Hi,
Please see below my three tips for Tuesday’s racing:
Wick Green – 4.10 Exeter – 3 Mile Handicap Chase – 15/2 Ladbrokes, Coral, 888 (best priced 9/1) – BOG – 1 Point Each Way.
This 7 runner handicap chase is being run on good to firm, probably the fastest ground encountered in any race this year.
The winning horse will need to relish these quick conditions, and the favourite St Agustin does fit the bill, especially after winning last time out. However, he sits at 5/4 and has been a beaten favourite on a number of occasions so is worth taking on.
The one I like is Wick Green, he has been a prolific Point to Point winner of five races from nine starts, all on fast ground.
He came under rules and won a hunters chase at this very meeting last year, then followed up by winning a November 2021 3 mile handicap chase off a mark of 109.
His strong preference for fast ground meant he had a break over the winter, and he returned to action near the end of February on good/soft ground.
That looked a nice seasonal pipe-opener and a good prep for today’s race.
The fact he won on this card is significant to his chances today, especially off a mark of 107, some 2lb below his last winning mark.
The amateur rider Mr. P Mason is in the plate today, and the 7lb claimer is a good booking as he has won on Wick Green six times.
It all adds up to a good bet, and at 17/2 with Ladbrokes, Coral, and Boyles, who all offer BOG, then I’m recommending a 1 point each way.
He is still value at 6/1.
The Wild Wild Seas – 5.05 Southwell – 2m 3.5F Handicap Hurdle – 11/1 Ladbrokes, Coral, Boyles, BOG – 4 Places – 1 Point Each-Way
The 6-year-old mare is very lightly raced. She showed ability in three National Hunt flat races postmarking 95 twice.
She looks very much a handicap project having three low-key runs in 2-mile maiden hurdles and only postmarked a high of 78.
This allowed her a lowly opening handicap mark of 77.
It was interesting that connections then went for a wind operation, indicating there was an issue affecting her maiden runs.
On her handicap debut over 2 miles, she ran with promise but was outpaced half a mile out before staying on under tender handling. This run will have given her confidence in her breathing and bodes well for today’s race.
That handicap debut was going right-handed, and it really didn’t suit as she was awkward running into the hurdles and lugged out to her right. She will definitely appreciate Southwell’s left-handed configuration.
The step up to 2 and a half miles also looks sure to suit The Wild Wild Seas and considering her NH flat postmarks of 95, she looks to have plenty of scope off a mark of just 73.
She is currently 11/1 with Ladbrokes, Coral, and Boyles, who offer BOG and we can get 4 places in this 14 runner field.
She is still value at 8/1 but that would be on a win-only basis.
Iberia – 2.40 Pontefract – 1m 2F Handicap – 66/1 Sky, Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook – 4 Places – 1 Point Each Way.
Iberia was originally trained by the mighty Aiden O’Brien, and he thought him good enough to travel over to the Group 2 Royal Lodge at Newmarket where he came a close third (postmarking 108). This was followed up with second in a 7F Grade 3 on soft/heavy going (postmarking 101).
As a three-year-old he was stepped up to 1m 2F in a Group 3, finishing third, before running down the field in the Irish Derby.
Iberia was sold on to Irish jumping connections and had four runs in a juvenile campaign which saw him win a race and postmark a respectable 115 (Irish), before being sold on to UK connections.
After a year on the side-lines, he returned to action recently in a 1m 4F all-weather handicap off 97, where he pulled hard in midfield off a slow pace, before being sent to the front 6f out. He looked to blow up and faded in the home straight, but still postmarked a respectable 89.
That was a nice pipe-opener to the season, and if he comes on for that run, he should be thereabouts off a mark of 94, especially now connections have dropped him back to a more favourable 1m 2F.
Going back on turf is a definite plus and the soft ground will hold no fears for him.
His trainer Gary Hanmer is in a rich run of form with 2 wins and 2 seconds in his last 5 starts (the other was a faller), and today’s jockey, Jason Watson, was in the plate for the flat second place yesterday (the rest were over jumps).
I think Iberia looks massively overpriced at 66/1 with Sky, Paddy Power and Betfair Sportsbook and I recommend 1 point each way.
He is still value at 25/1.
