Today's Selections

12:00 Brighton - Silver Bullet (9/1) - No bet yet - I received some info from this horse last night but the steady drift in the market has made me doubt my source slightly. Having assessed the race myself, I think the horse holds strong claims and in my experience the handicapper regularly underestimates the value of selling form. For the time being, I am going to refrain from backing the horse though and will wait until later on in the day to see how the market is shaping up. I will keep reads updated as to what I decide via the comments section on this post so watch that space. (1st - SP 12/1)

1:50 Ayr - Annas Pearl  (6/5) - 3pt win - Conditions at Ayr are going to make it difficult to find winners today but I really like the look of this Beckett trained colt. I was impressed with the way he performed on debut and with time I think the form of that race should work out well. I'm not overly convinced that the heavy going will be to his liking but he should hopefully have the necessary class to fend off his rivals. Beckett doesn't send many to Ayr so you can guarantee that he will be competitive.

2:20 Ayr - Garswood (8/1) - 1pt e/w - Now obviously, the horse to beat in this race is the Irish raider Boston Rocker who has heavy ground experience and some solid form. At 9/4 though, I don't feel too bad about opposing him and in the end it was a close call between Garswood and Rivellino. Rivellino's refusal to enter the stalls last time out put me off but there is no doubt that this talented horse can make his mark in better company than this, and he has to be feared considering Mrs Burke won this race with another promising type a few years ago. However, Garswood has always been highly thought of by his trainer and he  is unlucky to still be a maiden having bumped into some very promising horses in his two runs to date. Like Annas Pearl above, I'm not sure that the ground will suit him but the fact that Fahey allows this highly promising type to run, suggests to me that he may be capable of handling it. He has come in for a bit of money early doors and if he can step up slightly on his previous two runs, then he should be bang in the mix. Side Bet - 0.50pt RF - Boston Rocker and Faithfully.

3:05 Newbury -  Grandeur (2/1) - 3pt win - This is one of those races which drives punters mad as it contains all the ingredients of an upset. You have horses stepping up in trip, horses dropping back in trip and horses returning from substantial breaks. In my experience, it always pay to side with the in form types in this kind of race though and for me that is Grandeur. His run last time out in Group 3 company was very impressive and with Buick riding today off just 1lb higher than his minimum riding weight, you can bet your last £ that he's not there to ease this one around the track. My only concern is that today's trip is probably a bare minimum for the horse now but I'm hoping that Cai Shen will set a decent gallop. If that fails then I would have thought Buick will take the initiative early on, push the horse to the front, and try to get a few of the suspected non stayers off the bridal early.

3:40 Newbury - Flashheart (20/1) - 1pt e/w - There is no doubt that Wentworth is the horse to beat here and I was very close to siding with the horse who is apparently the most promising 2yo to come out of the Hannon yard this year. In the end though, the price of Flashheart was just too appealing. The main reason for my interest in the horse is the trainer stunning record in the race, he has won 3 of the last 10 renewals and this particular individual is bred to be precocious. I have to be realistic and reiterate that this horse will have to be very, very smart to beat the likes of Wentworth on debut but at the current price (which will probably drift before shortening) he looks like a solid e/w bet.

4:15 Newbury - Desert Image (12/1) - 1pt e/w - Now this is a speculative bet because it's success relies on the premiss that one of the two horses at the head of the field will not preform. That being said though, Desert Image has been performing extremely well at home and has all the makings of a nice performer. She has been slow played due to her pedigree but connections now feel that the time is right and it looks like a good place for her to start her life as a racer. It's difficult not to be impressed by the manner of the favourites victory last time out and if history tells us anything then she should go on to bigger and better things, but her trainer has made no secret of the fact that she carries plenty of conditioning and the Hills camp and I will both be hoping that this race comes too soon for her.

So, that concludes today's selections and hopefully they will be as successful as yesterdays.

Best of luck.

P.S - As always all bets are BOG