9-4 SHOT ANOTHER DAQMAN NAP: Daqman yesterday made it NINE winning bets in two days, including a double a day and back-to-back naps. His Wednesday winners, all at Hereford, were 9-4, 5-4 and 4-9. The best bets have been:
WON 6-4 Mixboy (Tuesday nap)
WON 9-4 Keeper Hill (Wednesday nap)
CLIMBING THE GOLD LADDER: Today he follows up yesterday’s appraisal of the improvers in the Champion Hurdle with a similar ratings check on the young pretenders for the Gold Cup; how they now stand against the established stars.
DAQMAN TODAY: The Dubai Carnival of Racing returns today and Daqman has a NAP from Meydan as well as selections from the all-weather in the UK where an Irish raider is fancied to take home some prizemoney.
RISE AND RISE OF TIZZARD CRACKS
Keep your cool! Youth has prevailed in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, with 25 of 27 winners since Desert Orchid (1989) of single-figure age. The exceptions (Cool Ground, Cool Dawn, both 10) were scoring in modest years. The March renewal will be hot.
As in yesterday’s Champion Hurdle, ratings for the new kids on the gold block are already overtaking those of the established stars, and the first two in the betting market are clear (it’s 14.0 bar in the BETDAQ ante-post orange).
They are, of course, the Colin Tizzard pair, Thistlecrack and Native River, the one from ‘nowhere’, the other in one of the fastest ratings rises for a decade. The established stars, all 10 or older, stand at:
177 Don Cossack (Not seen since winning last year)
170 Cue Card (Down 6lb after King George defeat by Thistlecrack)
166 Coneygree (The 2015 winner, going straight to Cheltenham)
161 Silviniaco Conti (Cut 2lb after Lancashire Chase and King George defeats)
The young pretenders look formidable, headed by the favourite, Thistlecrack, already off 171, though he’s had only four steeplechase appearances in public.
Thistlecrack and Outlander are 9. Djakadam, Valseur Lido and Don Poli still only 8. Douvan (just seven years old) is likely to go for the Champion Chase.
171 Thistlecrack (King George winner, 174 over hurdles)
168 Djakadam (Down 2lb after Outlander overturned their Punchestown 1-2)
168 Native River (Only 7 but Hennessy/Welsh National double hikes him 19lb)
164 Outlander (Up 13lb since November; beat Don Poli in the Lexus)
161 Don Poli (Static rating since defeats by Don Cossack and Cue Card last season)
SOUTHWELL: MR MORSE A CLASS ABOVE
12.35 Southwell The form of Mr Morse’s third to Birchwood as a two-year-old stands out in this company and despite a long injury break he looks to have retained plenty of ability based on his winning effort last time. An opening mark of 65 looks more than fair and with the extra furlong looking sure to suit he must have an excellent chance. Brian Ellison has already registered a winner in 2017 and can make it two here. The early 5.3 on BETDAQ looks like a bet.
2.40 Southwell Dungannon isn’t getting any younger and was out of form on the turf when last seen but he has dropped to an extremely attractive mark now returned to the all-weather. He was a winner on the Fibresand this time last year and is 7lbs lower now in the handicap not counting the useful Joshua Bryan’s 7lb claim. He fitness must be taken on trust but there is a chance that he is thrown in dropping down in class and the 4 available on BETDAQ looks very tempting.
WOLVERHAMPTON: IRISH RAIDER TO FOLLOW
2.00 Wolverhampton Pivot Bridge isn’t a bad horse in his native Ireland and has contested some much hotter contests than this on recent starts. He gets in here off a mark of 65 and the assistance of the excellent Adam Kirby which must give him a good chance. His trainer Ado McGuinness has completed some successful raids of Wolverhampton in recent years and an early mark of 4.4 looks interesting.
4.00 Wolverhampton Ode To Paris is the interesting one here making his handicap debut after being gelded. He gets in here off a mark of 67 and looks to have scope for improvement of just his fourth career start. Trainer Ed Dunlop’s horses are running well of late and he has a healthy 13% strike rate with his horses at Wolverhampton. The early show of 9.6 is interesting in what looks an open contest.
MEYDAN: POLAR RIVER TO RUN THROUGH DUBAI
4.50 Meydan Polar River was a high class performer at the Carnival last year winning the UAE 1000 Guineas and Oaks before running Lani close in the UAE Derby. She ran a perfectly acceptable race on her seasonal debut last time and she strip much fitter for that experience now. She will have to take on the boys again here but Emotionless has been a frustrating sort and Polar River appears to hold Fitzgerald at these conditions. At an early show of 3.25 the filly is taken as the selection.
DAQMAN’S BETS
BET 7pts win MR MORSE (Southwell 12.35)
BET 4pts win PIVOT BRIDGE (Wolverhampton 2.00)
BET 5pts win DUNGANNON (Southwell 2.40)
BET 3pts win ODE TO PARIS (Wolverhampton 4.00)
BET 9pts win POLAR RIVER (nap) (Meydan 4.50)
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