Racing Tips – Marcella Looks A Good Bet At Goodwood

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

Castle Way was my only selection for Friday as Lark In The Mornin was announced as a non-runner. Castle Way ran a stinker, however he wasn't the only horse in the race to run below par. Hollie Doyle dictated the race from start to finish on Outbox who returned at a price of 50/1!

It says a lot about the form of the race when the young and upcoming sorts are turned over by a 9-year-old at 50/1. If you had given me two weeks to study it, I couldn't have called the winner of that race.

Marcella 8/1 EW – Goodwood 14:05

I'm quietly confident on Marcella in this race and I can't complain about the generous price of 8/1 that's on offer with most bookmakers at time of writing.

The Andrew Balding yard is currently in great form, and his relatively low-rated filly Marcella comes into this race with a nice chance, in my opinion.

The ground at Goodwood is currently good to soft, but with forecast rain due overnight, it could become more so. For the reason just mentioned, finding a horse who handles these ground conditions is vital, and Marcella ticks that box for me.

She comes from a German family that tends to run well on testing conditions. She has also been very lightly raced in her career (only four times), with one of those runs resulting in a victory on soft ground at Chester last year.

She contests this race as a three-year-old, meaning she receives the 13lb age allowance, therefore, allowing her to run off a featherweight in this contest.

She made a nice return to action last month when finishing second at Kempton behind Devoted Queen. She only went down by a neck that day after storming home in the later stages. That was a great effort, and given that Devoted Queen holds entries for bigger races in the future (Coronation stakes at Ascot in June), I think that's a nice piece of form to take into this contest.

Racingbreaks Ryder 13/2 – Thirsk 14:40

Racingbreaks Ryder surely comes here with a massive chance, given that he is now nine pounds lower than his highest rating last year. His form went off the boil towards the end of the flat season last year, but he was bang in form this time last year when stringing off a hat-trick of wins over distances from 7f to the extended mile.

Trainer Charlie Hill doesn't tend to send many runners to Thirsk, but when he does, he normally fires well, with a 31% strike rate to date with 10 winners from 31 runs.

Racingbreak Ryder was gelded over the winter and made a decent return to the track at Newbury last month when finishing mid-pack in the Spring Cup.

Haatem 28/1 EW – Newmarket 15:35 (2000 Guineas)

It may seem a bit silly to start a write-up talking about another horse rather than the one you've just selected, but I do strongly fancy the current favourite, City Of Troy, to win this race. I fully expect Ryan Moore to jump out from stall two, go forward, and do things simple.

I've chosen to go down the route of trying to find an each-way angle into this race, and after going through the field, my eye was continually drawn back to Haatem.

Haatem is trained by Richard Hannon who has a good record in this race. There's no doubting his main runner is Rosalion who at first I was tempted by to take on City Of Troy but decided against him in the end.

He did some excellent work as a juvenile, winning three of his four outings. However, he disappointed at Doncaster last time, which is why I chose to stay clear.

My selection, Haatem, hasn't done much wrong in his career. He won the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood on good to soft ground over 7f, and his reappearance run a couple of weeks ago resulted in a victory in the Group 3 Craven Stakes, reversing the form with the Gosden-trained Eben Shaddad.

Bet365 is only offering the three places, which is a shame. They tend to throw In an extra place here and there on bigger races, but regardless, I'll have a small each-way play for the interest.

Kargese 13/8 – Punchestown 4:50

I'll be glad to see Punchestown back, as it's hit me for 6 since the festival started during the week. Friday's selection, Lark In The Mornin, was a non-runner, so this will be my last throw of the dice to land a winner here.

My play in this race is Kargese, who, on form, is the one they all have to beat. I've two slight concerns with her, one being the fact she has had a busy enough campaign this season, contesting in some tough races.

The other concern was she tended to run quite free. If Paul Townsend can settle her in this race I think she'll take all the beating.

She has been beaten twice in the last two weeks by two high-class performers, Majborough and Sir Gino, when finishing second in both the Triumph Hurdle and a grade one at Aintree. There is no shame in losing to Sir Gino. I tipped him up at Aintree to cement his place as the best young hurdler in the country, and he prevailed pretty easily in the end.

I think Kargese will be bang there even if she doesn't settle. Last time, when running free, she only went down by three and a half lengths to Sir Gino. Regardless, you don't want your selection blowing out when going into the business end, so I'm hoping Townsend can get her travelling throughout.

Horse Racing Tips

🔗 Share Your Horse Racing Tips on Social Media