Matt Brocklebank is back in the hot-seat with his best bets from around the tracks on Tuesday.
James Fanshawe has his horses in good shape and ME TARZAN is an unexposed colt to keep on side at Brighton. His first three runs were moderate enough but saw him qualify for a lowly mark of 53 and he shaped a bit better upped to seven furlongs for the first time at Kempton last month, finishing fourth from an unfavourable position. Me Tarzan is a half-brother to three winners who all improved through the handicap ranks, including Kartvelian, who won a couple of Brighton handicaps (off marks of 59 and 61) for Fanshawe back in 2021.
Richard Fahey's 2022 Norfolk Stakes winner THE RIDLER has shown a bit more spark since the cheekpieces went on and he's well worth another chance back over the minimum trip on testing ground at Leicester. Now fully 20lb lower in the handicap than this time last year, he's evidently no star but has found his level and ran well for fifth in the Ayr Bronze Cup last time out.
Being bumped up 6lb for getting beaten looks harsh on the face of it but CATUABA was obviously unfortunate not to collect at Worcester last month, his rider on the day mistaking the half-furlong marker for the winning line. He'd jumped and travelled really well in a prominent position, shaping like he was several steps ahead of the assessor, and it'll be disappointing if connections aren't compensated with victory on this occasion.
Amaysmont is going to get plenty of attention here but he's got the 4lb penalty to carry for winning at Wolverhampton and his record at this track isn't quite so strong (no wins here to date), so preference is for KODEBREAKER. Michael Herrington's horse has won off a 1lb lower mark in the past so certainly isn't handicapped out of things and lines up on the back of an encouraging effort when beaten just a length into fifth at Redcar a fortnight ago. He's got loads of good form at this venue and will appreciate the step back up to a mile from seven furlongs.
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