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Northern racing round-up: Lewis Tomlinson on what's coming up and his horses to follow this week

By Lewis Tomlinson

Horse Racing

Fri February 14, 2025 · 1M ago

Timeform's Lewis Tomlinson is heading so far north he's crossing the border as he rounds up what's happening and what might happen in the north.

The gravy train hasn’t quite yet carried me as far as the National Weights Lunch, but I’ve done enough to get mesen a meal at Kelso for the Timeform sponsored card on Friday.

Shame, because I’m a big fan of John Barnes and I think Sam Quek seems dead sound. A couple of hours in their company after the revelation that the 152-rated Trelawne will be running from a mark of 152 is surely the stuff of dreams for all sensible racing fans.

So far, my racing celeb contact book is more Redcar than red carpet, but I did bump into Paul Chuckle at a Pontefract Monday meet once upon a time and television’s Dan Barber is rumoured to be joining me in the Scottish Borders. They’ll be camping overnight to get a glimpse, surely...

The Unibet Champion Hurdle | Festival Focus Episode 2

WHAT’S HAPPENED

It’s perhaps not been the highest quality week of action on the track in the North, though we did at least get to see a couple of young horses with Grade 1 aspirations at Wetherby on Wednesday.

Challow Hurdle runner-up WENDIGO making us all rich by landing odds of 1/11 in a run-of-the-mill novice contest. His only entry at Cheltenham is in the Albert Bartlett, still a wide-open looking contest 4 weeks out and current best odds of 16/1 look a fair reflection of his claims, the manner in which he kept on behind The New Lion at Newbury giving plenty of confidence for his ability to stay 3m, before Paul Nicholls’ Triumph-entered LIVE CONTI completed the scumbag’s double, making all to supplement his debut success at Auteuil at the slightly more generous price of 1/9.

I also must give mention to LATENIGHTRUMBLE, who I remain most positive about despite meeting with defeat both outings since winning at the track in December. He’s clearly still a well-treated horse from marks in the mid-110s, cantering all over eventual winner SOUND AND FURY approaching the last but sprawling badly there and handing the race back to his chief rival. A bad beat, but we keep the faith.

Last week’s column highlighted a pair to keep an eye on at Ayr and we got off to a good start with WALK ON QUEST producing his most impressive performance to date when landing the opening handicap chase. Now 3 from 3 over fences, Lucinda Russell’s gelding again took the eye with his jumping and bounding clear after the last in really taking fashion. This win came from a career-high mark of 110, but I get the feeling we’ve only just began to scratch the surface of his potential and he should continue to improve for a while yet. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for MONTYS SOLDIER, who was sent off favourite on his debut for the Coltherds but was beaten some way out. I’m not quite as sure about keeping the faith with this one.

Sue Smith & Joel Parkinson have been in fine form since the turn of the year and the Bingley combination found ONESOC providing their tenth winner of 2025 by ending the winning streak of IDEALLKO at Catterick on Monday, the card also returning a double for Phil Kirby courtesy of ASA and ACHNAMARA.

THE BIG BREAKAWAY – how on earth is he only 10?! – came close to ending a 5-year losing streak when chasing home fellow old-timer LASKALIN in the North Wales National at Bangor, though the obvious one to take away from that meeting on Friday was Henry Daly’s LAGANHILL, who defied a penalty to maintain an unbeaten start to his career at the chief expense of MALINIFICENT, now qualified for handicaps for the Greatrex yard and one who I’d be keen to have on side if making the switch to such company beyond 2m.

And apologies to anyone on Tyneside whose Thursday afternoon was interrupted by the sound of trumpeting - hopefully a few readers added the James Walton-trained THAT ONE to their My Stable tracker after he was flagged in this column just after Christmas as one who’d make plenty of appeal when switched to a handicap.

He went and made a winning start switched to that company at the tasty price of 14/1 on Newcastle’s card, whilst DEMOISELLE KAP was given good mention in these parts last week after her Sedgefield success and followed up switched back to fences later that afternoon. I’ll just blame Nobby Solano for the racket.

https://m.skybet.com/horse-racing/haydock/handicap-chase-class-3-2m-3f-203y/35091333?aff=681&dcmp=SL_ED_RACING

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Haydock’s Grand National Trial perhaps diverts further from its title with each passing year (surely a modern National trial would be a 5-runner Grade 2 over 2m4f at Naas?) and realistically only 2 of those declared for the weekend’s feature handicap could be positive about their chances of making the cut at Aintree.

That’s the Venetia Williams-trained pair ROYALE PAGAILLE and FONTAINE COLLONGES, with the first-named Betfair Chase winner keeping half the field out of the weights on Saturday. Of course, he has an underwhelming effort in the Peter Marsh to put behind him, with Fontaine Collonges also needing to bounce back from a below-par display in the Welsh National. You could certainly make cases for both being a shade overpriced on the basis of their form at the track, but I’d be keenest on last year’s winner YEAH MAN to repeat the dose.

Gavin Cromwell’s eight-year-old has good races to make the frame in leading Irish handicaps this season, not beaten far into third in the Troytown and faring best of those ridden off the pace when fourth in a typically strong Thyestes last month. He’ll surly benefit from the additional half mile he’ll get this time and unlike Welsh National 1-2 VAL DANCER and JUBILEE EXPRESS, is able to race from his “proper” mark, so I’d be disappointed if Yeah Man didn’t find himself in the mix again.

The supporting card at Haydock includes a pair of long-distance Grade 2s; the similarly Grand National-bound BEAUPORT likely to take some beating if able to replicate his Long Walk third in the Rendlesham. DERRYHASSEN PADDY is already a firm favourite of this column and after a successful raid down South at Windsor last time and Lucinda Russell’s unbeaten novice is top-rated with Timeform in the Prestige Hurdle, with fellow Northern-trained youngsters BATTLE BORN LAD (Mark Walford) and JOECOOKER (Rebecca Menzies) retaining the all-important “p” for this step up in grade.

TOMMY COMBATS is declared again at Musselburgh on Sunday for Martin Todhunter, happily stepped back up to two and a half miles, whilst Carlisle could also play host to several improving types on Monday afternoon, chief amongst them BUTCH, who didn’t put a foot wrong to land a small-field event on his chase debut and very much appeals one who’ll feature prominently in top staying handicaps over fences next season.

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