DAQMAN WINNERS AT BIG BETDAQ VALUE: Betdaq continues to extend its lead as the value source for punters. Daqman’s winning bets this week have put the spotlight on clearly better offers within its low, low overrounds, right across the board from short shots to the bigger odds available:
Monday
WON 1-2 CLIFFS OF DOVER (supernap, 1.81 on BETDAQ)
Tuesday
WON 9-2 EMINENT POET (7.0 taken on BETDAQ)
WON 4-1 FINAL CHOICE (7.6 taken on BETDAQ)
EARLY BIRDS READY FOR SPRING FLYERS: Today Daqman starts a Spring series, the Early Birds, in which he reveals which horses, from which stables, how and why they could be winning in the first few weeks of the Flat season.
LIGHT OUT TO LAND BIG SPRINT
Look out for the Early Birds. These are horses and trainers who are normally ahead of the others for fitness when the Flat turf starts this weekend.
Sometimes they are already doing well on the AW scene and will transfer that form to turf.
Sometimes they are horses with stables which consistently target early-season prizes. There are a couple of rules worth remembering:
LOOK OUT for ‘nearly horses’ which are unlikely to make the big time in their division so will be ‘got up’ for an early prize to try to win on fitness where ability alone would let them down.
BEWARE three-year-olds. Some hot two-year-olds train on and become champions the following season. But not many.
Your best advice is to follow the punting maxim: ‘Last year is last year, this year is this’, as far as second-season animals are concerned.
For instance, wait until you see them race before you commit to Classic bets of any size. Some colts won’t train on at all. Many fillies don’t shine until the sun does. They need warm weather to blossom.
Addeybb Lincoln winners had often scored first time out the previous season or in their final race. Addeybb finished 2017 by taking the Silver Cambridgeshire (1m 1f) and his ability to get those extra yards is helpful in a strongly-run mile.
City Light This very useful French sprinter has matured rapidly in the close season. Start to follow him by taking 14-1 with Ladbrokes for the AW Sprint Championship at Lingfield on Good Friday.
Kynren The handicapper thinks that this lightly-raced four-year-old improved a stone in 30 days last autumn, and likely soft ground could quickly help him climb even higher. His yard has had 3-11 in a hot spell this month.
Rhododendron The Park Express Stakes, Group feature on Irish Lincolnshire day at Naas next Sunday, could see an early appearance by Aiden O’Brien’s Rhododendron, second in the Newmarket 1,000 Guineas first time out last season.
Taqdeer When a trainer of the stature of John Gosden keeps the faith, you sit up and take notice. Not raced since back-to-back success in the Spring of 2016, Taqdeer was very highly regarded.
After being gelded, ‘he’ can leapfrog the missing season and catch up with the best at the early meetings of Doncaster and Ascot.
NAVIGATOR LOOKS SUPERSONIC
2.50 Chepstow Air Navigator’s only previous win came in a bumper at Haydock and he had an inauspicious start to his hurdling career when unseating his rider at the first at Newbury. He was well backed subsequently at Doncaster but let supporters down.
However, my man in the long grass has hinted that those losses might only be on a short term basis and he’s capable of better, much better.
This looks a weak event and he receives a valuable 7lb from principal rival The Last Day who has only beaten one horse home in his last two starts.
Another Emotion is another one to keep an eye on with him graduating from point to points but I fully expect Air Navigator to take this and start repaying some of the confidence behind him. The stable landed the opening race at the Cheltenham Festival with Summerville Boy last week but can taste success from a smaller fish here at Haydock.
3.20 Chepstow The David Pipe yard didn’t have a strong Cheltenham hand this year and it was a fruitless Festival but have bounced back since with a winner and a second from just two runners.
That good run should continue at Chepstow with Garran City who has an easier task with Ocean Cove now being a non runner.
Garran City is a winning pointer who was only beaten a length on debut over course and distance last time out and should have the scope to leave that form behind.
Main danger is Samburu Shujaa who is building up a good CV of placed form but judged on his Wincanton run last time out might be better suited by a drop in trip.
7.15 Kempton Both Barbara Villiers and Deadly Reel make the market here but both have had several chances and look readily opposable.
A chance is taken with India who is expected to do better as a three-year-old. She ran twice last season and showed much better form second time out here over the mile trip. This looks much more her trip.
DAQMAN’S BETS (all staked to win 20 points):
BET 10.5pts win AIR NAVIGATOR (2.50 Chepstow)
BET 15.3pts win (nap) GARRAN CITY (3.25 Chepstow)
BET 6.7pts win INDIA (7.15 Kempton)
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