Saturday’s Racing Tips – Grimaud should be too strong for his rivals at Gowran Park

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Rizz took a chance yesterday when tipping up two horses at bigger odds, but unfortunately, it wasn't to be for either of them. 

His main selection was the 50/1 shot Ardera Cross, who was eventually pulled up during the second half of his contest. Rizzel's other selection was Valadon, who was advised last night at 16/1. Valadon was backed into around 7/1 throughout the day but missed out on the placings by one after fading badly in the business end of the contest.

Before I get into Saturday's selections, I want to give you all an update on what will be happening next week in regards to this year's Cheltenham festival. I've bullet pointed below the type of threads that will be on offer each day for you to access on the page, and it will be slightly different from what has been on offer in previous years.

• The main thread will remain active with our main selections each day throughout the festival
• We will preview some of the main races throughout the festival in separate articles, Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle, Ryanair, and Stayers to name a few. These articles will include our main selection for that particular race as well as an eachway selection if possible.
• We will have a Lucky 15 thread for each of the four days during the festival. The Lucky 15 article will include selections at an eachway price, and it will be advised as an each-way bet.

Cairnzy's Tips

Grimaud 11/10 – Gowran Park 2.10

My first selection for Saturday is a tad short in terms of price, but I'll be disappointed if Grimaud is unable to see off his rivals and get off the mark over hurdles at the fourth attempt.

My selection has had three rattles over hurdles for trainer Gordon Elliot and despite not getting his head in front, he has shown enough in those contests to earn himself a very respectable OR of 123. His form over hurdles reads 332 to date but it's his most recent outing at Fairyhouse that I want to touch on as I feel the form of that particular contest is head and shoulders above anything else on offer within this field.

My selection finished second behind the Willie Mullins-trained Fishery Lane, and the form of that particular run looks by far the strongest on offer for this race. Grimaud was soundly beaten by Fishery Lane into second that day ( 4 and a half lengths ), but he made an error when jumping the last, which ultimately sealed his fate of ever properly challenging the eventual winner. I don't believe Grimaud was ever going to get past Fishery Lane that day, but had he jumped the last more fluently, the losing distance would have been a lot shorter in my opinion. Fishery Lane looks set to run in this year's Albert Barlett, a race that is expected to be won by another Willie Mullins horse in Final Demand. Fishery Lane is priced up at 25s at time of writing for that contest, but given connections feel he's worthy of an entry, you would assume the form of my selections second is strong enough on that evidence.

Jabaara 2/1 – Wolverhampton 3.20

There is a decent Listed contest at Wolverhampton on Saturday, and I thought I'd have a small wager on Roger Varian's Jabaara, who looks to have solid claims in what looks like a wide open affair.

The Varian yard has been up and down over the winter period, but he has turned a corner recently and is currently operating at 23% S/R with three winners from his last thirteen runners.

I thought his runner Jabaara was worth a chance in this contest and probably has fewer question marks to answer besides having a first run on the AW. Her recent form figures read 31121d, which includes a couple of wins in listed contests for fillies last summer, which saw her win at Carlisle and Musselburgh. My selection was no match next time out when soundly beaten by Porta Fortuna at Newmarket in the Group 1 Tatterstalls, but she bounced back next time out at Goodwood in a Group 3, which saw her hit the line in first place but lost the race in the stewards room.

My selection is a strong traveller of this advised distance of 7f and has a nice turn of foot when asked to lay down a challenge. Jabaara has a handy draw in stall one and should go well under jockey Jack Mitchell, who rode a winner for connections last time at Newcastle.

Offer of the day: Free bets up to £50 for new Star Sports customers

We might not have a tip on the Imperial Cup for you (although you can find one over in today's Lucky 15 column), but we do have a betting offer for you from our partners at Star Sports. They're rewarding new customers' bets on the Imperial Cup with a matched free bet of up to £50 to use on Day 1 of the Cheltenham Festival.

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Key Terms – New customers only. Only bets on Imperial Cup (14.25 Sandown) eligible. Matched Free Bet up to £50 on first qualifying selection. Win & E/W Bets qualify. Free Bet credited 10am 11/03/25 & expires after 7 days. Full T&Cs apply.

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