19:00 Leopardstown

Thursday 9 August 2018

All17:2017:5518:3019:0019:3520:0520:35

SMOKIE Handicap (45-70)

Off time: 19:00 | Winning time: 1m 41.94s

(2)

Nivvo⁴²

Age: 5| Weight: 10-0| J: D M Redmond⁽⁵⁾| T: T Collins| OR: 70| D

11/1

Distance winner of a Dundalk handicap on the AW in February. Last of six over this trip at the Curragh in May before an improved performance over 1m1f at Tipperary recently. Not one to totally leave out of calculations.

Form: 110362

(11)

Queluz^p1,t³³

Age: 5| Weight: 10-0| J: Gary Halpin| T: J Geoghegan| OR: 70| D

14/1

Has largely been in good form this campaign, winning at Dundalk in May and running well in defeat in two of his three more recent starts. Needs to eke out a little extra from this handicap mark but first-time cheekpieces may help.

Form: 9-41043

(16)

Coreczka²¹

Age: 7| Weight: 9-13| J: O J Orr⁽³⁾| T: C Cannon| OR: 69| D

14/1

Has won six times on AW and once at Laytown but yet to win in 14 turf runs. Draw far from ideal but ran with credit here last time out over 7f and gets this trip fine. Can't be ruled out with a useful apprentice taking off 3lb.

Form: 8-34294

(12)

Beau Satchel^b,t⁵

Age: 8| Weight: 9-11| J: Colin Keane| T: A McGuinness| OR: 67| CD

12/1

C&D winner here in 2016. Got his head back in front at Dundalk in July and ran with credit in two runs at the Galway Festival but all his best form has come with cut in the ground on turf and he will want rain to arrive to be seen at his best.

Form: 433143

(9)

Dinkum Diamond⁷

Age: 10| Weight: 9-11| J: Andrew Slattery⁽⁷⁾| T: A Slattery| OR: 67

16/1

Hasn't won since he was trained by Henry Candy back in 2015. His best effort since did come over C&D earlier in the campaign and he's remarkably well-handicapped on old form but his inconsistency is a concern.

Form: 626658

(3)

Alfirak⁹

Age: 4| Weight: 9-10| J: Rory Cleary| T: D English| OR: 66| D

10/1

Sole win in 10 career starts came at Dundalk in April. Made an encouraging start to his turf career with a couple of respectable efforts and while tailed off next time at the Galway Festival, he may be capable of bouncing back on faster ground here.

Form: 381240

(8)

Avalanche⁹

Age: 9| Weight: 9-9| J: Wayne Lordan| T: T J O'Mara| OR: 65| D

16/1

Won back-to-back races at the start of last season but struggled from his revised mark subsequently. Handicapper has started to relent and a return to fast ground is a positive after a disappointing effort at Galway. Can't be ruled out.

Form: 48-4020

(20)

Yamato⁷¹

Age: 5| Weight: 9-8| J: Shane Foley| T: M Halford| OR: 64| D

25/1

Has won twice on AW but winless in nine turf attempts. Returned with a below part effort at Gowran Park in May and hasn't been seen since. Opposable here from the widest draw.

Form: 87-8259

(13)

Pedisnap²⁸

Age: 4| Weight: 9-6| J: S M Crosse⁽⁷⁾| T: J P O'Brien| OR: 62| BF| D

9/1

Couldn't land any sort of blow in six starts for Mick Halford but she's been improving rapidly for this outfit. Ran well on AW last time and the return to turf could see him in an even better light; ought to run well.

Form: 312134

(7)

Nam^h¹⁵

Age: 4| Weight: 9-5| J: N G McCullagh| T: T Mullins| OR: 61

15/2

Yet to win in 10 turf starts but went very close at Naas last time out. Fast ground in his favour here and only up 3lb for that latest effort. Couldn't be ruled out.

Form: 502982

(18)

Alpine Peak⁵⁶

Age: 3| Weight: 9-4| J: Seamie Heffernan| T: N Lupini| OR: 67

33/1

Yet to win in six starts but wasn't beaten all that far here last time out. Showed some promise when trained by Roger Varian on AW and his handicap mark is falling rapidly. Could get competitive here.

Form: 635-987

(1)

Tiny Tempest³⁵

Age: 3| Weight: 9-4| J: Gavin Ryan⁽⁷⁾| T: G P Cromwell| OR: 67

20/1

Victorious over an extended 1m at Wolverhampton on final start for previous yard in October. Minor promise in three turf starts for this trainer but others arrive with more convincing claims.

Form: 551-905

(10)

Innamorare^b¹⁴

Age: 3| Weight: 9-3| J: Chris Hayes| T: C Cannon| OR: 66| CD

12/1

Belatedly got her head in front in a claimer at Roscommon and has held her form well since, winning a C&D handicap last time out. 5lb rise for that effort demands more but she's less exposed than most.

Form: 323151

(6)

Perfect Tapatino²⁷⁴

Age: 4| Weight: 9-3| J: D O'Brien| T: J P O'Brien| OR: 59

9/2

Ran with minor promise on debut at Dundalk but didn't beat a rival home in two subsequent outings at that venue. Hard to fancy on all known form but makes handicap/turf debut and market can reveal expectations here.

Form: 705-

(4)

Zalzar³⁹²

Age: 3| Weight: 9-3| J: Sean Davis⁽⁷⁾| T: G M Lyons| OR: 66

20/1

Showed some promise in a trio of a maidens last year. Makes belated return here and she's an interesting runner on handicap debut upped in trip but the assessor hasn't taken many chances with her opening mark.

Form: 657-

(17)

Global Pass⁴¹

Age: 3| Weight: 9-2| J: Billy Lee| T: R O'Brien| OR: 65

16/1

Showed some promise on AW at the start of the year but he hasn't beaten a rival home in two turf starts since. Makes debut for a new yard here and others preferred.

Form: 4-6390

(5)

Wavepoint¹⁰

Age: 3| Weight: 9-0| J: Gary Carroll| T: G P Cromwell| OR: 63

12/1

Improved for the switch to handicap company on fourth start and impressive when bolting up in a less competitive event at Wolverhampton when last seen. 13lb rise looks harsh though.

Form: 09-0461

(19)

Fiannaiocht¹²

Age: 3| Weight: 8-13| J: Ronan Whelan| T: J S Bolger| OR: 62

14/1

Yet to win in five starts but produced a better effort last time out when third of nine at Gowran Park. Likely to get different ground here though and needs to prove she can be as effective on a quicker surface.

Form: 6-9603

Rosenborg Rider¹⁶⁷

Age: 5| Weight: 9-0| J: C P Hoban| T: A McGuinness| OR: 56

33/1

First Reserve: Just two wins from 34 starts and yet to win a race in 13 turf attempts. Returns from an absence here and others preferred.

Form: 12-6464

Tynamite^b1¹²

Age: 4| Weight: 8-8| J: Ben Coen⁽⁷⁾| T: P F McEnery| OR: 50

25/1

Third Reserve: Just one win from 13 starts to date when a winning from a 5lb lower mark at Dundalk last year. Inconsistent since but can't be ruled out on the form that saw him finish runner-up at Cork in June. Wears first-time blinkers.

Form: 489204

Non-Runners

(14)

Reckless Lad²⁸

Weight: 10-0| Age: 8

T: P Martin J: Killian Leonard

(15)

Turn On The Tears²³

Weight: 9-4| Age: 5

T: W Durkan J: Declan McDonogh

Time Stands Still⁴²

Weight: 8-13| Age: 4

T: W J Martin J: Reserve 2

Forecasts

Perfect Tapatino (9/2), Nam (15/2), Pedisnap (9/1), Alfirak (10/1), Turn On The Tears (10/1), Nivvo (11/1), Innamorare (12/1), Wavepoint (12/1), Beau Satchel (12/1), Coreczka (14/1), Queluz (14/1), Fiannaiocht (14/1), Avalanche (16/1), Global Pass (16/1), Dinkum Diamond (16/1), Reckless Lad (16/1), Tiny Tempest (20/1), Zalzar (20/1), Tynamite (25/1), Yamato (25/1), Time Stands Still (25/1), Alpine Peak (33/1), Rosenborg Rider (33/1)

PEDISNAP comes here in better form than most and arrives with a less exposed profile than his rivals. With more progress possible, there's plenty to like about his profile in a race of this nature. Queluz may benefit from first-time headgear while Nam is worth considering after an excellent second at Naas when last seen.