NOVEMBER HANDICAP IS LOST AT TROUBLED DONCASTER: Doncaster, which lost the Futurity only two weeks ago, has now been forced to cancel tomorrow’s November Handicap meeting, with Town Moor virtually waterlogged. The troubled ARC track now has three weeks to find an executive director and prepare for the return of Jumps racing there. Tomorrow’s Jumps meeting at Aintree is overshadowed quality-wise by graded races at Naas (three) and Wincanton (two).
DIABLO! TIPPING-DEVIL DAQMAN IN PROFIT-A-DAY SEAM: Meanwhile, Daqman has been trying to make a winning end to his own Flat season (full report next week) with his usual profit-a-day flurry of returns.
THURSDAY: profit 14.80
WON 8-13 CHAMP (supernap)
WON 15-8 DIABLO DE ROUHET
WEDNESDAY: profit 6.50
WON 3-1 KITAABAAT
WON 2-1 GAMESTARS ICON
HENDERSON HAT-TRICK CHAMP
Champ could be a champ. He was the pick of the Nicky Henderson squad which I warned had a marker to do well yesterday. I can see him setting up a novice-chase sequence.
I shall add him to my Fortune Cookies team and I shall keep stablemate Floressa in among them, delighted she could make the transition from top of the ground to a surface riding 13 seconds slow in her race at Newbury.
Diablo De Rouhet also won in a Henderson treble – tipped by me – but I have three reasons for playing a wait-and-see game with this one.
Pertemps-qualifier winners are running against horses who are there to qualify but not necessarily to win the race. And, in fact, the next two home, Daklondike and Dingo Dollar, were prepping for near-future long-distance dates over fences.
But third reason, and what made the going return of ‘good to soft’ patently absurd, was the time for the race – slow by 22.35secs – revealing just how much the ground had deteriorated by then.
There are more major English meetings this weekend at Aintree, Sandown and Wincanton, if the weather will just relent a little, and Henderson is out in force.
1.15 Warwick Kaymar, who could have run at Sandown on Sunday, switches to Warwick as Henderson’s only runner of the day today.
Kaymar has no public experience of hurdles, stepping up from second in a bumper, but he is doing what you’d expect of a son of Kayf Tara, and of a half-brother to Midnight Shot, and that is going up markedly in trip.
West Cork has the experience but the Skeltons form since bonfire night has been a damp squib with form figures of 340042033, missing strike badly, including with a Newbury favourite yesterday. Overall hit rate is only 14% in the last two weeks.
In the same period, since November 5, Henderson has saddled 21412112 and has a fortnight’s action that levels out at a 25% strike rate. Kaymar looks huge at 10.0 in the BETDAQ win market as I write, with better than 2-1 a place.
JAMMY JAR’S 12 POUND IN HAND
2.35 Fontwell Dr Richard Newland is the Sir Mark Prescott of the Jumps. He can get his horses to set up a sequence in double-quick time.
Mason Jar, a winner at Ascot on Saturday, goes to Fontwell today 12lb in hand of the handicapper’s revised rating. He was completing his hat-trick that day on all sorts of ground but doesn’t even carry a penalty!
Ironically, Now Look At Me is also due to go up (8lb) but for finishing second. I think the handicapper overreacted in lifting the winner a stone that day; she’s been well beaten since, taking in the appropriate leap in class.
2.45 Hexham Similarly, Charlie Longsdon goes back (even further) up North with his seven-day Wetherby winner, No Trumps, not only due to be raised 8lb but again saving a further 7lb, thanks to Tom Buckley’s well-worth-it claim. Around 3.0 on BETDAQ.
4.10 Fontwell Paul Nicholls, who has a 44% strike rate at Fontwell, sends only Threeunderthrufive for the bumper (4.1 on BETDAQ in the orange this morning).
Sound Wall would be a worry if Harry Fry’s yard was in any kind of form. The same applies to Kid Commando, and I shall not concern myself with Look Alive, who needs to go round twice on Points form and breeding.
DAQMAN’S BETS
1.15 Warwick (win 20, win 10 a place)
BET 2.25pts win and 5pts place KAYMAR
2.35 Fontwell (win 10)
BET 10pts win MASON JAR
2.45 Hexham (win 10)
BET 10pts win (nap) NO TRUMPS
4.10 Fontwell (win 10)
BET 3.25pts win THREEUNDERTHRUFIVE
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