STEPHEN WELCH RACING TIPS
Stephen Welch provides his best bets of the day from racing at Weatherby and Uttoxeter.
12:15 WETHERBY
BOYLE SPORTS CONDITIONAL JOCKEYS' HANDICAP CHASE (GO NORTH RED RUM SERIES QUALIFIER) (GBB RACE)
JUPITER DES BORDES - 3/1
JUPITER DES BORDES has been knocking on the door for a while and this looks like the perfect race for him to get his head back in front. His French hurdles win and a string of solid chase efforts over shorter suggests today’s first crack at 3m is exactly what he wants. He jumps well, travels kindly and shaped as though crying out for a stiffer stamina test when finishing strongly on his final start in April. With the Hobson yard in good order and Charlie Maggs taking off a handy 5lbs, he’s the one who makes the most sense in a race where several rivals either have questions to answer or lack his upward profile.
3
1:25 WETHERBY
COLIN BALDWIN MEMORIAL HANDICAP HURDLE (CHALLENGER TWO MILE HURDLE SERIES QUALIFIER)
MARCHE D'ALIGRE - 5/1
MARCHE D’ALIGRE looked a proper prospect when finishing second in a Grade 2 juvenile at Chepstow last winter and although things didn’t quite go to plan afterwards, a break and a return to the care of an in-form Jamie Snowden could easily have rekindled that early promise. He moves smoothly through his races, handles soft ground well and returns to the same C&D he won over on debut. With Gavin Sheehan booked and the yard operating at a high strike-rate, this looks the right opportunity for him to get back on track in a race where several rivals either have consistency concerns or need to prove they can progress beyond current marks.
3
2:27 UTTOXETER
CHRIS, SUE AND GAIL BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION NOVICES' HURDLE (GBB RACE)
U S MARSHALL - 9/2
U S MARSHALL makes plenty of appeal on rules debut, having looked a proper staying type when winning his Irish point with authority on yielding ground, travelling strongly before putting the race to bed in the style of a horse with a bright future. This sharpish 2m is no issue for a newcomer who has shown enough pace in points, Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero are excellent at readying one first time and with the yard booking Toby Wynne, usually a positive sign, he rates the chief threat to the clear favourite Jasmine d’Airy in what looks a thin novice.
12
3:02 UTTOXETER
QUINNBET HANDICAP HURDLE
SHUIL CEOIL - 11/2
SHUIL CEOIL is much better than he showed on his Chepstow reappearance and this calmer Class 5 looks a far more suitable assignment for a mare who tends to come forward sharply for a run. Both of her career wins have come on soft ground, she’s back on a workable mark of 100 and Neil Mulholland has her down in grade, up in trip and with first-time cheekpieces retained after showing enough last season to suggest she can be very competitive at this level. With several of these looking either exposed or unreliable, a fitter Shuil Ceoil returning to her optimum conditions makes plenty of appeal to bounce back.
6
3:43 WETHERBY
BOYLE SPORTS HOME OF THE EARLY PAYOUT HANDICAP CHASE (GBB RACE)
PRIMOZ - 5/1
PRIMOZ shaped much better than the bare form suggests when third over this C&D last time, travelling smoothly before getting outpaced in a steadily-run four-runner race and this return to a bigger field with more pace on should help him find his rhythm. He’s already a dual chase winner, including over this course and trip on softish ground and cheekpieces going on for the first time look a smart move from a yard that excels with small tweaks. With conditions ideal, a more genuinely-run race likely and his mark still workable based on last season’s Kelso win, he looks primed to step forward and return to the winners enclosure..
3