Nic Doggett provides an overview of the key things to note on Monday.
Three points of interest
Title bid for Fallon?
What is there to say? It’s cold isn’t it? But, like everything, from colds to Cristiano Ronaldo, it will pass (at some point).
And in the meantime there is some all-weather racing (a dangerous moniker at these times) to fall back on, or fully embrace, depending on your preference.
Three divisions (!) of the Read Meg Nicholls' Blog At betmgm.co.uk Classified Stakes get the nine-race card underway at 16:00 and there are some interesting jockey bookings on display.
Cieren Fallon enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2025, recording 136 wins at a strike-rate of 19%, both career-best numbers. He’s already on the board for 2026 thanks to the Lingfield success of Naval Ensign for Jack Jones and what is abundantly clear is that Fallon’s agent is also putting a shift in; the young jockey has already ridden for 11 different stables this calendar year.
Has Fallon seen Billy Loughnane riding 222 winners in 2025 – taking the mantle from his own dad Kieren who rode 221 in 2003 – as a sleight on the family name? It would be some story – though perhaps an impossible one - if he could wrestle it back.
Monday’s rides come for Ron Harris (Eye Of the Water, 16:00) and Mark Loughnane (Mollie Foster, 18:30 and Mythical Night, 19:30), with Mollie Foster being the most obvious. She appeared to relish the step up to a mile when winning on her final start for Ed Walker back in October and, narrowly top on weight-adjusted ratings, she also features the Timeform ‘New Trainer’ flag here having been picked up by The Horse Watchers and sent to Loughnane since.
Fast start for Johnston
Mollie Foster is not the only horse on show who is having their first run for a new stable, with plenty seemingly attempting the whole ‘New Year, New Me’ sort of schtick that I’m fleeing from.
Living in Scotland, I know how important Hogmanay is in these parts, and it appears that Charlie Johnston’s Scottish lineage is coming to the fore as he has tended to start new calendar years with plenty of gusto, recording January strike-rates of 18% in 2023 and 21% in 2025, and February strike-rates of 27% in 2024 and 21% in 2025.
At the time of writing he’s yet to saddle a winner in 2026, but his horses have been running sufficiently well to pick up the Timeform ‘Hot Trainer’ flag so now might be the time to start backing his runners before the market (over)reacts.
With Alba Gu Brath – which aptly roughly translates to ‘Scotland forever’ - likely to go off odds-on in the novice at 17:30, and New Bay Star also likely to be popular in the following event at 18:00, the best value could lie with taking an early price on Onyeisi (19:00) who followed up his Chelmsford win with a creditable third over C&D last time and may be able to resume winning ways in a slightly lower grade.
With a lack of pace forecast, and stamina seemingly his strongpoint since stepping up in trip, it would make sense for Jack Mitchell to be positive. Which is what I’m trying to be, honest.
Time to Collect
This may be a rather small section on a Venn Diagram, but for those of you who like a challenging game over the festive period and also enjoy the daily Horses In Focus article which is available on the website – just sign up for an account, it’s free! - it’s time for a game of Spot The Horse In Focus.
No? Your loss.
Though on this occasion, it was a terrible game designed just to keep the kids busy for a few hours without a series of inane questions. Sadly, the cold snap has decimated the Horses In Focus feature on Monday, with not one to be found.
Instead then, and at odds with the weather, I’ll highlight another ‘Hot Trainer’ to note. We all know how good a year Tony Carroll had in 2025, but he’s kept that going, and decides to run the well-treated C&D winner Second Collection in the concluding 0-55 handicap rather than keep her to the classified company she was far from disgraced in last time (on unfavourable terms).
She’s no world-beater, but the forecast ‘strong’ pace should suit her hold-up style, and it would be no surprise were she to give apprentice rider Matthew Lloyd Slater a 10th career success.
More from Sporting Life
- Free bets
- Racecards
- Fast results
- Full results and free video replays
- Horse racing news
- Horse racing tips
- Horse racing features
- Download our free iOS and Android app
- Football and other sports tips
- Podcasts and video content
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.
