THREE WINNERS OUT OF SIX THIS WEEK: With a winner a day for six consecutive days last week, Daqman has a 50% strike-rate this week so far, with an overall profit of 15.80.
TUESDAY (3-6 in two days)
WON 11-8 NAJEEBA
MONDAY: Profit on the day: 16.30pts
WON 11-8 GIAVELLOTTO
WON 10-3 SHOW MAKER (from 6.5 on BETDAQ)
MORE BIG NATIONAL VALUE ON BETDAQ: One horse in the Aintree Grand National would change the face of the English Jumps-racing scene. Trained by Willie Mullins, the champion of Cheltenham, yet 22.0 BETDAQ value.
TOMORROW: Scottish Grand National ABC guide.
SAINT’S A LIVE LIVERPOOL HOPE
⭕ AINTREE GRAND NATIONAL
Anyone but Willie! Paul Nicholls, without a runner in the Grand National, will be rooting for an Irish victory, by Any Second Now (Ted Walsh), Escaria Ten and Delta Work (both Gordon Elliott) or Enjoy D’Allen (Ciaran Murphy) from the front of the BETDAQ market.
Eliott, famous for the Tiger Roll double, and Henry De Bromhead, going for the double this year with Minella Times, have won for the last three seasons.
William Peter Mullins hasn’t won the Aintree marathon since Hedgehunter (2005) but he has a Saint’s-alive chance of dealing the ultimate blow to Nicholls’ season, after his poor form since before Christmas cast a cloud over Cheltenham.
Willie will saddle last year’s Aintree National fourth, 22.0 BETDAQ offer Burrows Saint, winner of the Irish Grand National as a six-year-old and still only nine. More big BETDAQ value (2.25pts to win 50).
The £500,000 winner’s prize at Aintree would take Willie within a few thousand of the British trainer’s championship, which currently has Paul Nicholls and Nicky Henderson £160,000 apart, both having topped £2m.
The rest depends on Willie’s sub-squad for Aintree, and whether Nicholls can harvest his usual April bounty, to be led at the Aintree festival by Bravemansgame and culminating in the Sandown Jumps Finale on Saturday, April 23 (the day after Classic Trial Day!)
Bravemansgame seemed all set to land a sixth victory for Fortune Cookies at Cheltenham, but was withdrawn after a going change.
The Cookies had landed 15 winners in the run-up to Cheltenham and five at the festival itself: Allaho, Bob Olinger, Edwardstone, L’Homme Presse and Stattler. Here are their main protagonists for Aintree and beyond.
BOB OLINGER (Henry De Bromhead) Fairyhouse Gold Cup Novice Chase, April 17
BRAVEMANSGAME (Paul Nicholls) Aintree Mildmay Novices Chase, April 9
COMMODORE (Venetia Williams) Aintree Topham Trophy, April 8, or Aintree Grand National, April 9
FAROUK D’ALENE (Gordon Elliott) Fairyhouse Irish Grand National, April 18
MOUNT IDA (Gordon Elliott) Aintree Grand National, April 9
PROTEKTORAT (Dan Skelton) Aintree Bowl, April 7
STATTLER (Willie Mullins) Fairyhouse Gold Cup Novice Chase, April 17, or Fairyhouse Irish Grand National, April 18
CHIPS DOWN ON SCAMPI
⭕ 2.00 Lingfield Hollie Doyle did us a favour last night getting Najeeba home and she is aboard the likely hot BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE favourite here in Alazwar. The four-year-old could prove vulnerable under a penalty as he bids to follow up his debut flat success at Wolverhampton when scraping home under today’s pilot.
The step up in trip won’t phase him as he is a bumper winner – if anything the trip could still prove short of the optimum but it usually takes a good one to shrug off a penalty and the current form of the Archie Watson yard doesn’t inspire confidence (0 from last 9).
There is always the possibility he could win it by default, especially now that Mutalaaqy is a non runner leaving just a four runner race but I think Scampi could make a race of it despite his profile looking considerably more exposed.
He’s 0-11 but has generally been running at a higher level and the step down to class 5 from his latest respectable effort in a class 3 at Kempton could bring about that elusive first win.
CHEERS TO MALIBOO
⭕ 3.55 Wincanton Maliboo is in grand form and probably doesn’t need to do anymore than she did when second over course and distance earlier in the month.
She’s also got winning form on today’s quicker good ground and should prove strong for her (now) two rivals.
Queen Of The Court looks better with cut in the ground whilst Alpha Carinae should be suited by the quicker surface but comes into this on the back of finishing last of five at Bangor and then pulling up at Huntingdon last month.
NOW I’M A BELIEVER
⭕ 7.30 Kempton The best race of the night is this class 2 and there is surely a big question mark against likely favourite Diderot.
He was a bitter disappointment at Newcastle last time out when sent off a 4/7 favourite for a lower grade 3 and could only finish fifth of six.
There was no explanation offered beyond ‘the gelding ran flat’ and whilst of course it’s possible he could bounce back you would be playing at short odds to find out which is not my game.
Fantasy Believer is a course and distance specialist – all three of his career wins have been over C&D all be it at a lower level.
He came within a nose of making it four C&D wins last time out on his first start for Ed Walker and I think he can build on that and go very close tonight.
Most of these are trying to punch above their weight in a class 2, including To The Bar who was held at this level at Lingfield last time out.
DAQMAN’S BETS (staked to win 10 points)
BET 3.8pts win SCAMPI (2.00 Lingfield)
BET 9.1pts win (nap) MALIBOO (3.55 Wincanton)
BET 2.2pts win FANTASY BELIEVER (7.30 Kempton)
What are points? Points facilitate a staking plan, which is the secret to creating profit. One point is whatever you choose: a pound, a euro, or whatever ….
Start with a bank and decide how much you can afford to lose over a period of time, and determine the size of your bets accordingly. Daqman makes this variation every day.
