The pair of selections at Pontefract were horrendous, and neither covered themselves in glory.
Stormy Impact was the better of the two, but still, I thought I'd see her go close at the very least. She finished many lengths behind the winner, and I don't think she had any excuse. The winner came from a similar position, but had far more in the tank.
Andesite was awful from the start. He was too keen, and then chucked the towel in when it got physical between horses. There was a bit of hustle and bustle, but you could tell the horse didn't want anything to do with it, and that's why he finished in last place.
Dashing Dick 7/2 – Leicester 1.31
Class 6 races are not my strong point, but I will always have a look to see if anything jumps off the page. In this case, Dashing Dick was a horse I fancied taking a chance on.
His profile of no win in a long time and some high numbers would make you believe that Father Time has caught up to him, and at eight years of age, he's going to struggle. All of that could be true, but he hasn't been getting smashed in his races, and his handicap mark has started to drop significantly. To add to this, he is now running in a Class 6, when he has been racing in Class 4s for most of the season.
He is a course and distance winner, and last time out was his best run in a little while.
It is an apprentice race, which is my main concern.
Ruby Wedding 7/2 – Leicester 4.26
Solarize could be deemed a good price at 15/8, because he wins a lot of his races and is clearly progressing. The main issue if you were a supporter of his is that all of his runs have been on the AW. When a horse has a profile like that, I think taking them on, if you can find a solid alternative, has to be done.
Of the others in the field, I thought Ruby Wedding was being slightly overlooked. Prior to her last-place finish at Doncaster in a Class 2, she was progressing on every run. I think you can forgive a horse for one poor effort, especially when they have been consistent for the whole season.
Her RPRs were up on every run until last time out, which is a positive sign. She has won two races, both of which were in filly-only races, but her second to Glory Road at Newcastle was a solid run against the males. That horse has since won, and when you look at the weights in the race, and the fact that Alfie Redman removes 7lbs on Ruby Wedding, she is an attractive bet.
GambleAware