19:00 Newcastle

Thursday 23 January 2020

All16:3017:0017:3018:0018:3019:0019:3020:00

Bombardier British Hopped Amber Beer Handicap

Off time: 19:01 | Winning time: 1m 31.19s

(11)

Tiercel¹³

Age: 7| Weight: 9-9| J: Phil Dennis| T: Rebecca Bastiman| OR: 67| CD

33/1

Sprung a 33-1 surprise over C&D in March 2019 (same mark); there's few positively identifiable pointers either side of that success, albeit he probably needed his comeback run at Wolverhampton (1m½f) 13 days ago.

Form: 0/5100-6

(9)

Bugler Bob^v³⁶

Age: 4| Weight: 9-7| J: Jason Hart| T: J & S Quinn| OR: 65| C

9/2

Rated 7lb lower than when winning over 6f here in April 2019; failed to beat a single rival on his sole previous attempt at 7f (Catterick) which means that he has plenty of questions to answer in terms of stamina.

Form: 773855-

(1)

Rich Approach¹⁶⁸

Age: 4| Weight: 9-5| J: J Mitchell| T: J D Bethell| OR: 63| CD

10/1

Justified favouritism when winning a similar contest here in January 2019 (from a 2lb lower mark); much less productive on turf last summer (0-3) and is returning from a 168-day absence; couldn't be completely discounted.

Form: 495769-

(7)

Intense Style⁷⁸

Age: 8| Weight: 9-3| J: Danny Brock| T: D P Quinn| OR: 61| D

33/1

With Les Eyre when finishing runner-up in a Redcar seller (1m, good) in September 2019; made the frame (beaten in excess of 6L) on his second start for Denis Quinn at Nottingham (5f, heavy) in November; 1-14 on the AW.

Form: 080293-

(5)

Billy Wedge⁴⁵

Age: 5| Weight: 9-3| J: Barry McHugh| T: Miss Tracy Waggott| OR: 61| CD

11/8

Heavily supported evens-favourite when winning for the second time over this C&D six weeks ago; that represents reasonably strong form in the context of this race; is steadily rising in the weights (5lb higher); sets the standard.

Form: 021531-

(6)

Phantasmal^p1¹⁶⁸

Age: 6| Weight: 9-0| J: B A Curtis| T: Karen McLintock| OR: 58WS

9/2

Cost €150,000 as a juvenile but didn't make the track until a 4yo (for Stuart Coltherd); has shown minimal traces of ability in six starts since; cheekpieces fitted post wind surgery on debut for the Ingoe handler Karen McLintock.

Form: 626/680-

(4)

Decision Maker¹⁶

Age: 6| Weight: 8-13| J: Lewis Edmunds| T: S R Bowring| OR: 57| C

6/1

Broke his Fibresand duck when driven out to fend off Le Manege Enchante (over 6f) 16 days ago; 3lb higher; won twice over 5f at this track in the early months of 2019; has stamina to prove over 7f.

Form: 70398-1

(3)

Macs Blessings^b¹⁴

Age: 4| Weight: 8-13| J: Harrison Shaw⁽³⁾| T: Stef Keniry| OR: 57| C| D

14/1

Ultra-consistent on turf at Catterick and Ayr (6f-7f) during July and August 2019 and remains fairly handicapped; should strip fitter for a recent run (form is tested earlier by Lukoutoldmakezebak); must enter the thinking in a modest contest.

Form: 32200-8

Non-Runners

(8)

The Right Choice²

Weight: 9-9| Age: 5

T: J Ferguson J: Non Runner

(10)

Inner Circle²⁰

Weight: 9-7| Age: 6

T: D M Loughnane J: L Morris

(2)

Minor Melody⁹⁷

Weight: 8-2| Age: 6

T: P Downey J: Sean Davis

Forecasts

Billy Wedge (11/8), The Right Choice (3/1), Bugler Bob (9/2), Phantasmal (9/2), Decision Maker (6/1), Rich Approach (10/1), Inner Circle (10/1), Macs Blessings (14/1), Minor Melody (20/1), Tiercel (33/1), Intense Style (33/1)

Tracy Waggott's dual C&D winner Billy Wedge is undoubtedly the form horse in a fairly modest contest. However, he faces a stiffer test from a 5lb higher mark than when winning six weeks ago, so we'll opt to look elsewhere for the each-way value. The recent Southwell winner Decision Maker must prove his stamina reserves over 7f. Meanwhile, it'll be interesting to see if the combination of wind surgery, cheekpieces and the switch to local trainer Karen McLintock can lift the fortunes of the ailing Phantasmal. However, for small stakes the suggested play is Stef Keniry's feasibly handicapped MACS BLESSINGS who should strip fitter for a recent comeback run.