John Ingles provides an overview of the key things to note on Sunday.
Berry and Mangan with two good chances at Newcastle
Newcastle’s all-weather card is a ‘rider restricted’ meeting, meaning it’s confined to jockeys who rode no more than 30 winners in Britain during 2025. Gina Mangan’s total of 25 last year makes her one of the more successful riders on the card, therefore, and she has already notched another six winners already this year. Two of her winning rides last month, both trained in Newmarket by John Berry, have good chances of going in again at Newcastle, the pair top of the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings in their respective races.
First up is Tarbat Ness in the two-mile handicap (14:12). He has mostly been hurdling, without success, in the last year or so, but it’s been a different story on the Flat, winning three of his last four starts in that sphere with Mangan in the saddle each time. Tarbat Ness was hard to win with earlier in his career but hasn’t done much wrong lately on the Flat and proved better than ever last month when successful over course and distance by three quarters of a length from Dollar’s Dream, with the pair finishing clear.
Stablemate Duchess is in excellent heart and can get back to winning ways in the first division of the mile and a half handicap (14:42). She overcame trouble in running when returning to form to win at Southwell early last month and has finished a good second in both starts since at Kempton and back at Southwell where she was beaten a neck by Smokey Malone last time, pulling clear of the rest.
Lovely bet at Punchestown
The Grand National Trial over nearly three and a half miles (14:30) is the most valuable race on Punchestown’s card, though with the top weight running from a Turf Club mark of 133, think Fairyhouse rather than Aintree as far as any Grand National clues are concerned. Gordon Elliott has dominated this race in recent years, winning it six times since 2018 and in each of the last four years. His 2025 winner Fortunedefortunata is back again, though Jack Kennedy has picked last month’s Down Royal winner Lucky Lyreen from the stable’s sextet.
Gavin Cromwell is another trainer worth respecting in this type of race, and while he hasn’t won the Grand National Trial before, he can put that right this year with the hat-trick seeking The Lovely Man. Trained by Colm Murphy prior to this season, The Lovely Man was still a maiden over both hurdles and fences until recently. However, on just his second start for Cromwell, he got off the mark in a handicap chase at Navan in December when beating stablemate Evies Vladimir, who takes him on again here, by five lengths.
The Lovely Man then followed up back over hurdles in a conditional jockeys event at Gowran last month when showing plenty of stamina over nearly three miles in heavy ground, so he looks bound to appreciate the extra distance and testing conditions here. Open to further improvement as a chaser and with his stable going much better of late, The Lovely Man can win again.
Citron can build on promising chasing debut
‘Hot Trainer’ Harry Derham came away with a winner from Musselburgh’s last meeting a fortnight ago and can make the long journey from Upper Lambourn worthwhile again, with Jus de Citron looking the one to beat in the handicap chase over just short of three miles (16:20).
The strong son of Saint des Saints made the frame in both his starts in Irish points and is very lightly raced under Rules. He won the first of just three starts over hurdles, a novice at Doncaster last season, and was soon switched to fences at Newcastle last month, showing improved form.
That novice handicap chase appealed as strong form, with Jus de Citron giving the impression he’ll improve for a greater test of stamina – which he’ll get over the extra half-mile here – keeping on gradually to be beaten a length into third behind Moon Phases. Jus de Citron earned the ‘Horse In Focus’ flag for that promising chasing debut, and he’s the one to beat stepping up in trip.
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