Andrew Asquith provides an overview of the key things to note on the racing front on Sunday.
Yealand can land a hat-trick
The Racing Post Go North Monet’s Garden Series Final Handicap Chase (15:55) isn’t the strongest race for the grade and progressive novice Yealand is taken to complete a hat-trick.
He was well supported to make a winning start over fences at Doncaster in December, showing the benefit of his reappearance run to win with a bit in hand. Yealand bumped into a course specialist at Sedgefield next time, and didn’t get the smoothest run back at Doncaster after, but proved better than ever when resuming winning ways at Newcastle last month.
The winning margin was just a short head on that occasion, but he did very well to run down the front-running second to again justify market support. The front two pulled clear of the remainder on that occasion, too, so a subsequent 3lb rise looks lenient on the face of it.
He had a walk over at Haydock on Wednesday and there remains an air of untapped potential about him for a yard having their best season for a while.
De Bromhead in excellent form
Henry de Bromhead had another excellent Cheltenham Festival with two winners, notably with Bob Olinger winning the Stayers’ Hurdle, and on Timeform’s scale, there isn’t a National Hunt trainer in better form at present.
His horses are running to form 65% of the time in the month of March and he has several chances at Limerick on Sunday, but the best is perhaps with Harry des Ongrais in the Hugh McMahon Memorial Novice Chase (16:03).
He was a useful hurdler in the 2022/23 season but clearly had a setback and started 40/1 for his return from 21 months off on his chasing debut at Fairyhouse in January, shaping encouragingly over an inadequate trip.
Harry des Ongrais showed the benefit of that outing when opening his account in this sphere despite being easy to back at Gowran last month, jumping well and finding plenty in the closing stages.
He has already surpassed his hurdles form after just two starts over fences and this step up to three miles promises to suit. He can take this step up in class in his stride before moving on to even better things.
Alexander bidding for more success in veterans’ handicap chase
Nick Alexander won the Racing Post Veterans’ Handicap Chase (16:30) with Elvis Mail and he appears to have another excellent chance with Dubai Days in this year’s renewal.
He won a two and a half mile handicap chase at Ayr around this time last year and he was probably given a bit too much to do on his first foray into veterans’ company on his final start last season.
Dubai Days hasn’t got an especially good record when fresh, but he looked fit and well beforehand, and ran right up to form to resume winning ways on his return from 11 months off at Haydock five weeks ago.
He wasn’t fancied in the betting, but impressed with his attitude to deny the runner-up who had the run of the race, on terms jumping two from home and edging ahead on the run-in.
Dubai Days’ consistency is hard to knock and, following just a 3lb rise in the weights, he seems sure to launch another bold bid.
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