Talking Horses: take One For The Team to seize Great Yorkshire glory

Given what Royale Pagaille did in the Peter Marsh last weekend, it is entirely natural for the betting market to latch onto Cap Du Nord, who chased that one home at Kempton last month and seems sure to run a big race in Doncaster’s Sky Bet Chase, also known as the Great Yorkshire. But Cap Du Nord might be about to bump into another good one in One For The Team (3.15).

Nick Williams, who has been among the winners lately, said a year ago that he thought this was a heavy-ground horse, but he has given him precious few opportunities on a testing surface. This switch to handicaps looks sensible after he was outpaced in the Kauto Star and he has more to offer.

1.30 Doncaster Anyone who stuck with the Nicky Henderson hotpots at Haydock last Saturday had a pretty thin time of it and indeed the last six favourites from his Lambourn yard have been beaten, though others from the yard have been winning. It’s something to think about, for anyone aggressive enough to take 1-4 about Shishkin in this novice chase. From what we know of the ability of these five runners, he ought to win and testing ground does not seem a problem for him. But such odds leave no margin for error.

2.05 Doncaster It is tempting to give another chance to Marie’s Rock, who was fancied to beat her stablemate Floressa at Newbury in November, when everything went wrong. But the fitting of both hood and tongue tie suggest plenty to worry about and the stable’s main jockey is on Floressa this time. At 11-4 or so, Miranda may be a better bet than either, having shown similar ability in handicaps.

2.20 Lingfield In hindsight, excuses could be made for the unsuccessful start made by Power Over Me, who had three fruitless runs in Ireland. But he caught almost everyone by surprise with a 22-1 maiden success on his first run for Robyn Brisland and has followed up in two handicaps over today’s course and distance. Last Sunday’s win suggested a 5lb penalty wouldn’t stop him next time.

2.40 Doncaster This is a very different test to the Ascot handicap for conditional jockeys won by Emir Sacree before Christmas. Pats Fancy probably turned in a stronger bit of form when chasing home an Irish raider in a Grade Two at Cheltenham last time, looking as though stamina was a real forte.

2.55 Lingfield Having won over hurdles since his last Flat run, Hydroplane is of some interest but the suspicion must be that he’ll be found short of pace in this grade. Pirate King looks a plausible favourite, for all that he was beaten at odds-on last weekend. This is a softer contest.

Quick Guide

Chris Cook’s Saturday racing tips

Show

Lingfield
12.00 Arabic Welcome 12.35 Year Of The Dragon 1.10 Give ’em The Slip 1.45 Bint Al Anood 2.20 Power Over Me 2.55 Pirate King 3.30 Atheeb 4.05 Shaqeeqa (nb)

Doncaster
12.55 Sunset West (nap) 1.30 Shishkin 2.05 Miranda 2.40 Pats Fancy 3.15 One For The Team 3.50 Well Smitten 4.25 Fenney Brook

Kempton
2.00 Hasanabad 2.35 Hint Of Stars 3.10 Muay Thai 3.45 I’m Available 4.20 Highland Avenue 4.55 Your Choice 5.30 Parknacilla 6.00 Mi Laddo 6.30 The Bull

Cheltenham
Abandoned because of waterlogging

3.30 Lingfield The eye goes first to Catch My Breath, seeking a hat-trick of wins and with the in-form claimer Laura Pearson aboard again. But this represents a serious step up in class for the grey and a better option could be Atheeb, a winner here in June on his last start for Sir Michael Stoute. He was too fresh and sat close up behind a strong pace on his return to action at Kempton but it would be no surprise to see a better showing this time. CC

Sandown favourite to inherit Cheltenham’s lost trials

Sandown Park’s meeting next Saturday is the early favourite to stage some of the feature races at Cheltenham’s Festival Trials meeting, after the course was forced to abandon its final card before its showpiece event in March due to waterlogging.

The British Horseracing Authority will be keen to save both the Cleeve Hurdle, the main domestic trial for the Stayers’ Hurdle in March, and the Cotswold Chase, in which last year’s Gold Cup runner-up, Santini, had been declared to run, if at all possible. With several of next week’s jump meetings already either abandoned or in doubt, however, its options could be limited.

“The one thing that none of us can control is the weather, but it’s very frustrating,” Emma Lavelle, whose popular staying hurdler Paisley Park was odds-on to win a third Cleeve Hurdle, said on Friday.

“I know Sandown is one that’s been bandied around for next weekend and if that were on, it would be a definite possibility, but with conditions as they are, I don’t think I’d want to go too much later than that, just to have him fresh for the main event.

“Hopefully there will be something and I’m sure there will be plenty of discussions, but if they put something on, I’d say we’d be more than likely to head in that direction.

“It gets testing coming up that hill at Sandown but it’s not as if Cheltenham was going to be any different [on Saturday]. He’s pretty robust and doesn’t have too much of a bother what the ground is like, he’s one of those very rare horses that is remarkably uncomplicated as to where you run him.”

The BHA said on Friday that it will consider its options early next week “as the current picture is so changeable as regards to the weather and which courses are going to be raceable in the coming days.”

Jump meetings at Hereford (Monday), Lingfield (Tuesday) and Newcastle (Tuesday) have already been abandoned, while the going at Warwick, which is due to race on Wednesday, is currently heavy with standing water on the track. GW

source: theguardian.com