All-Weather racing tips, news and tracker horses
Andrew Asquith has three horses to follow on the all-weather in the coming weeks following the recent action.
Three horses to add to your Sporting Life My Stable
Romanee (John Ryan)
Romanee was a 77,000 guineas purchase at the breeze-ups last year and he has showed promise in three starts so far while also leaving the impression he has been brought along with handicaps in mind.
His best to efforts have come on the all-weather, very strong in the market on his return from a break in a six-furlong novice event at Chelmsford last month, but he raced too freely on that occasion and was looked after in the closing stages.
Connections dropped him to five furlongs at Newcastle last time, and he shaped well despite a tardy start, again taking a strong hold off the pace but not at all knocked about in the latter stages. Romanee is bred to be useful and will almost certainly have more to offer when he gets to grips with racing. Interestingly, he holds an entry in a seven-furlong handicap at Lingfield next week.
Solar Bentley (Richard Fahey)
Solar Bentley is another who has been brought along gradually, showing ability in his first three runs over seven furlongs, but failing to improve on his handicap debut at Newcastle last time.
However, that is because he was kept to an inadequate seven furlongs, and he actually shaped well with that in mind, outpaced around halfway but making steady inroads in the final stages of the race.
Solar Bentley has plenty of stamina in his pedigree - his dam was a winner over a mile and a half and he is also closely related to a useful winner who stayed two miles - so he will remain a horse of interest once moving up in trip, sure to be suited by further than a mile and he figures on a potentially lenient mark.
Noble Consort (Julie Camacho)
Noble Consort started at biggish prices on his first three starts, and looked in need of the experience, too, not troubling the judge on either occasion, but leaving the impression he has more to offer.
Unsurprisingly, he was much shorter in the betting for his handicap debut over seven furlongs (same race as Solar Bentley) at Newcastle, and he did well to finish as close as he did under the circumstances.
He showed improved form but he didn't get the smoothest run through, having to switch around three furlongs out and making his challenge out wide as a result. Noble Consort stayed on well enough in the closing stages, suggesting he has been handed a fair opening mark, and he seems sure to win races at this sort of level on the all-weather.
All-Weather Angle Tips: Wednesday, January 31
1pt win Silver Samurai in 6.30 Kempton at 11/1 (bet365, 888sport, Unibet)
1pt win Polar Princess in 7.30 Kempton at 10/1 (bet365 and a couple of smaller firms)
There is a cracking seven-furlong handicap at Kempton this evening, a class 2 event which features eight runners and the lightly-raced Brewing is sure to be popular. He seemingly hasn’t been the easiest to train, having only seen the track six times at five years of age, but he clearly has plenty of ability. However, he was very disappointing at Newcastle earlier this month, albeit in a stronger race than this, but he didn’t pick up as expected. The return to seven furlongs ought to help his cause but I’m inclined to pass him over at the prices.
The ultra-consistent Baldomero is sure to be involved at the finish again, but the horse who catches my eye is the Marco Botti-trained SILVER SAMURAI. He contested some competitive sprint handicaps on turf last year without showing his best form and as a result he dropped down the weights. He took advantage of a reduced mark when winning the ‘greys’ race at Newmarket in August and he wasn’t disgraced back up at seven furlongs when finishing third in a useful race at Sandown next time.
Silver Samurai wasn’t at his best in a big-field handicap at Ascot on his final start in October, but he was produced to make his challenge away from the stand-side rail where the action unfolded on that occasion, and he stuck to his task well without being given too much of a hard time. He is yet to win on the all-weather, but he has plenty of solid form on an artificial surface, notably at this course, and his strong-travelling nature lends itself well to all-weather racing.
He has a wide draw, but that isn’t much of a concern as he will more than likely be dropped in, and he should get a good pace to aim at with the likes of Baldomero, Lord Bertie and Lord of The Lodge all likely to go forward. Silver Samurai is just 3 lb higher than for his win at Newmarket in the summer, while he also has plenty of form racing from higher marks in the book, too. Hollie Doyle rides for the first time now and Silver Samurai often goes well when fresh – he was beaten a short head on the back of a similar absence over this course and distance in March 2022 – and Marco Botti has his string in particularly good shape at present.
An hour later there is an interesting handicap over a mile and a half and I think the Gary Moore-trained Running The Game has been put in pretty short for a race of this nature. Admittedly, he is totally unexposed having made his first start on the Flat for this yard a winning one at this course last time, and should appreciate this longer trip, but the race he won that day was very weak and even on the pick of his form in France and opening mark of 80 may be a little steep.
I much prefer the chances of bottom-weight POLAR PRINCESS, who has been shaping well in recent weeks and is due to be 3 lb higher in future races. She was picked up out of the John & Thady Gosden yard for 30,000 guineas at the Tattersalls Sale in July and she appears to be coming to hand now, leaving the impression that she is more than capable of defying this sort of mark on her last three starts at Southwell.
Polar Princess was moving into the race nicely over a similar trip to this two starts back, but she was stopped in her run when caught between two horses when beginning to hit full stride which hampered her momentum. She still stayed on well for third, pulling clear of the remainder, but having no chance with the front two who had already flown.
Again, she caught the eye upped to a mile and three quarters last week, travelling into contention looking like the likeliest winner – she traded 1.40 in-running on Betfair – produced to challenge in the final furlong but unable to get past a thriving type in the closing stages. The pair pulled well clear of the rest, though, and Polar Princess gets to race from the same mark now.
Polar Princess shaped with promise at this track on her debut in a race which has worked out very well, the winner that day now rated 110p by Timeform and the runner up 101, and she wasn’t all that far behind those two. She clearly has the ability to win races from this sort of mark and, while this is a stronger race than those she has been contesting, she ought to get a strong pace to aim at which will suit, and she has a low weight to operate from.
Hollie Doyle has only ridden for Philip Kirby twice at Kempton, the pair teaming up together for a 12/1 winner in February 2022 and the other was on board Polar Princess when she started 66/1 for her stable debut in a novice event in August.
Preview posted at 0900 GMT on 31/01/2024
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