It was a mixed day for the final day of the Grand National Festival.
Hold The Serve was well-supported, but didn't see the trip out. We were beaten by Wade Out, who I gave a strong mention to, but Sean Bowen opted for the Hold The Serve.
Bossman Jack won easily after not jumping the greatest.
Lookaway ran a corker of a race, but bumped into one who was layed out for the race.
Jingko Blue couldn't have put in a worse round of jumping if he tried. With a clear round, he finishes in the runner-up spot, at the very least.
Final Orders would have preferred if the showers during the afternoon didn't turn up. He got hampered on at least two occasions, but managed to run well. He missed the places by one.
Rlasthope 7/1 (1pt) – Musselburgh 3.45
I am avoiding the flat racing as much as I can, but when odds of 7/1 are floating around for a juvenile who finished fifth in the Brocklesby, I have to take them.
It's understandable why Adonius is the favourite for this contest, but being the price he is seems a bit mental. It looks like he won an egg and spoon race last time out, and carrying a penalty for today's race makes it difficult. Penny Arcade is going to be fancied in the market, as she is trained by Karl Burke, arguably the best trainer of a juvenile in the UK.
In my opinion, Rlasthope should be at least half the price he is, if not shorter. The Brocklesby is normally a great indicator of form for the first month of the flat season, and I thought he ran with plenty of credit. He was a tad keen in the early stages, then began to make his move, but was then hampered when hitting top stride. He finished fifth, and I thought it was a respectable effort.
With that experience under his belt, I can see him stepping forward again and being a huge danger to Adonius.
Manhattan Valley 15/2 (1pt) – Ffos Las 4.20
In a race where not many offer great credentials for winning purposes, Manhattan Valley is worth a shot.
It does pain me that Christian Williams is the trainer, as I never get on the right side of his horses or gambles. However, on this horse's first chase start and handicap debut, I think we can take a chance. The odds haven't disappeared yet, which normally happens and makes his horses less attractive.
Like many horses who transition to fences quickly, his form is very bad. The odds of his previous starts have been 150/1 x 2, 100/1 and 300/1. The pieces of form to focus on is his final two PTP starts. He managed to win his final race between the flags, beating Kap Vert, who is 129 rated over fences. His sixth-place effort on his run before the win is a strong piece of form, and finishing where he did isn't a bad thing.
Fortune De Mer was second (134 rated hurdler). Largy Belter was fourth (138 rated chaser).
As always, when backing horses from this yard, keep an eye on the market, and then you can make an educated decision on whether to back him or not.
Vision De Maine 13/2 (1pt) – Ffos Las 4.50
If Vision De Maine was going to bounce back to form, today is probably going to be the day, so odds of 13/2 are fine by me.
He has not been in the greatest form this season, but did start it off with a solid third-placed effort in a better race at Ascot. For whatever reason, it hasn't gone to plan, but his handicap mark has dropped to 1lb below when he was 2nd to Aworkinprogress at Lingfield in 2024. The winner of that race progressed massively since then, and that was this horse's best RPR.
Soft ground is ideal for him, and I think the drop to a Class 5 is going to be the difference. I think this is a fairly solid Class 5, but if Vision De Maine can bounce back to form, he is a huge player. Jack Tudor keeps the faith over the enigma River Run Free.
GambleAware