Heavy Going Means Digging Deep to Find a Saturday Winner
Saturday’s ITV televised races appear to be a minefield for punters. Three handicaps from Ascot – on soft/heavy in places going – are complimented with a big-field handicap hurdle at Haydock and classics trial races at Lingfield Park that have switched from the turf to a synthetic surface.
Tom Marquand and William Haggas can team up to collect more silverware on Saturday. ©GettyImages
In the pursuit of profit, we are ignoring horses scheduled to race before the free-to-air television cameras. But, with the best live streaming betting sites allowing punters to watch the action, it matters little.
Mud Loving Haggas Horse at Haydock
At Haydock, on a mixed flat/jumps card, Al Mubhir (3.50 pm) will not be inconvenienced by the testing ground. William Haggas’s four-year-old readily won on soft ground on his latest outing a fortnight ago. Furthermore, Al Mubhir’s final outing of 2022 came here at Haydock on heavy going when he trounced 13 rivals.
The son of Frankel has been raised nine pounds by the handicapper for his most recent success. However, Tom Marquand’s mount is clearly improving, and as Haggas keeps only a select few four-year-olds in his yard, that upward curve in performance is predicted to continue.
Short-priced favourite Al Mubhir progressed nicely last season and is much the best in the Madri Excepcional King Richard III Cup Handicap at @LeicesterRaces for the William Haggas team 🏇 pic.twitter.com/LrmnIrS4vE
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 29, 2023
Supreme Effort From the Doctor’s West
Soft going is part-and-parcel of jumps racing, albeit Warwick’s evening card is forecast to take place on good-to-soft going. Here we like Dr Richard Newland’s Supremely West who makes his hurdles debut in a maiden hurdle due off at 5.25 pm.
A winner in an Irish National Hunt Flat race, Supremely West has scored in an additional two ‘bumpers’ since crossing the Irish Channel and joining his present trainer. And they have been impressive make-all victories which suggest this five-year-old son of Westerner has a big engine.
Supremely West’s ability to jump has to be taken on trust, but Newland’s horses rarely turn up at school without doing their homework. Market rival, Glorious Fun, has had a public outing over hurdles finishing second at Warwick three weeks ago.
Trained by the powerful Dan Skelton stables, this contender now steps back three furlongs in trip. Being by Fame And Glory – a sire that packs stamina into his offspring – two miles is unlikely to bring about any improvement from this contender. We believe his presence will only serve to make Supremely West’s odds more attractive.
Ward’s Royal Ascot Hopes Start at Gulfstream
In North America, Gulfstream Park will stage a pair of two-year-old contests that come accompanied with the carrot of a guaranteed place in one of Royal Ascot’s six juvenile races and $25,000 to cover travel expenses to the Berkshire venue.
The horses of interest in the $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile and $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies Stakes – both raced over five furlongs on the turf – are the Wesley Ward-trained Holding The Line (8.27 pm) and Ocean Mermaid (10.01 pm).
Ward, already responsible for 12 Royal Ascot winners during his career, is renowned for preparing bullet-like two-year-olds to win on their debut and bringing the cream of his juvenile crop to the British meeting.
This season he has already unveiled one very smart two-year-old, American Rascal. A son of the crack sprinter and two-time Royal Ascot winner, Lady Aurelia, this youngster produced a breathtaking debut when winning at Keeneland at the end of April. He is sure to be a short-priced contender in whichever Royal Ascot assignment he is set.
