To walk away with at least one winner from the two selections on Friday was a step in the right direction.
Burrito was very impressive in the feature race at York. He made a decent bunch of handicappers look very ordinary. Despite carrying 10lb more than last time out, he showed he was levels above and won more comfortably than he did on his previous start.
Kind Of Kiss was from the same form line as Burrito, but he didn't manage to frank the form. I didn't like the ride Daniel Muscutt gave my selection. In my opinion, he had to settle him towards the rear and go for a late run. Instead, he went three wide and sat close to a strong pace, which wasn't the correct move.
For Saturday, today's racing looks very average. I think you'll struggle to find too many worse Saturdays than today in the entirety of the flat season. Because of this, I will not be getting too heavily involved.
Classic 10/3 (1pt) – Sandown 2.25
With a decent amount of rain likely to land in the early hours, it makes this race interesting. There are a fair few in this race that would appreciate a softer surface, including Theoryofeverything and Tribal Chief. My fancy, Classic won't mind a slightly slower surface, but his handicap mark was the main factor in my decision.
He is running off an official rating of 87, which gives him a very strong chance of showcasing his talents. Twelve months ago in this race, he was a neck second when running off a 5lb higher mark. Seeing that he returns for another crack at this race off a lower mark suggests this has been the plan for a little while. Ryan Moore is booked, which is a huge positive given that Pat Dobbs has been the main rider for this horse over the last year or so.
His comeback runs this year have been solid, with 3rd/14 and 4th/11 efforts setting him up for a tilt at avenging his defeat in this.
Gran Descans 15/2 (0.5pt EW) – Sandown 3.50
Colin Keane has started off life as the Juddmonte retained rider in good style, so this debutante was worth a shot.
This is a fairly tough maiden to make your debut in, but the pedigree of Gran Descans is very good. He is by Frankel and out of a dual Group 3 winning mare who has produced some decent horses. If he has a fraction of ability that his parents had, winning on debut is not out of the equation.
Colin could have gone to Chester to ride a 90-rated Juddmonte horse, but instead, he has gone to Sandown. He is riding two horses for his new employers, but I think he has come for the ride specifically on Gran Descans. The other Juddmonte horse doesn't look like anything special, whereas the pedigree of this lad leaves the impression he could be half-decent.
The only downside to backing Gran Descans is the form of Harry Charlton's yard, who hasn't had a winner in sixteen days.
GambleAware