1:30 Haydock – Barton Knoll 13/2 E/W
2:05 Haydock – Da Vinci Hand 40/1 (0.5pts)
4:33 Carlisle – Pookie Pekan 14/1 E/W
Barton Knoll
Some followers may remember this one from earlier in the season when he won comfortably at Doncaster.
Dependent on good ground, he had a mid-season break after his win before reappearing in the Greatwood Gold Cup at Newbury. He jumped well from the front, as is his style, before fading into 5th after the last. That run was eerily similar to his seasonal reappearance; he went on to win on his next run after that and a similar fate may await him here.
While he is still 7lbs higher than when winning at Doncaster, he did that fairly comfortably and this race represents a marked drop in grade compared to last time out. He will be carrying top weight, but he did win off this weight at this track back in May 2019 so it shouldn’t inconvenience him too much.
A couple in the lineup like to be prominent but he should be able to lead, while conditions are very much in his favour. He looks a solid each way bet.
Da Vinci Hand
A tad speculative, but Joanne Foster’s six-year-old looks a tad overpriced given the size of the field.
A dual winner in France, he made his debut for his current yard at Wetherby after an absence of 547-days. For much of the race, he travelled powerfully yet keen and although he was well beaten in the end, he ran a promising race. He was easy to back that day and Sam Coltherd tends to ride a lot of outsiders for the yard; the average SP of his rides for Joanne Foster is just under 64/1.
Furthermore, he was not given a hard time at all last time out, with Sam just nursing him home while others around him were being firmly driven.
He looks sure to build on that and Gavin Sheehan takes over in the saddle, with his only other ride for the yard resulting in a win.
Of the others, most are consistent without necessarily seeming like imminent winners. Vision Du Puy is the obvious one following her win last time out but I’m happy to oppose her at the prices.
Pookie Pekan
While not at his best in recent starts, there are reasons to expect better here.
He often saves his best form for Carlisle, with two of his four wins under rules coming over this course and distance. Those wins came off 108 and 116, while he is now back down to a mark of 110.
He made a very encouraging seasonal reappearance at this track over three miles; he traded at 1.6 in running (SP 28/1) before fading late on, where a combination of the distance and it being his first run of the season saw resulted in him eventually finish fourth.
That was his only run of the season that came on good ground, which he prefers, with his next four starts coming in testing conditions over a variety of trips. As a result, he is now twelve pounds lower than he was on his seasonal reappearance. The forecast is dry for Saturday, with the ground currently good to soft.
The Stuart Coltherd yard have been in good form of late; in the last four weeks, they have had two winners and seven placed from eighteen runners. The stable have a 18% strike rate in handicap chases at Carlisle (A/E 1.38) and are profitable to back blindly.
Everything looks set for a big run from Pookie Pekan in a race where many have something to prove.
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