John Ingles provides an overview of the key things to note on Friday.
Three points of interest
Enable’s relative makes debut at Sandown
The two-year-old seven-furlong maiden at Sandown (15:15) looks an interesting contest on paper likely to throw up winners, with plenty of top yards represented, mostly by unraced colts. Only two of the dozen runners have racecourse experience and the newcomer who makes most appeal on pedigree is Juddmonte’s Accredit, trained by ‘Hot Trainers’ John & Thady Gosden.
He’s by Dubawi out of useful filly Entitle who had just four starts for Gosden senior, which included winning a novice at Lingfield over a mile at two and dead-heating for second in the Musidora Stakes. More importantly, Entitle is a half-sister to connections’ top-class mare Enable whose eleven Group 1 wins included the Eclipse at Sandown.
The Juddmonte colours were carried to success in this same race last year by newcomer Jonquil, then trained by Sir Michael Stoute, and successful this season for Andrew Balding in the Greenham Stakes and, more recently, the Celebration Mile at Goodwood. John Gosden has used Sandown for the successful debuts of future Group 1 winners Masked Marvel, Too Darn Hot and Palace Pier in the past, and Accredit likewise has the pedigree to make a winning start here before going on to better things himself.
Three Card Brag favoured by weights back over hurdles
Three Card Brag’s last couple of races have been the Grand National and the Galway Plate so it’s fair to say he should find the Denny Hurdle (18:53), a minor contest at Down Royal over three miles, an altogether less competitive affair. Three Card Brag was second for a long way at Aintree before his stamina eventually gave out, while at Galway, where he finished eighth, he effectively lost all chance when hampered at the start.
He beat some other useful types when getting off the mark over fences at Navan early in the year and had similarly useful form over hurdles as a novice, winning twice and finishing fourth in the Albert Bartlett at the Cheltenham Festival. For this return to the smaller obstacles, Three Card Brag is well treated by the race conditions, getting 10 lb from the top two in the weights.
Gordon Elliott has won two of the last three editions of this contest, including in 2023 with Tullybeg who takes his chance again, but this should go to stablemate Three Card Brag who is 5 lb clear in the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings.
Flying Fletcher pick of weights down in grade
Richard Fahey’s Flying Fletcher should appreciate the marked drop in grade when he contests the seven-furlong handicap at Newcastle (20:00) which has a ratings ceiling of 75. On his previous start at Yarmouth last month, Flying Fletcher was taking on a better class of rival in a Racing League handicap, and he ran with credit, faring much the best of those held up in keeping on for fifth behind Mister Bluebird.
That followed another creditable effort at Doncaster, but Flying Fletcher has saved his best efforts for Newcastle which is another reason to believe he has strong claims here. Both his wins have come at the track and he has now slipped below the mark he won from most recently last November. He also ran well when twice a close third at Newcastle early this year.
Flying Fletcher looks very well treated judged on those efforts here in the winter and a repeat of that sort of form gives him a clear chance at these weights, coming out 5 lb top in the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings.
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