9 BETDAQ RACES ON THE CARDS: Whether you’re in England or Ireland, BETDAQ serves your punting fare today, with a feast of nine sponsored races at Bangor and Punchestown. Daqman checks them out.
NERVES OF STEEL NEEDED: Daqman fans needed to hold their nerve until the last bet of the day to land Jack Steel (WON 5-4) a convincing winning gamble at Ayr yesterday.
BREEDERS’ CUP HOT SPOT: Daqman finds a Hot Spot at Keeneland on Friday now that the draw has been made for the two days of the Breeders’ Cup. But it hasn’t been kind to Golden Horn.
SHOGUN MOVES TO HOT SPOT ON FRIDAY CARD
Golden Horn has been slam dunked! Reminiscent of the draw for the Arc, in which Golden Horn was given the extreme outside stall, the John Gosden god of the English three-year-olds has been allocated the worst gate in the Breeders Cup.
The draw for races at the 26-million-dollar meeting, partly made by basketball coach John Calipari, also created a blindside screen against Gosden’s Cymric (13) and Aidan O’Brien’s Hit It A Bomb (Ryan Moore in 14) in the 15-runner Juvenile (Turf).
It is a second blow for Golden Horn, after forecast rain which threatens to turn the going soft for Saturday.
HOT SPOT: Better news for Ballydoyle in the Juvenile is that Hit It A Bomb’s stablemate Shogun (Seamie Heffernan), less than two lengths off Cymric in the Lagardere (Grand Criterium) at Longchamp, has been gifted gate 4. Richard Fahey’s Birchwood is in 6.
Jeremy Noseda’s Nemoralia will swerve the Juvenile Fillies (Dirt) on Saturday, in which she would have met Nickname, who beat her easily in a £150,000 contest on dirt at Belmont Park.
Nickname is in 7, but Rachel’s Valentine (9) and hot-favourite Songbird (10) both have high-numbered stalls.
Nemoralia (Joel Rosario up) moves to Friday’s Juvenile Fillies (Turf), in which she has stall 9 of 15, with Richard Hannon’s Cheveley Park runner-up Illuminate (Frankie Dettori) next door in 10, and the filly who recently boosted her form, O’Brien’s Alice Springs (Ryan Moore), in 3.
THEINVAL MUST BE BACKED ON ALL KNOWN FORM
2.30 Bangor (Betdaq.com 2% Commission Novices’ Chase) Seven hurdlers – winners of 16 races – start out over fences in this cracking clash at level weights.
That is to say, they are all steeplechase virgins unless you count Racing Pulse’s solo attempt at fences earlier this month when he trailed in 21-lengths last, more than 35 lengths behind the winner at Chepstow, his first run since leaving John Quinn.
All you can do is check out the breeding, and put that alongside their hurdles ratings and stable credentials.
You’ll find that Royal Captain, Smooth Stepper and Theinval have relatives with chasing form, and that the hurdle-ratings order-in would be Theinval, Nexius, Racing Pulse.
The stables of Royal Captain and Smooth Stepper are out of form. Paul Nicholls is on a four-timer; Nicky Henderson two out of three still standing.
Nexius (first run for Nicholls) holds the form key, 12 lengths behind Smooth Stepper at Wetherby over hurdles but 22 lengths adrift of Theinval at Aintree. Theinval must be the selection on what we know.
3.30 Bangor (Betdaq.com £50 Free Bet Handicap Chase) Again, not much chasing form, even though this is an all-aged handicap.
Red Whisper has won twice over fences – but is getting past it now – while Keychain and Chankillo have landed one each.
Chankillo has had the speed to go close at 2m and the stamina to win at 2m 3f plus. He gets almost a stone from Gee Hi, who is not yet out of the novice stage.
What makes it trappy is that Gee Hi (Warren Greatrex) and Keychain (Brendan Powell) drop back to near on their winning hurdles distances, and their stables are both in good form (Greatrex is on a hat-trick here). But I’ll go Chankillo.
TYCOON PRINCE HAS BEEN SCHOOLING WELL
1.15 Punchestown (Free Betdaq Trading Software On betdaqtraders.com Maiden Hurdle) J P McManus has three runners here to Gigginstown’s one but he seems to need them all and more if he is to beat his arch rival’s hat-trick horse Tycoon Prince.
Snag is that the Prince has beaten only 10 horses in his winning career and hasn’t jumped a hurdle in public.
Gordon Elliott says he’s been schooling well at home and claims his five-year-old has already shown versatility by winning off both a slow pace and a fast one (can’t see it myself), on goodish ground and on the soft.
De Name Escapes Me is related to stayers so may need further than this. Bally Sunset and Hogan’s Alley both have good credentials for the future on breeding, and their trainer, Mouse Morris is having a good season, with a 20% strike rate so far.
1.45 Punchestown (Betdaq Serious About Sport Maiden Hurdle) The said Gordon Elliott is in great form with current figures of 1203211221 but, while he headlines Tycoon Prince, he has nothing to say about Woodford Island in his Racing Post stable tour.
Gone Platinum and Bowenscourt look good on breeding; Ice Cold Soul on form and on his strength in the BETDAQ market this morning.
For sure, Ice Cold was red hot as a bumper, albeit in slow-run, soft-ground races, but Hows Patsy has the benefit of two hurdles starts already; twice placed, stays well and has a senior jockey up for the first time.
Bowenscourt is tempting as a Westerner out of a Buckskin mare. Likely to set them a target and should stay all day, so a good first position at 9.2 on BETDAQ early mouse. I’ll record the bet as a win and place.
2.20 Punchestown (Betdaq.com 2% Commission Handicap Hurdle) The stats say that you can strike out horses of a double-figure age, and that only the very top jockeys (Barry Geraghty and Ruby Walsh) have scored with a weight above 11st 3lb in the decade.
Geraghty rides Happy As Larry for McManus, trying to retrieve the losses (pulled up as 11-4 favourite) from Ballinrobe last month. The stable won this race in 2011.
TOP-UP TIP: I’ll side with recent course-and-distance winner See Me Here. Don’t forget to use some of your stake to top up existing offers to try to secure 2% commission. It’s as the race title tells it. So go on, make an offer they can’t refuse!
ONE FOR SIZING UP YOUR DAQ MULTIPLES ..
2.55 Punchestown (Download the Betdaq App Beginners’ Chase) The pedigree of Island Villa and Mr Diablo offer hope for the future but Festival performer Sizing John, runner-up to Douvan for Champion Novice over hurdles on today’s course, would have to be decidedly off colour to miss out on this seemingly easy round. Too short to back but a lever in your Daq Multiples.
3.25 Punchestown (betdaq.com 50Euro In Free Bets Beginners Chase) Trainer Elliott rates his unlucky Albert Bartlett loser No More Heroes as a ‘chaser to follow.’ A Presenting, well related on the dam’s side, and wins when fresh.
But he doesn’t have an easy start like Sizing John. Fine Article was no slouch over hurdles, never out of the frame, and, as a half-brother to Joncol, also looks to have a future over fences.
Since we don’t know how either one will go, jumping for the first time in public in an actual race, which would you rather have: 1.5 No More Heroes or 4.5 Fine Article?
In a 108% book with big prices among the others, we are getting good value at the front of the market via that 4.5. It has to be taken, since the pair are equals until it is proved otherwise.
HE JUST GETS CRACKING CHANCE AT THE WEIGHTS
3.55 Punchestown (betdaq.com 50% Commission Refund Handicap Chase) Just Get Cracking won his only novice chase and is pitched straight into an all-aged handicap off the same mark as his hurdles form. But he could win this by default in that the opposition is up against it.
Colms Dream has much more experience, with seven chase starts, but his two wins this autumn, including over today’s CD, has hiked his rating 17lb, and he’s a small horse who prefers top of the ground.
It’s also tough on By The Banks, a winning hurdler off 80, to be put into this chase on 109 for a neck success at Kilbeggan last month (jumped well). And just 5lb seems to have been enough to stop Ballyfinboy after his Sligo successs.
4.25 Punchestown (Cash out With Betdaq Flat Race) Don’t Touch It! But put it in your Daq Multiples (it’s that sort of day).
BETDAQ BETS (staked 1 to 9 on strength)
BET 8pts win (Irish nap) TYCOON PRINCE (1.15 Punchestown)
BET 2pts win and place BOWENSCOURT (1.45 Punchestown)
BET 4pts win SEE ME HERE (2.20 Punchestown)
BET 8pts win (English nap) THEINVAL (2.30 Bangor)
BET 4pts win FINE ARTICLE (3.25 Punchestown)
BET 5pts win CHANKILLO (3.30 Bangor)
BET 6pts win JUST GET CRACKING (3.55 Punchestown)
DAQ MULTIPLES: 3pts win treble Tycoon Prince (1.15 Punchestown), Theinval (2.30 Bangor), Sizing John (2.55 Punchestown), and 1pt acca the same three with Don’t Touch it (4.25 Punchestown)
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