Cairnzy reached out and offered to cover Monday's racing. Rizzel will return tomorrow evening with his selections for Tuesday.
Rizz had one selection on Sunday, Diplomatic Ash. I watched the race live, and I have to say I found the ride by jockey Tom Cannon quite unusual. The winner and the runner-up went off very fast at the front, and the race quickly turned into a two-horse contest.
I expected Tom to at least try to close the gap, but he seemed to let the leaders get on with it and was never really involved. The horse didn't exactly jump well throughout, which didn't help. If the plan was to let them tire each other out and pick up the pieces late, it didn’t work—the winner won comfortably in the end.
Mehmas Engine 7/4 – Kempton 2.10
The horse I liked the look of earlier on was Mehmas Engine in the 2.10 at Kempton. Flat racing throws up all kinds of wacky results, but it is definitely more regular at the start of the season, with horses making their returns to racing and progressing throughout their time away from the track.
Only five go to post for this contest, but I think the market has it bang on with the top two in the market being the two horses I personally focused on.
Mehmas Engine was a beaten favourite on debut at Southwell over 5f under jockey Hector Crouch. The James Tate-trained filly had to settle for third place on that occasion, but I don't think the finishing positions tells the whole story. Jockey Hector Crouch had to change positions for a clear run, which cost him some momentum when making his challenge down the straight. Given a clearer passage, she definitely would have gone a lot closer ( beaten by 2L ).
Connections have opted to step her up a furlong, which I agree should unlock a bit more improvement. Furthermore, my selection receives some weight from her rivals, particularly Barefoot Beach, who, on paper, looks the most likely danger.
The form of my selections' debut contest itself looks okay, with the fourth-placed horse winning next time out, and the winner being a decent sort now rated in the low 80's. Rossa Ryan takes over from Hector Crouch in the saddle for this contest. Rossa is one of my favourite flat jockeys, and he is a more than capable operator.
GambleAware