Good Afternoon from Newmarket. It has been a busy morning with a multitude of entries being made for the coming weekend, but before we get to that there is the small matter of three runners this afternoon!
We get the ball rolling with Dancingwithwolves in the 1.55 at Redcar, a three-year-old novice over a mile. This horse was a promising fourth on his Kempton debut last year, before filling the same position at Lingfield on his recent comeback. It has been a case of trying to teach him how to race properly, as he was a bit of a livewire last season! Thankfully he is now learning to race more efficiently and hopefully there are races to be won with him. Whether today is one of them remains to be seen, as we have several tough-looking rivals, but I would like to think he will be involved in the shakeup.
Our second runner of the afternoon is Sir Gnet, who goes shortly after in the 2.10 at Wolverhampton, a 0-65 apprentice handicap over just shy of a mile and a quarter. This horse has carved out a niche for himself during the winter months, running over ten-furlongs at Lingfield under a waiting ride from Dan Muscutt. It is perhaps a risk to change a formula that has been working, but we have secured the services of the talented Cieren Fallon and our horse has plenty of form at this track. Draw one is potentially a mixed blessing, as although we should find the cover he enjoys from that berth and can ride a patient race, it could be that we end up finding a little bit of traffic trouble. Hopefully young Cieren will find the gaps, and Sir Gnet should be running on strongly in the closing stages.
Our final runner of the afternoon will be Toro Dorado in the mile handicap for three-year-olds at Redcar at 4.50. A talented but slightly mercurial horse, he was second in a Kempton nursery over this trip in November, and then ran reasonably well on his comeback at Chelmsford over a mile and a quarter. It could be that the step back in trip doesn’t help, and there is every chance we will go back up in trip again later in the season, but this looks to be his level, and the long home straight at Redcar will hopefully help to bring his stamina into play. We have reached for the blinkers which he wore a couple of times last year, as they should just sharpen him up and make him concentrate. His mark of 65 is hopefully not insurmountable, so I would like to think he has a little each way chance.
So, three runners this afternoon, all with little chances of some kind, but the racing is competitive as ever. Hopefully one or more of our horses can do us proud.
Best wishes,
Ed.