Monday’s Nap of the Day: Haku to have it his own way at Wolverhampton

Sunday’s Nap was a non runner. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. We move onto Monday and the start of a new week. Here goes. 

I’m going nice and early with Monday’s Nap, which doesn’t run until the evening at Wolverhampton, so we’ve got a bit of a wait, but at early odds of 6/1, the mount of Hollie Doyle is hard to resist. 

I’m happy to put it out there, at the risk of looking a bit silly (not for the first time), and say that I can’t really see odds of 6/1 holding up. Most books are already shorter, so if you can, get it in early and take the 6/1 that’s on offer at bet365 (at the time of writing). 

The five-year-old didn’t really sparkle when finishing down the field at Kempton a month ago, but that was his first race for 119 days, while it was in Class 3 company too. Back in a Class 4 race, with that effort under his belt, he could get much more competitive. 

His course and distance form is hard to ignore

Not only does the step back into Class 4 company, from his previous winning mark, catch the eye, but the return to Wolverhampton cannot be ignored either. 

In fact, Loughane’s choice to send this one back to Wolves must go down as a chunky positive. He’s won three of his previous five races at the all-weather venue, winning three (and placing) out of four over course and distance. 

When we last saw him at West Midlands track, back in March, he finished second in a Class 2. A month before that, he won a slightly better Class 4 than this, beating one of the rivals that re-opposes him here.

The likely pace angle of this race should suit, while he ranks very highly in terms of relevant speed ratings too. The booking of Hollie Doyle is not negative either. 

As those who’ve read this column a few times will know, I’m generally looking for horses that tick more boxes than the early odds suggest, as horses that do typically represent very good bets as far as I’m concerned. 

Frankly, this is a horse that has done more than enough to warrant odds that are considerably shorter than 6/1. Put it this way, if he goes off as the 3/1 favourite, then I’d say that’s about right. 

Based on a £10 level-stakes example, the Nap of the Day running profit is +£39.00 (since switching to being published here (10/09/2024) rather than on the ‘Nap of the Day' page).

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