If you weren’t watching the Weekend Watch last week, you will want to ahead of this weekend. Our tipster, Dave Young, had four winners from four selections during Newbury’s ITV covered races. You can see who he, Andrew Mount and Kat Tracey have selected in the five key races during ITV’s show this weekend below.
You can back any of the team’s selections with BetMGM who are offering new customers £40 in free bets when you deposit and bet £10.
1:50 Ascot – Sodexo Live! Reynoldstown Novices’ Chase (Grade 2)
Dave: “I typically look for a stamina merchant in this, and in this race I think it’s the favourite APPLE AWAY. She got better last season from this time of year. If you take Grey Dawning out of her two defeats, her form suddenly reads much prettier. I appreciate she is short enough, but she bolts up!.
Kate: “I’m rowing in with you here with APPLE AWAY Dave! Stamina is to the fore with her and I thought she had run a cracker on each start so far this season.”
Andrew: “A lot of people gave Apple Away a lot of credit for her runner-up effort at Warwick from the front, but Warwick is a front-runners’ track. I’m going to go for KILBEG KING and back up the Il Est Francais form.”
2:05 Wincanton – Jennings Bet Kingwell Hurdle (Grade 2)
Andrew: “NEMEAN LION is a horse I picked up after running in the Greatwood Hurdle, form which was franked again in the Betfair Hurdle last week. He turned up again in the Lanzarote Hurdle at Kempton, just getting chinned by one of Dan Skelton’s. Coming back to 2m on soft ground at a right-handed track makes me quite happy with Nemean Lion here.”
Dave: “I’m tempted more than anything to back RUBAUD. He is too big a price, as if this was on good-to-soft, he would be more like a 6/4 shot. I don’t think the soft ground will completely rule him out either.
Kate: “I’m team RUBAUD as well. He was Evens earlier in the week, but is out to 5/2 now. He was giving weight all-round in the International Hurdle, including to Lossiemouth, who would usually be a Champion Hurdle contender in any other year. He should be better right-handed too.”
2:40 Haydock – Virgin Bet Rendlesham Hurdle (Grade 2)
Andrew: “I’ll go with BUTCH, looking for his fifth win in his last six starts. He looks the most progressive as a seven-year-old on the up. I certainly want to be against the favourite.”
Dave: “This for me is a step too far up in class for Butch. RED RISK seems to go on terrible ground, so I will tentatively select him even though there’s not much value in the price.”
Kate: “Let’s complete the disagreement tricast, as I’m with BOTOX HAS. He has been facing the best staying hurdlers around of late and hasn’t been beaten out of sight by those horses either.”
3:15 Haydock – Virgin Bet Grand National Trial Handicap Chase
Andrew: “Last spring, FAMOUS BRIDGE was one of the favourites for the Scottish National before being pulled out because of good ground. He won two of his first three on soft and heavy going at Haydock before pulling up on good ground at Doncaster. I’ll go for him to prove that Doncaster form all wrong.”
Dave: “I’m going to give YEAH MAN a bit of a chance. In two runs on heavy ground, he was behind Impervious and second at Clonmel, so while the ground is definitely a concern, the step up in trip might be the making of him. FULL BACK is another one I will take a bit of a swing at. He fell in the Fleur De Lys when it looked like he was being prepped for something. He looks massively overpriced because this could be the answer to him and may have been a bit of a target.”
3:36 Ascot – Betfair Ascot Chase (Grade 1)
Dave: “I didn’t expect L’Homme Presse to be as short as he is, though both he and AHOY SENOR are better on their day than Pic D’Orhy. I don’t think it takes much to make a case for the selection. He tends to come good at this time of year. His price in-running has been massive at the start of this season, so someone seems to have known something.”
Andrew: “The key to AHOY SENOR is to have a run within six weeks of a run which also came within six weeks prior. With those conditions he has four wins, two seconds and a fifth from seven starts. He gets those conditions for the first time since his Cotswold Chase win last year. If you give me a free fiver, it would go on Ahoy Senor.”
Don’t forget to check out occasional Weekend Watch pundit, Matty Sutcliffe’s selections for this weekend as well as Dave Young’s weekly Cheltenham ante-post picks.
Matty Sutcliffe’s Weekend Pointers & Punts
Dave Young’s Cheltenham Ante-Post Book
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