Racing tips: Keep Sean on your side over 9f

This tip has expired. Please check our free horse racing tips section of the website to find the most up to date.

Thankfully, a couple of bookies were offering three places on the opener at Lingfield as that meant no money was lost on Walk In The Wild, who was severely outpaced on the drop back to 2m. The removal of the fences down the back straight didn't help, as it made it more of a speed test, and you saw that his stamina was kicking in towards the end as he rallied to get third. Still a poor effort, but no money lost.

Exeter 3:40 – Mr Vargo 11/2 (0.5pt EW, PaddyPower) Might be worth waiting till the morning for BOG as he is drifting

It seems a bit odd to have the Devonshire National just one day before the Eider Chase at Newcastle as I'm sure a couple of horses entered in the Newcastle race would've liked to have run in both of these, and Sidi Ismael has been entered in both, but I think he'll take his chance in this race. I've gone for a very unexposed and lightly raced horse for his age, and I'm hoping the step up to 3m 6f will see him flourish.

Mr Vargo is my selection for this race and he is trained by Mark Bradstock who has a very limited amount of horses over rules these days, and hasn't had a winner over jumps in 400+ days, but that doesn't mean he doesn't know how to train horses. Mark was the trainer of the great Coneygree who won the Gold Cup as a novice chaser quite a few years ago, so he knows what time of day it is, and I highly respect his decision with this horse to put him up to the marathon trip on just his second run over fences. He made a satisfactory return to racing on his chase debut, when he was quietly fancied on boxing day at Wincanton which saw him finish 3rd. He looked in need of the run but jumped nicely for a novice chaser and it left them with something to build on. The form looks solid enough for him to get involved in a race of this nature. The winner was running off a dangerous handicap mark with a 5lb claimer on board and the runner-up has won a race since.

The trip should be within reach, based on how he was running on testing ground as a hurdler a couple of years ago. He won a maiden handicap at Haydock on testing ground, beating Iniss Orr who has since proven himself as a thorough stayer by winning the Edinburgh National at Musselburgh a couple of weeks ago. Mr Vargo showed great determination that day and that characteristic alone is going to make him a big player for this race as he is a trier, and he's going to need to be a battler on today's ground.

The jockey booking of Ben Jones is a positive one. Ben has been riding out of his skin recently, and that has been joined by Ben Pauling who has been in tremendous form. Ben is riding with supreme confidence and I think he'll get a great tune out of Mr Vargo.

Meydan 3:50 – Sean 9/1 (0.5pt EW, PaddyPower 4pl)

Running over 9f is a bit of a rarity, but it should be perfect for Sean.

He finds 8f a bit too sharp for him and finds 10f a bit too far, so this is the sweet spot for Jamie Osbourne's runner, and this race looks to be the perfect place for him. He has been gifted a nice draw in stall 4, which should allow him to get a good position and not too far away from the pace.

Sean was 2nd in a Group 3 over 10f at this track last time out. He was carrying a 2lb penalty on that occasion, which was obviously not a help, and he was only headed in the final strides, so as I mentioned at the start, today's trip which 1f less should give him every chance of running a massive race if he gets a clear run through, which can often be difficult around this tight track.

Jamie Osbourne's horses have been running well at Meydan over the winter, and if they haven't been winning, they've been running extremely well in defeat. Obviously, in races like this, Charlie Appleby, William Buick and Godolphin are going to be difficult to beat as they are farming the winners over there at Meydan, but Buick's horse was a beaten favourite in this race last year and he is carrying a penalty, so Sean seemed the best bet in this race.

Horse Racing Tips

🔗 Share Your Horse Racing Tips on Social Media