Plenty of quality handicaps across the cards at Kelso, Doncaster and Newbury - find out who Matt Brocklebank is backing this weekend.
Value Bet tips: Saturday March 1
1pt win Editeur Du Gite in 2.40 Doncaster at 14/1 (General)
1pt win Laganhill in 2.55 Kelso at 10/1 (General)
1pt e.w. Aucunrisque in 3.30 Kelso at 25/1 (General 1/5 1,2,3,4,5)
0.5pts e.w. Tedley in 3.45 Newbury at 20/1 (General 1/5 1,2,3,4,5)
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A fascinating bet365 Morebattle Hurdle is the big betting race this Saturday and Emmet Mullins, who plundered the bonus up for grabs for horses who win this and at Cheltenham with The Shunter in 2021, is back for another bite at the cherry. The trainer runs Vischio, one of his Dublin Racing Festival winners, who has been well-backed all week but doesn’t look brilliantly handicapped to me.
There are plenty of each-way alternatives at bigger prices including previous winners Cracking Rhapsody and Cormier, the latter potentially perked up again by the addition of first-time cheekpieces, but it's Chris Gordon's AUCUNRISQUE I want running for me at the odds.
He's always possessed a fair slice of class, having won the Dovecote as a novice in 2022 and the Betfair Hurdle the following season, and he was back in the winners’ enclosure for the first time since that Newbury triumph when beating Alnilam at Ascot earlier this season.
Well held in two subsequent starts on ground with plenty of juice in it, he's a much happier horse on better ground and hopefully it should continue to dry out with little or no rain forecast north of the border all weekend.
It’s also worth noting that Kelso have saved a fresh strip of ground on the hurdle course that hasn't been touched all season with this meeting in mind, so it shouldn’t be too bad at all.
Now 3lb better off with the reopposing Alnilam due to that one winning at Southwell since they last met, Aucunrisque is admittedly one of several prominent racers in this line-up but I’d much rather be in that first wave of runners in a race like this at Kelso than out the back, especially as there's a chance low sun and omitted hurdles might come into play at some stage in proceedings.
Let's hope that’s not the case but it would make for an even more tactical Morebattle if they're forced to bypass obstacles in the straight which was the case when Cormier won three years ago.
There's good money up for grabs in the bet365 Premier Novices' Hurdle and it's a Grade 2 that seems to be going from strength to strength.
There are some highly promising horses in this year's field and the Willie Mullins-trained Chart Topper would not be a surprise winner. Alan King’s Castle Carrock appeals more than Vanderpoel among the other favourites, but I do think the market might have got one completely wrong and the horse in question is LAGANHILL.
Henry Daly's horse has presumably been something of a training challenge, having not made his debut until just before turning seven, but he massively impressed with the way he went about his business on debut at Haydock and easily followed up under the penalty at Bangor last time.
Crambo won the same Bangor race last year and I'm convinced Laganhill could have a major future too, not least as the Haydock form has been boosted so emphatically by runner-up Glynn Brae, who has gone on to win a couple of novice races at Fontwell by an aggregate of 31 lengths.
He's very nicely bred, being out of a half-sister to the high-class hurdler/chaser Wishfull Thinking and, given he’s only looked to be getting going in the closing stages of his two races over two miles to this point, the additional couple of furlongs around Kelso will pose no fears whatsoever.
I’m a backer at anything north of 6/1.
Having already backed Twig for the Grand National, it’s encouraging to see him running in Doncaster’s Virgin Bet Grimthorpe Handicap Chase – mainly because he needed a spin over fences this season before Aintree in order to meet the qualification criteria for the big one.
He’s going to need a lot of horses to drop out of the National between now and early-April if he’s going to make the cut but a decent performance on Town Moor will hopefully put him spot-on following a couple of months out of action.
Twig arguably needs the ground to be riding on the good side in order to show his best, which is presumably why he’s running here and not down at Newbury where he had an alternative engagement earlier in the week, but he’s not badly handicapped on last year’s Cheltenham peak when runner-up in the Ultima.
That actually came on heavy going so conditions clearly aren’t everything and I’d give him a squeak in this under top weight with regular rider Beau Morgan claiming 5lb. I’m happy enough to resist adding him to the staking plan following market support throughout Friday, but will be watching with interest nevertheless.
Earlier on at Doncaster, the Virgin Bet Every Saturday Money Back Handicap Chase looks quite an open affair although the obvious one is Gabriel's Getaway.
One of two for Anthony Honeyball in here, along with Brookie, Gabriel's Getaway is competing from 2lb out of the handicap with Sam Twiston-Davies getting down to do his minimum weight.
Twiston-Davies has only ever ridden him once before and he was a disappointing third of four but this horse is 4-6 over fences all told and fairly bolted up over course and distance last January, since when he's not been sighted.
He's won after a break before – albeit not quite as long – and looks likely to get his preferred ground so a big run looks on the cards if they set a decent gallop.
That is the one slight nag with him as quite a few of his rivals are hold-up performers too and I’m drawn to the well-handicapped old boy EDITEUR DU GITE, who might just be able to rediscover his mojo with a relatively soft lead and underfoot conditions to suit.
He’s obviously not the force of old at the age of 11 but he’s come down a total of 18lb since the start of the campaign and you can probably ignore his last couple of efforts when the ground has been soft or on the easy side.
Prior to that he was competing in the Paddy Power Gold Cup off a mark of 154 and he's in here off 140 which gives him an obvious chance if Gary and Josh Moore have been able to rekindle the flames since his last run at Windsor.
The Moores had quite a quiet January but half of their 50 runners in February (prior to Friday) finished either first, second or third so perhaps a timely resurgence from one of their stalwarts isn’t out of the question. The fact he’s been entered for the Grand Annual at Cheltenham hints that he must have been showing something encouraging of late.
Calico looks like his only real rival for early supremacy if Niall Houlihan wants to get on with things on the selection and, with a nod to the potential for him to completely blowout when challenged, I’ll recommend a small bet win-only.
Newbury's BetVictor Greatwood Gold Cup Handicap Chase sees another Grand National hope having their final prep race in the Paul Nicholls-trained Kandoo Kid.
There are dangers abound, not least Sam Thomas’ Vincenzo but if you like that one at single-figure prices then don’t overlook the fact that TEDLEY is 9lb better off for a length and three-quarter second to him at Windsor earlier in the season.
Nigel Twiston-Davies' horse may not be progressing at quite the same rate as Vincenzo but he’s still only six and is clearly about as tough as they come as he ran 11 times in his novice hurdle campaign last year and already has eight runs over fences to his name this time around.
After winning his first two, the pick of the bunch on pure form terms was probably his close second to Kalif Du Berlais at the end of November and it could be significant that effort came on his only previous visit to Newbury other than a bumper outing here in 2023.
Tedley didn't have much go his way when fifth at Ascot in January, getting hampered by a faller before getting squeezed for room later on in the race as well, and he was outclassed by Arkle contender L’Eau Du Sud and subsequent winner Rubaud over two miles in the Kingmaker last time.
Stepping back up in trip, returned to handicap company, should play more to his strengths this weekend and he looks the type to give it a good crack at long odds, with 5lb claimer Jamie Brace doing well for the yard this season (7-34 at 21% and level-stakes profit of +11.25).
Published at 1600 GMT on 28/02/25
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