20:17 Worcester

Thursday 11 June 2026

All17:0817:4018:1018:4019:1019:4220:1720:53

Step Into Luxury With Purple Granite Handicap Hurdle

Off time: 20:17 | Winning time: 4m 0.27s

Play Pretend¹⁹

Age: 5| Weight: 12-0| J: Lee Edwards| T: Dave Roberts| OR: 100| CD

4/1

Went close to bagging a second course victory here last October but has looked out of sorts in a pair of starts this year.

Form: 13225-8

Image of Stars that are filled with the colour gold

Bobbarelli^h,t¹²

Age: 9| Weight: 12-0| J: Miss Amber Jackson-Fennell⁽⁷⁾| T: N & W Twiston-Davies| OR: 100

5/1

Dual point winner who ran his best race over fences second of 5 at Stratford latest. Likely to get his own way in front back over hurdles and could well make a bold bid.

Form: P622-32

Son Of Hypnos^t⁴⁹

Age: 9| Weight: 12-0| J: Jack Stenhouse⁽⁷⁾| T: R Chapman| OR: 100

5/1

Versatile performer in Ireland for Kevin Michael Smith, but he's without a win since 2024 and his form has been patchy since joining current yard.

Form: 656P37-

Emerald Time^t1²⁷

Age: 5| Weight: 11-12| J: Thomas Bellamy| T: Dom Elsworth & Ryan Hatch| OR: 98

4/1

Bumper runner-up who shaped well off a steady pace when fifth of 8 on handicap bow at Aintree, and with hope that a bigger field/first-time tongue strap will help him settle better, he should have a bigger performance in him.

Form: 4/2F76-5

Western Soldier²³

Age: 8| Weight: 11-5| J: Callum Pritchard| T: J W Mullins| OR: 91| D

11/2

Landed his first handicap success in this sphere at Wincanton in November and heading back in the right direction on his previous 2 starts, with some merit to the form of his latest fourth at Hexham.

Form: 1209U-4

Katana²²⁰

Age: 6| Weight: 11-4| J: C Gethings| T: R Stephens| OR: 90

18/1

Went the wrong way after finishing runner-up in a C&D maiden on stable debut last June, shaping like a non-stayer on his latest start at Hereford (3¼m), and is now back down markedly in trip for his first run in over 7 months.

Form: PP6635-

Raffles Nobu^b,t¹⁷

Age: 6| Weight: 11-2| J: J M Quinlan| T: Nick Scholfield| OR: 88

9/1

Hasn't recaptured his best since joining capable new yard, extending a long losing streak in the process, though he did at least run better than on his previous start when a well-held third of 5 back over a longer trip at Huntingdon last time.

Form: 4364-P3

Barafundle Bay²²

Age: 5| Weight: 10-13| J: Jack Tudor| T: Christian Williams| OR: 85

40/1

Modest 11f Flat winner who needed the experience in a pair of hurdle starts last November but offered little on handicap debut/reappearance at Ffos Las (2½m). At least worth a market check with Jack Tudor taking over on second start for new yard, though.

Form: 44-7

Strong As Steel¹⁶⁵

Age: 7| Weight: 10-8| J: Charlie Deutsch| T: A W Carroll| OR: 80

10/1

Fair form in bumpers but hasn't made much of an impact over hurdles and returns from 5½ months off having pulled up (following a stumble) on second start for current yard.

Form: 5P4/P5P-

Alex The Great^t²²

Age: 6| Weight: 10-2| J: R T Dunne| T: A W Carroll| OR: 74| D

33/1

Regressive Flat winner who has finished well held in a trio of hurdle starts. Tongue strap goes on for the first time in this sphere but it's hard to be confident now switched to a handicap.

Form: 9-47

Non-Runners

Belcamo¹⁴⁴

Weight: 11-12| Age: 5

T: A M Hales J: Harry Bannister

Privilege²⁹⁹

Weight: 11-5| Age: 8

T: J L Flint J: Charlie Price

Forecasts

Belcamo (7/2), Emerald Time (4/1), Play Pretend (4/1), Son Of Hypnos (5/1), Bobbarelli (5/1), Western Soldier (11/2), Raffles Nobu (9/1), Strong As Steel (10/1), Privilege (16/1), Katana (18/1), Alex The Great (33/1), Barafundle Bay (40/1)

EMERALD TIME should build on his recent eye-catching Aintree run and is taken to open his account in what hardly looks a deep race for the grade. Bobbarelli tackles 2m for the first time over hurdles and could be the main danger if getting into a rhythm on the front end.