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Northern racing: Lewis Tomlinson with his horses to follow

By Lewis Tomlinson

Horse Racing

Thu February 27, 2025 · 11M ago

Lewis Tomlinson's series continues with horses to follow from last week before he looks ahead to the valuable Morebattle card at Kelso.

We’re a fortnight out from the Festival, and the Cheltenham content machine is in overdrive.

It’s quite nice to have this column as a little bit of respite from the preview nights, the stable tours and the podcasts. I’ve not even had chance to do a deep dive into any of the handicaps yet and I wouldn’t stake my life on knowing which race it is that Turners even sponsor nowadays. I’m not knocking any of it, in fact I’d much rather ride the Cheltenham hype train from late-October than be one of the lads who thinks it’s sacrilege to mention the Festival until March.

But there’s a time and place for everything in this world.

And this is the place where we celebrate horses trained by Pauline Robson.

WHAT’S HAPPENED

Well, we didn’t win the Eider.

ILIKEDWAYURTHINKIN was still bang in contention turning for home but unfortunately went out like a light, hard to blame a lack of stamina either given his efforts over the trip earlier in the season. Bugger.

Instead, the race went to KNOCKANORE, who had been the subject of support at long odds and found a reasonably unorthodox renewal of the Eider playing well to his strengths under tidy 5-lb claimer Freddie Mitchell. Despite the big-field and marathon trip, the drying ground led to an rare emphasis on speed, this surely suiting the lightly-weighted novice with plenty of form around two-and-a-half miles more than that of the admirable slogger O’CONNELL, who lost absolutely nothing in defeat and looks well up to giving another bold show in the Midlands National at Uttoxeter next month, that contest perhaps likely to prove more attritional.

Knockanore runs away with the Eider

Equally as impressive at Newcastle was the performance of BUST A MOVE, who booked his place in the Fred Winter by landing a gamble in the 2m handicap hurdle. I reckon a best price of 33/1 underestimates his chances, too. The strong gallop and big field will almost certainly suit one whose strong-travelling hold-up style is becoming a bit of a trademark, and you’d hope the experience of taking on seasoned handicappers at the weekend wouldn’t be lost on him either. This isn’t down to Northern bias – or how much I want to see Mick Easterby back winning at Cheltenham – Bust A Move is a decent young hurdler and the Fred Winter far from the worst race to be taking a bit of swing.

Adrian Keatley’s SURREY BELLE could also be Festival bound, now a general 33/1 for the Dawn Run after landing the odds in the opening mares novice. A 57-length winning margin goes some way to illustrate the simplicity of her task at the weekend, but few yards are quite as adept at recruiting hurdlers from the Flat nowadays – stable star Kihavah the most notable amongst of them – and they should have another above average novice in the shape of this mare.

The scarcely believable run of form from Ben Jones continued at Bangor on Wednesday. His last eighteen rides have resulted in thirteen winners, none quite as easy as I’VEMADEMYMINDUP, who landed odds of 1/3 in a mares maiden for Ben Pauling.

And of course, we can’t leave things without paying tribute to DOYEN DU BAR, who proved a cut above his two opponents at Ayr on Monday to give Pauline Robson her third win from 9 runners since Boxing Day. It was a simple task, but he competed well down South when runner-up at Sandown last month and wouldn’t be out of place if thrust into the waters of a deeper “Saturday” handicap.

The Ryanair Chase and Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle | Festival Focus Episode 4

WHAT’S HAPPENING

The move to make the Morebattle a limited handicap has been one of the most positive changes to National Hunt in recent years, Kelso rewarded with a double-figure field in each of the four years since and consistently attracting runners worth their place in a £61k handicap.

The Shunter won the first “new” Morebattle back in 2021, bagging the £100k bonus after following up at the Festival, and his trainer Emmet Mullins saddles the current favourite for this weekend’s feature in the shape of VISCHIO. The eight-year-old made her final start for Richard Donohoe a winning one at Punchestown in November before following up for new connections in a typically competitive running of the Paddy and Maureen Mullins Mares Handicap at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Not long since looking a tricky and exposed-looking mid-100s handicapper, she’s suddenly begun a steep incline of progress and - touch wood – has began to look a more reformed character this winter, hard to really fault any aspect of her display at Leopardstown last time. She’s entered in 3 handicap hurdles at the Cheltenham Festival. Ominous.

Hopefully the race will prove as competitive as it looks on paper – 20 of the 23 entered are separated by 6lb or less on Timeform ratings – and continue to be a real success story for one of the best small tracks in the country.

Grey Dawning is set to run at Kelso

There’s high-class support on the card, too, with GREY DAWNING and IROKO due to meet in the Premier Chase, both using their trip to the Borders as a stepping stone to major targets at Aintree.

Current prices of 4/5 Grey Dawning vs 5/4 Iroko indicate that the fourteen-length beating the favourite handed his main market rival at Cheltenham last season wouldn’t be certain to be repeated. Of course, you’d be hard pressed to argue against Dan Skelton’s charge setting the clear standard, but he still looked to be feeling the effects of his Betfair battle in the King George last time. Iroko has had a, shall we say, quieter campaign; his Timeform “p” retained after an eye-catching run at Cheltenham last time. With the National weights now published, – Iroko topping our weight-adjusted ratings from an OR of 152 – we’ll surely learn more about just how “thrown-in” the Greenall & Guerreiro-trained gelding is.

He’s only receiving 3 lb from a bona-fide Grade 1 animal to putting it up to Grey Dawning would likely require his best performance over fences to date. It’s a fascinating clash, and I change my mind every five minutes as to whether Grey Dawning will end up looking at gift price at 4/5, or whether it’s just a hellish race to put money down for.

I'm quite keen on CASTLE CARROCK in the Premier Novices Hurdle with Alan King’s novice taking up his engagement here. He changed hands after winning an Ayr bumper for Nicky Richards back in November and created a terrific impression first time up over hurdles, Tom Cannon happy to toy with long-time leader Diva Luna until pressing the button after the last at which point he rather sprinted clear. Hopefully, he’s not weighed down by the expectations of the Big Timeform P and current odds of 8/1 a shade too big.

I’m odds-on to wander down to Town Moor on Saturday afternoon to attend my first Grimthorpe Day and the feature looks like a reasonably strong renewal, the likes of SOME SCOPE, HYMAC and WEVEALLBEENCAUGHT all holding sound claims, though it’s WHITE RHINO I’m keenest on.

We were quite bullish in this column after his Haydock success that there’d be a major 3m handicap with his name on it in the near future and nothing in the Grimthorpe line up is quite as unexposed as he is. He’s got plenty of big-field experience under his belt as a hurdler and he’s another I’ll playing at around 6/1, a new mark of 141 unlikely to overburden him.

Northern racing: Lewis Tomlinson with his horses to follow

WHAT’S HAPPENED

WHAT’S HAPPENING

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