The best bets from our Timeform team ahead of Saturday's racing.
ALL IN YOU - 14.20 Ayr (Dan Barber)
The County Hurdle would appear the key piece of form ahead of this year’s Scottish Champion, and a win for either Tellherthename or Gibbs Island – both eye-catching at Cheltenham, especially so the former on his debut for Skelton – would surprise nobody. But, at longer odds, All In You makes more appeal, having been firmly on the up before finding bottomless ground all against him dropped out in the old Betfair Hurdle. All those two-mile handicap formlines this season involving Dance And Glance, linking into Wilful, Alexei and Mondo Man via other races, have been extremely lucrative to follow, and the added bonus is that All In You arrives fresh having missed Cheltenham and Aintree.
FIVER FRIDAY - 15.15 Bellewstown (Billy Nash)
I'm quite sweet on Kim Roque in the Scottish National but the best bet of the day is surely Fiver Friday at Bellewstown. She has run really well on all four starts since joining Gavin Cromwell, finishing second twice over hurdles prior to landing a valuable and very competitive 10f handicap on the Flat at the Curragh just over two weeks ago. A hurdles mark of 115 looks very exploitable (now rated 90 on Flat), trip and ground won't hold any fears and she has plenty of form on tight tracks.
MURASHAH – 15.23 Thirsk (Simon Walker)
The ex-Charles Hills-trained Double Rush made a sparkling stable debut for Andrew Balding at Newmarket this week and it’ll be no surprise if another former Hills’ inmate Murashah also makes a winning start for a new yard. Admittedly, Murashah has a long absence to overcome on his first outing since being sold to join Edward Bethell for 30,000 gns last summer, but he’s now lower in the weights than when a promising runner-up on his two previous handicap starts and has joined a stable that does notably well with recruits from other yards, including first time up.
STRUCK OIL - 16.25 Bellewstown (Phil Thompson)
Gavin Cromwell’s Struck Oil has yet to make much of an impact over hurdles, his best effort coming when fifth in a 2m handicap at Thurles won by Hillstar Blues in November. However, although he did not deliver on that occasion, he was sent off a well-backed favourite, suggesting he is thought more than capable of exploiting a mark in the mid-90s. This slight step up in trip should suit, even around this tight track, and back from a break with the yard now in much better form, he could be one to follow through the late spring and summer.
WICKLOW WAY - 18.45 Nottingham (Rory King)
I’m not in the habit of highlighting horses whose last run came in classified company in this column, especially now the turf season is underway, but I’ll make an exception for Wicklow Way. He was a very slow burner last year but has clearly done well from three to four judged on the way he won at Newcastle stepped up to this 1¼m trip and dropped into classified company last month. Not only did he travel well and win a shade readily but the form is working out quite nicely, too, the runner-up just pipped in a handicap next time and a couple of winners having come from further back in the field. On that basis a mark of 54 mightn’t be a barrier back in handicap company, particularly with his stable fresh from a treble at Ripon on Thursday.
LIKEDBYMIKE - 13.50 Curragh, Sunday (Stu Jones)
The six furlong handicap won by Staysound Susie here earlier in the month has already thrown up a couple of winners with both the second and fifth home that day striking in similarly competitive affairs next time out. Likedbymike eventually had to settle for sixth that day but only after shaping a good bit better than the bare result suggests, coming with what looked a winning run before the lack of a recent outing told and losing numerous places inside the last 50 yards. She should come on plenty for that experience and, able to race from the same again here, looks to have plenty in her favour with conditions also set to be right up her street.
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