Thankfully, Kamille Au Kanada saved the day after Sherborne was horrendous in the opener at Huntingdon.
I didn't expect the market drift on Sherborne, but it told the story before it even started. He jumped awfully and never got into a rhythm. There wasn't a point in the race where I thought he could have won, and I'd be wary backing him moving forward.
On the other hand, Kamille Au Kanada put in a cracking performance. Her jumping was extremely economical, brushing the top of the hurdles, which is always risky but she got away with it. She didn't have to be pushed out, and won in a canter.
Broomfields Cave 15/8 – Bangor-on-Dee 1.30
I whittled this race down to just the favourite, but I don't think it'll be an easy race for him to win. I thought that the second favourite (First Confession) doesn't have the strongest form, and he is on a high enough handicap mark. Jupiter Allen gets on better on a much slower surface, and the other two just don't appeal to me for one reason or another. In my opinion, Broomfields Cave is the most solid option, and if he arrives fit and ready, he deserves to be the favourite.
The consistent performances from Broomfields Cave on good/good to soft ground are very appealing. His form figures on this surface read 21113, which is a much better strike rate and level of consistency than the others in this race.
Neil Mulholland is in good form at the moment, which makes it a good time for this horse to return to the track whilst his stable is finding plenty of winners.
Largy Force 11/8 – Warwick 1.20
If Largy Force were racing off level weights for this race, I could see why she could be beaten, but on these terms, it's going to be a tough ask to beat her on Wednesday.
She is clearly a better chaser than a hurdler, but I think it's too soon to write her off over hurdles. She has only run three times over hurdles, and all three of those runs were when she was previously trained by Warren Greatrex, and you don't always see the true potential in qualifying runs for a handicap mark.
She has become a solid handicap chaser and is currently rated 127. Given she is running against much lower-level opposition than what she competes against over fences, and they are giving her at least 6lbs in weight, it seems a bit odd to see the price of 11/8.
GambleAware