Friday’s Racing Tips – Hopefully, Sam Coltherd has found the right time to pounce with Findthetime

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It was a shame to see my good run of form end with the two selections at Warwick on Thursday.

Newtonian was quite well-supported, going off more than half the price he was advised at. However, if you watched the race, you knew your fate as soon as the starter's flag fell. He was instantly rousted along under Cameron Iles, and the horse looked very laboured throughout. He did make a bit of ground down the backstraight on the final circuit, but he simply wasn't at the races and had to settle for 7th/11.

Zmiinyi potentially needed the run in his race. He wasn't given the best of rides, as Tom Bellamy decided to track the leader, but sat to the right of him, which is a perfectly fine position to be in unless the leader jumps out to the right, which he did at every fence.

That inconvenience didn't help Zmiinyi, who corkscrewed a fair few fences because of the leader, but he looked a tired horse when he was in contention with two other horses jumping the last three fences. He weakened after two out and will be one to keep an eye on during the spring months on good ground now that he has had a recent run.

Rizzel's tips

Findthetime 12/1 EW – Wetherby 3.00

The flat season is nearly upon us, but for the time being, the jumps racing is still what I'm betting on.

I'm not a huge fan of the racing we have on offer for Friday, but I did think Findthetime was worth a few quid at a big price in the hopes that he can return to form. This race market will be dominated by the horses arriving with wins next to their names, and rightly so, you're only as good as your last race, but sometimes I think it is worth having a dabble on a horse who would win this if returning to form and that's why I've gone for Findthetime.

Hopefully, Findthetime will not be in father time's hands, and that he can produce a performance that he has done in the past, even at the start of this season. Wetherby seems to be Findthetime's happy hunting ground; his best form, especially in recent years, has come at Wetherby, so it's nice to see him returning to this track. His handicap mark has been tumbling ever since he moved to Stuart Coltherd's yard, but he kickstarted his season with a decent effort at Wetherby in a Class 3 race over a trip which might be too far for him these days.

He finished 4th/5, 9L behind the winner, but the winner that day was so well-handicapped when you see that he had a 10lb claimer on board. The time before that, he finished 2nd of six over 2m at Hexham off a mark of 120. He has won off 122 and 119 over fences, both arguably lower as a 5lb claimer was on board on both occasions, but even with that, he is running off a mark of 108, so is handicapped to turn it around at some point, and I think the return to Wetherby, the drop back to 2m on decent ground could be the catalyst for his return to the winner's enclosure.

I will say, watch the market. Whenever backing horses like this in races which aren't worth too much, the market is normally the best indicator of how a horse is going to run. That doesn't mean he can't win at big odds, but generally, if the yard is confident, the money will be down. I'd recommend, if you are following me, play small stakes and get on in the morning where you can see how the market has settled.

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