I didn't get time to watch the races back yesterday, but I saw that both selections finished in second place.
Bear Rock went down by a nose, so that was a tad unfortunate, and the other selection was comfortably beaten.
Stressfree 5/1 (1pt) – York 2.10
It could be foolish to side with Stressfree on good to firm ground, as most of his form has come on a slower surface, but I thought his two recent runs to start this new season have been encouraging.
His two recent starts on turf have both been over 10f on good ground, and he handled those conditions with ease, even though he didn't manage to get the win. He was staying on strongly in both of those races, but mainly the Doncaster race, so the return to this trip could be what he needs at this moment in his career. I don't think he's got 10lbs + in his favour with his battle with the handicapper, but I do think he can win a race like this against this field at this trip, which he is still unexposed at. He seems to be improving at the age of five, and his second-to-last run was a career best on Racing Post figures, and he was a big eye-catcher during that race.
David O'Meara is normally very good at target training for races like this, especially at York, as it is one of his more local tracks. We see it every season when he wins races like this, and given his horse is racefit, I think he will be going close under Danny Tudhope.
Masekela 14/1 (1pt EW, 4pl) – York 5.25
I was annoyed when Masekela didn't get the job done when I tipped him up in a Lucky 15 bet the other week, as he should have definitely won that race, but he is a monkey and has a mind of his own, so it wasn't a total surprise.
Despite him doing me dirty and not going through to get the win at Hamilton, I do believe it is a matter of time before he finds himself winning a race, and that even counts in today's race, which is a stronger race than last time out. He was a horse rated in the 100s a couple of seasons ago, so off a mark of 68 should be something he will be winning off if it's not this race, one in the near future, and his recent form would back this up.
He has been unlucky so far this season as races haven't been run to suit, or he hasn't got the gaps at the right time. Last time out, he had his best chance of winning, and he didn't quite stay on as strong as I and many others hoped. The money was down for him last time out, which is normally a huge factor for Tim Easterby runners, so they will be out to avenge that and the money they lost when he finished as runner-up ten days ago.
GambleAware