

Total Gallery is a very fast horse who is useful on his day and he has been burdened with his Group 1 penalty so far this season, but tomorrow he will be free of that and 8/1 represents good ew value for him.

I'm going to side though with Kingsgate Native who has a good record at the meeting, he has been a bit inconsistent in the past, but now he is with Sir Michael Stoute hopefully he will be a bit more consistent and we will see the best of him.

Sir Gerry for Ascot ?

Sir Gerry was a convincing winner of the 6f Listed race at Salisbury on Sunday coming with his usual late rattle to just get up near the line. He is in the Golden Jubilee at Ascot next Saturday and if you fancy him ew you can still get 100/1 with Victor Chandler which isnt as crazy as it sounds as he was 3rd in the race in 2008.

In the Class 3 handicap at Doncaster Baby Strange was another to finish well and take the spoils and he could well win again on this showing as he hadnt run on turf for nearly a year prior to this and the race was run in a decent time. I didnt see the race myself so wasnt able to see if he played up beforehand which is usually a sign that he is going to run well. My selection Cheveton was beaten early on and finished 10th but he may be dropped further in the ratings as a result and his turn cant be too far away. Two eyecatchers were Captain Ramius and One way or Another who both suffered interference at different stages in the race and it will be interesting to see if the handicapper takes a dim view of their runs, both are entered in the Wokingham but are unlikely to get a run.

Next week is Royal Ascot and at this stage for the Kings Stand on tuesday I would be sticking with Kingsgate Native who has the beating of the home team.

Cheveton to put up improved show ?

Sunday sees a Class 3 handicap at Doncaster over 6f and the going at the time of writing is good. The field is headed by recent winner Tajneed who is stiil feasibly handicapped on his best form, however 10-1 for a C3 is a big weight to carry to victory again. Invincible Force is probably too high in the handicap right now and although he has the assistance of Fallon, who is an interesting booking, he needs to dominate up front for you to see his best. Cheveton has not hit top form this year but he was 2nd in the Coral Sprint to Kaldoun Kingdom in October off 95 giving that rival 7lb and gets in here on 92 with William Carson taking off a further 3lb and it wouldnt be hard to imagine him being there at the business end although he has never won over 6f, however this is slight drop in class for him. Johnny Mudball is another contender and he put in a performance last time more in keeping with what has been expected of him in coming 2nd to Parisian Pyramid off 89 and only having had 6 runs is open to further improvement. Excuzes Moi and Baby Strange ara both horses that show better form when they are full of themselves pre race, so its a wait and see with them. Northern Dare would be another well handicapped horse on his best form and he ran better last time for his new stable behind Tajneed and if he did return to his Goodwood Stewards Cup Consolation race form when he came 2nd then he could go close.
All in all its another wide open sprint handicap but one that could go well at a decent price is Cheveton.

Sprint action at York

After yesterdays success at Haydock we move on to York and and a Class 3 handicap over 5f. Its pretty moderate stuff though and really anything in the field could have its day and win, however the two I would have the most interest in are the fav Captain Carey and Feelin Foxy who ran a good race here last time in finishing 4th to Hamish McGonagall in a Class 2 handicap on Good to Firm and she could be some value ew if you fancied taking a chance as it was roundabout this time last year she struck form.

Up a bit, down a bit

Ive not been looking at the ratings to much recently but there were some decent sprints last weekend and we need to have a look at the handicappers reactions.

First up was The Dash at Epsom over 5f on Derby Day, Bertoliver was raised 6lb as a result of his neck win putting him up too 89, whereas the very fast finishing Hawkeyethenoo who would have been the winner in about 2 strides went up 3lb to 91. Although he is favourite for the Wokingham it is highly unlikely that he will even get in the race. Rocket Bob stays on 85 for his 3rd place, whilst Judge 'n Jury who ran very well and maybe put up his best performance this season was put up 1lb to 100. Two others who finished with a rare old rattle up the rails were Masta Plasta and City Dancer who both stayed on their same marks of 101 and 88, the latter you would have to say is well handicapped and looks sure to win before long and maybe he'll be out again this weekend. Several behind were dropped as follows Indian Trail 1lb to 84, Moorhouse Lad 2lb to 95, Oldjoesaid 1lb to 92, Strike up the Band 3lb to 94 and Hoh Hoh Hoh 5lb to 85 amongst others.
The 6f handicap at the end of the card was won by Flipando who goes up 4lb to 98, Fol Hollow was 2nd and goes up a further 2lb to 98, Run For the Hills finished to great effect down the outside in 6th and the handicapper has raised him 2lb for that to 100, which seems a bit harsh considering the winner only went up 4lb and in my view he should have stayed on 98. Further down the field Abraham Lincoln has been raised 3lb to 90, he had finished 2nd to Tajneed on his previous run and didnt seem to get a run here.
Over at Musselburgh for their big sprint and it was Hamish Mcgonagall who came out on top by a neck from Striking Spirit and as a result was raised 6lb to 105 and this will make it much tougher for him in handicaps now, the 2nd went up 4lb to 98 hwilst the next 3 home all stayed on their same marks (Ingleby Lady 97, Masamah 97 and Ziggy Lee 86). Lenny Bee was left untouched as the form of his previous race had worked out very well and I dont think he got much of a run here. Behind Hogmaneigh and Roker Park were dropped 3lb a piece to 94 and 90.

Is there anybody out there ?

As the line to the famous Pink Floyd song goes and to be honest sometimes I feel as though I'm writing this blog to myself as there seems to be no response or feedback to any of the selections posted even though my strike rate is reasonably high and I am reducing big handicaps down to a manageable few horses to concentrate on.

So come on readers lets have some feedback to keep me interested in providing the winners free of charge !

Is there anybody out there ???

Anyone for Haggas ?

The Sprint handicapper has his eye on William Haggas's 2 sprinters High Standing and Triple Aspect for Royal Ascot on his blog.

http://www.britishhorseracing.com/goracing/blogs/handicappers.asp

Ziggy Lee to go one better ?

Ziggy Lee looks as though he can go one better in the big sprint at Musselburgh on Saturday, drawn 3 he can hopefully gain a good position early on so that he can take full advantage of his speed come the end. He will need to reverse form with the winner at York but on the revised terms he should have little problem. Of course these are not the only 2 in with a chance as this as competitive a sprint as you will get and Lenny Bee gets his cahnce to uphold the form of that Beverley race that weve seen so many winners come from, he had the best of the draw that day but it may have been that he runs well after a break that was the telling point for him. Its interesting that Adrian Nicholls doesnt go to Epsom and partners Striking Spirit in this and he is only a pound over his last winning mark and the stable had a good winner in Tajneed during the week. However Ziggy Lee is picked on the basis that he is an improving sprinter.

In the consolation race Rasaman can go well after his latest run were he suffered interference at a crucial moment, he probably wouldnt have won there but this is an easier race.

The Epsom Dash

The Epsom Dash at the weekend looks a really competitive sprint, however in the past the draw has played a major part as has course form and Dandy Nicholls runners. This year sees a lot of the pace in the middle of the course with the likes of Jaconet drawn 5 and Glamorous Spirit drawn 1 likely to go off like scalded cats ! These 2 are very fast horses who have plied their trade on the all weather but are no mugs on turf. Another to force the pace will be Captain Dunne from the in form Tim Easterby yard who gets the assistance of Jimmy Fortune. With a gaurenteed blistering pace it could play into the hold up horse hands and one who has shown his liking for this course is veteran and last years winner Indian Trail who in April was running all over the back of the others in his prep run here off 86, he is now on 85 and Billy Cray takes off a valuable 5lb. If he finds the gaps he must surely be thereabouts once again. Oldjoesaid was drawn 1 last year and he hasnt fared much better this time in stall 7, however he was 6lb higher last year and although in the worst draw of the lot managed to finish 4th. Kevin Ryan would appear to have been targeting this race for him and he had booked Jamie Spencer at the 5 day stage. Moorhouse Lad finished 2nd in 2008 and he looks like he's coming back to form but he too is not well drawn in stall 4. Fathom Five won the race her in April, however it wasnt a very fast time compared to previous races here and he has been raised 3lb as a result and may not improve for the run, although he has a good draw in 18.
Of those drawn high City Dancer has Franny Norton to assist from stall 17 and it wouldnt be hard to imagine this one showing his best form here since joining Dandy Nicholls. Finally Hawkeyethenoo looked on the upgrade when he won at Newmarket where he had the likes of Enact, Angus Newz, Genki and Parisian Pyramid behind, he came with a storming run there and his trainer believes he has the speed for this and has booked Kieran Fallon to do the steering from stall 14. He is still feasibly weighted on a mark of 88, will relish the fast pace and will have a jockey on the top of his game and for those reasons I would put him forward as the best chance in an open race.

Ryan Moore teams up with Kevin Ryan

The booking of Ryan Moore for Esprit de Midas in the 8.10 at Ripon tomorrow is eyecatching. Only lightly raced he finished 2nd to Bond city at Ripon last time out were he was only beaten 1/2 length. He doesnt often race on turf but showed a return to form on it at Ripon and 8/1 would be a reasonable price for ew purposes if you can get it. Its not a race to go overboard in because as in all these sprints each has their day.
Of the others Excusez Moi could go well for the first time visor as this horse is pretty quirky and can either be good or awful. P. J. McDonald who has won on him before takes the ride and if you are able to see any of the pre race then you need to see how he is behaving as he runs better when he's being awkward.
Tajneed is well handicapped on his best form and ran well at Beverley behind Lenny Bee, which was a race that saw Hamish McGonagall finish 3rd, Fol Hollow 4th, Parsisan Pyramid 6th and Medicean Man 8th and all have won since, the first 3 of those in Class 2 handicaps, so you need to be very wary of him.
However the booking of Ryan Moore could just swing it for Esprit de Midas, but do it as an ew.