Chester Cup Horse Racing Tips: ITV Racing Tips for Friday May 10
Our man tipped last year's Chester Cup winner at a big price - check out who he's got his eye on in Friday's feature contest.
- The Value Bet is designed to generate long-term profit by searching for overpriced horses in the feature weekend races and at the big Festivals in the UK and Ireland.
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- Following all Matt’s selections to recommended odds/stakes since taking over the column in June 2020 would have produced over 172pts in profit.
Value Bet tips: Friday May 10
1pt win Trip To Rome in 1.30 Chester at 18/1 (BetVictor, Coral)
1pt e.w. Solent Gateway in 3.40 Chester at 16/1 (William Hill 1/5 1,2,3,4,5,6)
1pt win Wholeofthemoon in 4.15 Chester at 25/1 (bet365) - minimum 20/1
Palmer closing in on local prize
When Hugo Palmer moved north from Newmarket two seasons ago, you’d imagine winning a Chester Cup would have immediately shuffled its way up the to-do list – possibly not right to the top of the pile but no doubt pretty high, seeing as it’s a premier Flat handicap just half an hour up the A41 from Manor House Stables.
Having only been in situ for a couple of months at the time, Palmer almost pulled it off first time up when Rajinsky finished third in 2022, while the yard went even closer 12 months ago as Zoffee was chinned on the line by Metier, with Rajinsky running another brave race back in fifth.
It could well be a case of third time lucky on Friday as Zoffee is back for another crack at the prize – having had a brief spell jumping with Olly Murphy through the winter – but the really appealing one at the prices is SOLENT GATEWAY.
Solent Gateway won over the bare two miles here as a three-year-old under the banner of Tom Dascombe, but he’s not been back since pulling his chance away in the aforementioned Chester Cup two years ago (sent off 13/2), the wildly headstrong Morph Speed seemingly lighting him up at an early stage and leaving rider Ben Curtis with little or no hope of regaining any sort of efficiency.
He ended up 11th of the 14 runners but almost immediately proved it wasn’t his true running when third to Trueshan in the Northumberland Plate that summer, before adding to his tally with victories at Wolverhampton (from a mark of 91) and Haydock (93) last season.
Having ended the 2023 campaign with an excellent third to the reopposing Forza Orta off 95 at York’s Ebor meeting in August, the handicapper looks to have given Solent Gateway a cracking chance having dropped him to 92 on the back of a couple of lifeless all-weather runs in March and April. He’s now 5lb better off with Forza Orta on the revised terms.
Given some of this horse’s best performances of his life have come on the back of complete no-shows, I’m more than willing to overlook the sighters on Polytrack and can very much get behind the idea that this race has been on the agenda all along, especially as they’re now fitting a visor for the big day (Palmer 8-61 with first-time visor over the years).
Drying ground is going to play to his strengths too, and I’m also encouraged by the change of tactics when making all the running to win a shade cosily on good to firm ground at Haydock 12 months ago.
There will be competition for the lead here but there’s no sign of a breakneck gallop being set, with Emiyn the only other confirmed front-runner based on past performances, and stall five should give Saffie Osborne every chance of achieving a nice early sit on the selection.
Osborne was obviously the one who broke Palmer’s heart with that late lunge on Metier last year so evidently all must be forgiven – or it will be if this project goes to plan! Incidentally, there’s probably not a lot that can be read into it, but Solent Gateway has won races under Hayley Turner, Jane Elliott and Hollie Doyle during his career so perhaps he’s just a fan of female jockeyship. Let’s hope that’s the case as he’s definitely a touch over-priced all things considered.
All roads lead to Rome
The Group 2 Huxley Stakes looks tricky to say the least and I’ll stop short at tipping Oviedo (again) but could certainly see him going well at a price if the winter gelding operation has helped straighten him out a little.
He showed bundles of promise in some very strong races last year but might be one for a major summer handicap with this run behind him.
Earlier on, TRIP TO ROME is worth a small interest in the CAA Stellar Earl Grosvenor Handicap.
He does have one or two fairly significant question marks over him – hence the price – but he’s not had many starts all told and not been with Ian Williams long either. Williams is seemingly another trainer who likes to target this meeting and he’s fitting first-time cheekpieces in a bid to spark this four-year-old back into form after a miserable run at Bath last time.
To be fair, he looked to be hating the testing conditions there so could easily bounce back if he’s a lot happier on the sound surface this week, while the assessor is giving him a squeak now after he shaped reasonably well in quality handicaps at Wolverhampton and Lingfield on his first two starts for the yard in February and March respectively.
He won his novice over seven furlongs at Kempton 12 months ago so dropping back from a mile doesn’t look a bad move and he’s got a fair draw too, with David Egan taking over in the saddle for the first time.
I saw the crescent...
The other one who makes some appeal for a win-only dart at a big price on Friday is Donald McCain’s WHOLEOFTHEMOON in the Duke Of Westminster Supporting The Chester Plate Handicap.
The first thing to note is that McCain clearly knows all about preparing a horse for this course having won the Chester Cup with Overturn and Ile De Re in the past. And while he’s yet to have a Flat winner this year, McCain has only sent out a handful of runners so that can be easily overlooked.
As for Wholeofthemoon, he’s probably not the strongest stayer in the line-up but when on song he tends to travel and quicken smartly, something he showed in no uncertain terms when winning a slowly-run, two-mile handicap at Kempton last June. And that sort of style should, in theory, be well suited to this place.
He’s only rated a couple of pounds higher than for that Kempton victory despite running just three times on the Flat since, and I wonder if he’s coming into this a little under the radar as his hurdles form hasn’t been brilliant of late.
He did win a novices’ handicap in that sphere off a mark of 103 at Doncaster in December so it’s not like he’s drawn a blank through the winter and I just think he’s made too many errors on his last couple of outings over obstacles.
A switch back to the Flat, with the hood taken off, could result in a resurgence and you’ve got to like the booking of Brandon Wilkie as he’s not only one of the best 5lb claimers around at the moment but has clearly learnt quickly when it comes to Chester, having had a first and a second from his two rides here so far.
Published at 1600 BST on 09/05/24
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