Following the excitement and drama of the Cheltenham November Meeting, racing fans have little chance to draw breath. This weekend sees a deluge of high-quality action from both sides of the Irish Sea, including a trio of Grade 1 contests.
The domestic fare dominates the ITV schedule, with eight events from Haydock and Ascot, with the Grade 1 Morgiana Hurdle from Punchestown rounding out the captivating TV card.
Having covered the big Grade 1 double of the Betfair Chase and Morgiana Hurdle elsewhere, here we pick out our top four selections from the quality undercard.
1:15 Haydock – Betfair Racing Podcasts Handicap Hurdle, Class 2, 2m3f
Harry Fry’s Beat The Bat heads the betting in the opening handicap on the TV card and boasts the type of unexposed profile punters invariably latch onto. Having beaten the now 130-rated Welcom To Cartries by a head in his maiden and finished 2½l behind the 131-rated Dysart Enos at Cheltenham, a mark of 132 looks fair, but he may be vulnerable on his first outing or 344 days.
Steel Ally and Kamsinas ran well on their seasonal returns and may have more to offer. However, both runners have been well beaten in their previous runs on soft ground. With that in mind, a forecast of rain, sleet, and snow is hardly ideal.
Henry Daly’s Bowenspark handles soft well and makes the most appeal of those available at a double-figure price. However, the one to be on here is the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Josh The Boss.
Having won his first two starts last season, this may be the time to catch this five-year-old. Whilst way out of his depth in a Grade 1 on his final start of 2023/24, he found handicap company much more to his liking when staying on powerfully to score over this trip at Chepstow on his return. He conceded 5lb to the runner-up Doyen Quest that day, but with that horse now sitting on a mark of 135, Josh The Boss looks fairly handicapped off 131. Perfectly at home on soft ground, he can make it two from two for the current campaign.
Recommended Bet: Josh The Boss to win @ 11/2 with bet365.
1:50 Haydock – Betfair Exchange Graduation Chase, Class 2, 2m5½f
Won by Politologue, Clan Des Obeaux, Bravemansgame, and Grey Dawning in recent years, this Class 2 contest regularly falls to Grade 1 star in the making.
With seven wins in the past ten years, Paul Nicholls is a man to fear in this event and sends Tahmuras into battle this year. A Grade 1 winner of the 2023 Tolworth Hurdle, he hasn’t quite hit those heights over fences. However, the final start of his Novice campaign was his best as he finished a close second in the Grade 2 Pendil Novices’ Chase at Kempton. There may be more to come, but, on balance, he has a bit to find here.
Of those lower down the betting list, Hillcrest is impressed during his Novice campaign. However, he makes his first start in almost 1000 days, having missed the last two seasons. Dan Skelton’s Deafening Silence is another to note, but we suspect the Jonjo & AJ O’Neill-trained Iroko may simply outclass this field.
8lb ahead of his rivals on official ratings, the 2023 Martin Pipe Handicap Hurdle winner suffered an injury-interrupted season last year but ran well to finish second on his final outing in the Grade 1 Mildmay Novices’ Chase at Aintree. He’s scored first time out in the past two seasons, handles soft ground well, and whilst he may be seen to best effect over further, conditions should ensure this is enough of a test to bring his class into play.
Recommended Bet: Iroko to win @ 13/8 with bet365.
2:30 Haydock – Betfair Stayers’ Handicap Hurdle, Premier Handicap, 3m½f
Dan Skelton’s Doyen Quest makes obvious appeal under a 5lb penalty for his win at the Cheltenham November meeting. Set to be bumped up 5lb, he’s the one to beat on ratings. However, that Cheltenham win came only seven days ago in a good ground event. The quick turnaround and likely different conditions are enough to make us look elsewhere.
Irish raiders Shoot First and Bakmeorsackme look dangerous. The former has a distance win to his name, whilst the latter has the look of an Emmet Mullins handicap plot. However, that duo have been supported into single-figure prices, and better value may lie elsewhere.
The two for our each-way shortlist are Doyen Quest’s stablemates Catch Him Derry and Gwennie May Boy, with a narrow preference for the latter. This son of Mahler burst into life in the second half of last season, winning all three starts for Skelton and shooting up 24lbs in the handicap. Rounding off his campaign with an effortless 7½l success in a Grade 3 handicap at Aintree, he may not have finished improving yet and looks underestimated in this field.
Recommended Bet: Gwennie May Boy each way @ 12/1 with BetVictor.
3:40 Haydock – Best Odds On The Betfair Exchange Handicap Chase, Class 2, 3m1½f
Following a slow start, Paul Nicholls has his string ticking along nicely. He saddles the favourite here in the shape of Take Your Time, who rounded off last season with a tenacious success over this trip at Ffos Las. That was a likeable effort, but he must defy a 4lb higher mark in a tougher race and is prone to underperforming.
Le Milos and Fontaine Collonges will go very close if at their best. However, it has been some time since the former showed anything of note, and the current form of Venetia Williams is off-putting with regard to the latter.
With Monbeg Genius and My Silver Lining falling into the classy but out-of-sorts category, we will take a chance on the Robert Walford-trained Hititi. This one returned with a staying on second over 2m3½f at Chepstow in October when running as though a step up in trip may suit. He’s yet to tackle 3m over fences but performed well over 3m+ in his hurdling days. Successful off a mark of 124 at Taunton, he then finished a 2¼l second to a 132-rated rival when running off a mark of 134. He gets in off 130 here and is fancied to at least hit the frame.
Recommended Bet: Hititi each way @ 8/1 with BetVictor
Paul Harrison
Falling in love with racing at a young age, Paul’s passion for sports and betting took him to Salford University, where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Business Economics with Gambling Studies. Having spent ten years in the employment of a leading bookmaker, Paul opted to go it alone and pursue his dream job as a freelance writer.
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