Four meetings and fourteen picks today, and the shape of the card is unusual. Goodwood is where the eyes go, but Redcar is where we have the most to say. Five picks up north, all of them in the sort of price range where a couple landing pays for the day.
Redcar on fast ground is a track that rewards horses who already have the surface on their record, and that is exactly what we have gone looking for. Optician at 3:15 is the one we keep coming back to. He did more last time than fifth place suggests, and stall five gives him the run of the race here. He has the trip and the quick ground on his card, and Jack Nicholls knows every yard of Redcar. Later on the card, Tees George in the 4:50 has shown the best recent speed in the field and quick ground is what his record wants. A winner five starts back, third two starts back, and he arrives fit off an 11 day turnaround. Star Material, Borjina and Dolly’s Delight fill out the meeting, all in the 6.0 to 7.5 bracket where each way covers a lot of ground.
Goodwood is the opposite kind of day. Bow Echo at 4:10 is the short one, a 3 point win bet and the strongest single position on the card. Around that we are happy to take big prices. Royal Velvet, Expert Agent and Superposition are all 19.0 or bigger and all going in small each way, which is the honest way to play a Goodwood field of that quality. You are not going to talk your way into value at short odds there. You either take the price or leave the race alone.
Leicester in the evening gives us the pick we like best on pure market grounds. Pretty Little Baby at 4.5 is simply too big in a six runner sprint. She has been running into traffic rather than coming up short, Keenan goes well at Leicester, and the minimum trip on fast ground is her game. Von Krolock in the 7:37 is the other one worth noting. He gets in on a good mark over his best trip, he was a winner two starts back, and 95 days off is no drawback for a yard running at 36 percent. Clocker at 1.67 completes the meeting and needs no selling.
Sandown has two, Rage Of Thunder and Lady Milton. Rage Of Thunder drops to a workable weight and his last two runs, a win and a third, read better than they look. The Moores go well at Sandown and stall one over the minimum trip is ideal.
Yesterday gave us two from five, Ariane Sky at 5.0 and Norcross Brow at 3.0, which is the sort of afternoon that keeps the month moving. Today has more shots at it. Redcar is where we would start.