Racing tips: Cherry will blossom on debut in a weak Listed race at Naas

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When a horse gets beat fair and square and there are no excuses then it is what it is, I simply picked the wrong horse, so I can't moan about Gone yesterday at Musselburgh. She got the lead which I anticipated, Joe Fanning wasn't pestered on the front end and it just looks like the horse is probably in the grips of the handicapper now.

Naas 5:15 – Cherry Blossom 3/1 (1pt)

This looks like a very weak Class 1 race, with the favourite looking to be the main horse to beat based on her good debut run over today's C&D, but I wouldn't say that she looked amazing and I think you can take a chance on the newcomer from Ballydoyle, Cherry Blossom.

It's not out of the ordinary to see Aidan chuck a newcomer into a Class 1 race on debut, but I think that he does like to use the normal route of maidens/novice races before going into Stakes class. So the fact he has opted against that with Cherry Blossom suggests she's a very straightforward filly who has been showing plenty of ability at home. It's easy for Aidan and his team to assess the level she is running at as she will be running against many classy horses from that stable from the younger to the older horses, so they will have a gauge of how good she is, and if they think she is ready for a Class 1 race on debut then who are we to doubt the master trainer that is Aidan O'Brien.

At the current odds of 3/1 I think she is definitely worth a bet, as I was expecting much shorter with Ryan Moore coming over for the ride and it not appearing to be a red-hot race.

Catterick 3:55 – Vallamorey 8/1 (1pt, if you're quick enough and have an account BetUK is 18/1)

I think the easy horse to pick in this race is the Ralph Beckett 3yo trained, Feud, as she has the typical progressive profile, is a 3yo and will have more to come, but the one I like is Vallamorey.

one of the bigger outsiders of the field is my selection and I think she deserves another chance now she is tackling soft ground, having run on a quicker surface and on the AW the two times after her surprise, but impressive win at Doncaster over 10f. She was so good at Doncaster on soft ground, she beat an inform horse who has continued to run well in defeat in some decent handicaps around this level, and the horses in behind who were miles back have run well since. The win at Doncaster came as a surprise to many, probably to the trainer and owner as she won at 22/1, but it looks clear as day that she relishes soft ground as that run was head and shoulders above anything she had previously shown.

It is a big ask giving away the weight to the younger horse, which isn't any weight on paper as they run off just 1lb more, but she is 10lb inferior to the favourite due to the weight-for-age allowances the younger horses get, but we see it time and time again that these older horses are capable of running big races when on paper they shouldn't with the weight disadvantages, and I think with the soft ground and further rain to fall she is definitely the value in this race.

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