Racing tips: The well handicapped Angel Of Harlem will appreciate a return to Market Rasen

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It's easy, but annoying, to say that the two selections from the past two days have been nothing short of embarrassing. They have under performed by a country mile, and it's hard to suggest what the reasons were. Yesterday's selection was beaten down the back straight, which was extremely odd, as you'd think that is far too soon for a horse who has shown a decent level of form from his one run to date. 

Market Rasen 2:10

I'm a little bit surprised to see my fancy in this race being favourite, as I didn't expect to see her at those prices, and was probably expecting her to be the biggest priced of the field. Despite the prices, I think HAWTHORN COTTAGE could be a tough nut to crack in this four runner chase.

This mare generally runs to form, even though the numbers next to her form-line don't suggest that, 9/10 she will run her heart out and is consistent. It's clear to see her best form has come on a surface which is drying, so thankfully there is no forecast rain at Market Rasen, so the current ground of Good-To-Soft could potentially be Good, with GTS in places come the time of the race, which will be close to perfect. You know what you'll get from this mare, she is a front running horse who loves to jumps a fence. Lucy Turner takes the ride today, taking off a handy 5lbs, and if Lucy can bounce out and make all, she could be tough to reel back once getting into a good rhythm. Grand Turina has ran from the front in the past, but I'd imagine he'd get the instruction of letting our selection take the lead and don't get into a pace battle. Hawthorn Cottage is currently 1lb higher than her last winning mark, but with the riders' claim, she is 4lb lower, where she romped home at Kempton by 12L.

The others in the race look to appreciate a little more cut in the ground, so the fact our mare handles it better than the rest, is surely a good sign.

Market Rasen 3:55

I'm going to take a chance on ANGEL OF HARLEM, who will have to show he's ready on the back of an 80 day break, and will also have to prove he is back to form, as he has been in no form whatsoever.

There's very little reason to believe this lad could bounce back to form if you looked at the bare figures of his form, but there are reasons to believe he could be primed for a big run today. This horse has produced some decent RPRs in his career to date, so he has had the ability to run well, which has come on conditions like today's ground, which is a positive. Though that is great, it's not the reason why I'm interested in backing him, it's because of his course record. He is 3/4 when running at Market Rasen over hurdles, with his only visit where he didn't win, he finished runner-up. This track brings the best out of him, so the fact they've returned to this track, after a layoff, and on the back of some pretty shoddy runs, suggest they have him spot-on for this. Due to his poor runs, he has been dropped 12lbs by the handicapper, which puts him 13lbs lower than his last win over hurdles, which was at…Market Rasen. The fact he has to carry top weight isn't ideal, but the fact he gets Adrian Heskin doing the steering, also catches the eye. Adrian has decided to come to Market Rasen for the one ride, which breathes confidence.

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