Unfortunately, my 2pt NAP of the day wasn't able to showcase her ability as Fakenham was abandoned yet again. Jockeys were saying the surface was slippy, which is not for the first time around this track, and they came to the decision that the track was not safe to race on. It's obviously a pain, but safety is paramount and we don't need any more casualties from horses or jockeys in this game, as it is already under the microscope from activists etc.
That left us with two runners, which saw us come away with a winner with the David Pipe chase debutante being backed off the boards into 13/8F from an advised price of 4/1. He jumped brilliantly and managed to fend off the strongly fancied runner-up, with the third and others being miles behind.
Rizzel's Tips
Al Nayir w/o Kyprios 5/2 – Ascot 1.20
If you're into backing horses at short prices, Kyprios is probably still at a very backable price of around 5/6. He is the best horse in the race and should win this race based on how well he has been running this year. I have tried to take him on a couple of occasions, but it didn't quite work out. Instead, I'm going for Al Nayir without a favourite market.
In my opinion, Al Nayir looks the most solid horse to finish as runner-up on today's ground which is soft and it will get even softer. He hasn't had many runs for Tom Clover since coming over from Germany, but he has run well on both racecourse visits. He came from miles off the pace at York in a race I stuck Vauban up in, and with an extra furlong, it would've been close between the pair. Last time out at Newmarket on soft ground he made mincemeat of that field and showed his liking towards testing ground.
I'm fairly confident that the other horses in this race do not like ground this testing, and can be taken on in this market. The ones who don't mind the ground shouldn't be good enough to finish second to Kyprios. I would like to have a crack against Kyprios as I do think he prefers a much quicker surface and for some reason, the Ascot Champions meeting loves to throw up surprises each year, but I'm going to play the safer option.
Bopedro 12/1 EW (5pl) – Ascot 4.35
It's probably not the smartest of ideas to have a bet in a handicap this competitive, but I am a sucker for a David O'Meara horse in races like this and Bopedro stuck out like this race is the one he has been lined up for, for quite a while.
Obviously, Bopedro won't be the only runner in the race who has been aimed at this race for some time, as this is Champions Day at Ascot, with some big prize money on the line, but David O'Meara is mustard in these types of races, including this one in recent years. In the last ten years, David has managed to land this race three times, as well as having horses going close and being in the places, including Bopedro last year. What is an interesting angle is that every winner that David O'Meara has had in this race, they have raced a fortnight before in the 7f race at Ascot, which is what Bopedro ran fourteen days ago. David's other horse Mirsky also ran in that race and was a couple of places behind Bopedro, so has to be a player in this, but Danny Tudhope has decided to not ride for his employers (Clipper Logistics) and ride Thunder Run, and has opted for Bopedro. Going off Danny's riding weight in the last year, he has ridden off 8st 11lbs in the last 12 months so he could've ridden Mirsky, but has chosen to go for Bopedro, so you'd like to think that this is the O'Meara horse to be on.
The ground should not be an issue for this horse, he has run well on every type of ground, so the rain which is on the way will not be an issue for him and he is on an attractive mark of 96 given he won off 98 last year and was 4th/20 in this race last year off 102, as well as finishing 3rd/34 in the Cambridgeshire last year off 102.
Aworkinprogress 4/1 – Stratford 5.20
I am always very wary of backing JP McManus horses as we all know he is a gambling man, and it is normally best to wait before the off and see if the money arrives as then you know what chance the horse has, but I'm going to play him anyway as this isn't a strong race and he could make a mockery of his mark of 96 on his first chase start.
He was hardly pulling up stumps in his hurdling races before he stepped up in trip last time out at Fontwell. He clearly enjoyed the deep ground and the extra yardage, winning a Class 4, beating a Venetia Williams horse who was arriving to that race with wins under his belt and was an odds-on shot so that rates as the best form in this race by quite a distance. Obviously, Aworkinprogress will have to lumber 12 stone around Stratford on ground which will be classed as heavy come the time of racing, which isn't going to be an easy task, but as I've already mentioned, this race is littered with horses who aren't that good. The fact he showed a liking to the testing ground last time out gives me plenty of optimism that he should be fine on today's surface.
Nick Gifford hasn't sent many runners out from the start of the season, so it's hard to comment on whether the time away from the track will be a problem as we have no other runners to bounce it off. I'm happy enough to take a chance, but if he is weak in the market then I know my fate before it has even started.
In December 2020 we sadly 
