DAQMAN LAYS DOWN A CHALLENGE: Daqman dares defy Dan Skelton, the new champion trainer, opposing his favourite in a chase he’s won five times, putting into battle against him a winner 14 times in 17 starts. He has a supernap at Newbury.
TOMORROW: The Scottish Grand National.
FAVOURITE UP IN SMOKE?
⭕ 3.30 Ayr Dan Skelton has won this opening chase at the Scottish Grand National meeting five times in eight years.
As he tries to celebrate his trainers’ championship by topping up the earnings to £5m for the season, he relies on Hoe Joly Smoke today.
🤔 LAYS LOGIC: As a rear runner who has never won short of 3m, and with his best form on good ground at Sandown, this flat track and soft surface will require different tactics, though he’ll begin to feel at home on the downhill run into the home turn.
By that time, he will need Twinjets to have put some pace to the race, and set it up for the kind of finish by Donnacha which won him a Grade-3 handicap at Cheltenham over subsequent Ultima runner-up, Jagwar.
Donnacha’s record is 14 wins in 17 races, 16 times placed. Betdaq Betting Exchange 5.8 this morning.
CASH IN ON CLASSICAL FORM
⭕ 4.20 Newbury Meanwhile, the enigma that is Constitution Hill remains a Rubik’s cube of where the pieces fit together, what can be made of the fall-guy former champion hurdler.
I thought it very early in advance of Greenham day at Newbury tomorrow to withdraw him because of the ground; indeed the ‘watering with light rain’ forecast wouldn’t even rule out a Willie Mullins runner!
But Nicky Henderson knows every sod – and I’m not just talking about the terrain – down Newbury way, and he also swallows frustration on a regular basis. What a constitution!
It’s left to Classical Allusion in today’s class-3 handicap to at least stand up the novice-level AW form of the Kempton win at 1-7 more than three weeks ago.
Allusion’s close second that day would be no form illusion for himself or for Constitution Hill if he could now win over two miles this afternoon and set himself up for a classier heritage handicap over 1m 6f at the Newmarket Guineas meeting.
Oisin Murphy, who is riding top of his form, knows the Newmarket turf and spotted the advantage of the one stall for Oxagon in the Craven: pacy horses have been winning from a low draw all week.
Pole Star won back to back last summer and has William Buick in the saddle first time since he broke the colt’s duck at Haydock last May.
In fact, ‘he’ is a gelding now, suggesting that Charlie Johnson was generally disappointed in ‘his’ autumn form.
WALK IN THE PARK AT 23.0
⭕ 4.55 Newbury With just seven runners in the first two weeks of April, Roger Varian has recorded form figures of 1331042.
His judgment in having his first ever player – Avicenna – in the Craven Stakes was more than justified. He came from out of his ground to get within two lengths of the Frankel colt Oxagon, who was given that peach of a ride by Murphy.
Peel Park, a Frankel on the dam’s side, could improve now gelded at 23.0 on BETDAQ, though they will all be hard pressed surely to catch the Gosdens with May Angel (9.0 offers)
Another one now gelded, fourth here in July, goes for a hat-trick and doesn’t have to improve much on a class-2 strike in a big field at York. The Ed Walker yard is just now on the move. and Astrazar (11.5) makes his handicap debut.
DAQMAN’S BETS
on Betdaq Betting Exchange
3.30 Ayr (win 20
BET 4pts win DONNACHA
★★ 4.20 Newbury (supernap)
BET 20pts win CLASSICAL ALLUSION
4.55 Newbury (win-50 bull’s-eye bets)
BET 6pts win MAY ANGEL
BET 4.75pts win ASTRAZAR
BET 2.25pts win PEEL PARK
6 x 1pt RFs
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