I can take when a horse is backed in and doesn't win, but to see a horse backed into 4/5F from 2/1 and to run as badly as Alto Alto did is a bitter pill to swallow.
Chris Gordon's yard is normally mustard at landing gambles, but over the last couple of days, a couple of big gambles have gone down the drain.
Alto Alto got taken on for the lead, but I don't think you can use it as an excuse. The winner was the horse pressing Alto Alto, so if he was able to go the gallop, then why couldn't Alto Alto?
Jaccours also had good money on him, and he went off much shorter than the 15/8 tipped-up price. He was slow over his first few fences, but then jumped nicely. The horse got overconfident and made a huge mistake, which saw his petrol gauge empty instantly.
Not A Light 5/1 (1pt) – Catterick 4.00
The more I look at it, the more I fancy the chances of Not A Light.
I think Chasingouttheblues is probably too high in the weights, as is Heeztheboy. Horse racing maths doesn't always work out, but given that Heeztheboy thumped Paddy O'Mahler earlier in the season, he also has to be on a fairly tough mark if I think Heeztheboy is. Impatient is ultra inconsistent, and the Patrick Neville horse is unproven over the trip, which leaves me with Not A Light, who I fancied on form anyway.
I liked the run behind Major Fortune last time out. The winner has since finished as a runner-up to a horse who was clearly ahead of the handicapper, and the way Major Fortune moved through the race, he also looks like he will be ahead of the handicapper.
Not A Light is a very lightly raced chaser, with this being his third start over fences. It looked like he enjoyed the step up in trip last time out, so hopefully, he can go one better in a race which looks like a nice opportunity.
Nine Nine Nine 7/2 (1pt) – Leicester 2.50
When a horse has a record of two wins and numerous runner-up finishes like Nine Nine Nine, it's not ideal. However, I tipped him up last time out, and I thought he was mightily unlucky to bump into River Run Free, who seems to run big races at Leicester.
He was miles clear of the third-placed horse last time out, and if River Run Free runs at Leicester in the near future, I think he will win.
It's always a risk when a horse has seconditis like Nine Nine Nine, but from what I can see, I struggle to see a horse miles ahead of the handicapper. Ronnies Reflection beat Nine Nine Nine in this race last year, but my selection is better off at the weights and is more suited to this ground, as Ronnie likes it bottomless.
GambleAware