Nigel Twiston-Davies – My Runners 11th and 12th February 2017

The yard continue to tick over nicely on the road to Cheltenham and have a hat full of runners to go through this weekend – twelve in total so best get straight down to business!

Nigel’s Charity Bet

Bristol De Mai 2.25pm Newbury – 11/8 Best Odds Guaranteed

A £50 win bet will be placed with any returns being donated to the Injured Jockeys Fund.

Saturday runners:

Sword Of The Lord 1.10pm Uttoxeter

“He is a bit of a quirky sort who has been running over fences and basically lost his confidence. I am sending him back over hurdles here and as he won’t mind the heavy going he could pull off a surprise if getting back to his best, though sadly that cannot be guaranteed just yet”.

Scotchtown 1.50pm Newbury

“He is in good form and frankly I am delighted with him. He is still only a young horse and we all hope he can keep on improving, but this is a very tough handicap and a big test for a five-year-old”.

Winged Crusader 2.20pm Uttoxeter

“Has done nothing wrong lately with a win and second and he won’t mind the heavy going either which is a plus. There are only ten in the race now and he could be a lot of fun here in this field and may well surprise a few by the time they cross the line, possible each way material though it is a very competitive event”.

Bristol De Mai 2.25pm Newbury

“This is very exciting for us and gives him the chance to prove if he is up for the Cheltenham Gold Cup as we all hope here at the yard. He clearly has Native River to beat and that will not be easy but I am hoping we have that bit more speed than Colin Tizzard’s horse, whose recent wins have been over further than this three miles, and I am really looking forward to the race this afternoon”.

Flying Angel 2.40pm Warwick

“Lost his way a bit in his last two runs but he has had some muscle problems so I have given him some time off to fully recover. He seems better now at home and was impressive first time out over fences at Perth and if he can repeat that he could well get back to winning ways this afternoon”.

Templehills 3.15pm Warwick

“Just the six runners to deal with so every chance of a bit of prize money and although he has had a couple of spills lately he did win well at Fakenham. If he behaves himself this afternoon he has every chance of a big or even winning run this afternoon”.

Lagavara 3.30pm Uttoxeter

“Just the five opponents to deal with here and she is an improving sort and I rather hope she can run well today with Jamie Bargary taking a useful three pounds off her back”.

Ballyhill 3.35pm Newbury

“Splash Of Ginge won this for me in 2014 with Ryan Hatch taking seven pounds off his back and I have booked Tom Humphries to try a repeat this afternoon on the six year old, who seems sure to go a lot better than his price suggests. I can’t say I see him as well handicapped but the jockey claim may yet make all the difference”.

Ballyandy 3.35pm Newbury

“He has, in my opinion, been unlucky over hurdles and has run in to some very smart horses all season with Moon Racer and more recently Messire Des Obeaux at Sandown. I do hope he is well handicapped but there are plenty of unexposed sorts in here to worry about and it is, as always, a very competitive race”.

Twist On Ginge 3.50pm Warwick

“A truly infuriating sort who doesn’t do a tap leaving his jockey to chase him along throughout the race and earn every penny of his riding fee. When (or if) the penny finally drops he could be very nice, but who knows when that might occur”.

Arctic Gold 4.25pm Warwick

“Not the hottest novice chase you will ever see on a Saturday and my runner would be right up there on hurdle ratings. This as another part of his education over fences but he jumps very nicely at home and could pull off a bit of a surprise here with a clear round”.

Sunday runners:

Ballymalin 2.50pm Exeter

“Cleary in great form he has won his last three starts and four of his last five, and we just hope he hasn’t been overburdened by the handicapper off a rating of 138. He runs here to qualify for the Pertemps Final at the Cheltenham Festival and ought to go well, though it is a very competitive looking handicap”.

Flying Angel 4.20pm Exeter

“Runs at Warwick Saturday assuming the meeting goes ahead, if not he will divert here with the same comments applicable”.

Nigel Twiston-Davies will be back each and every week with his thoughts exclusively for myracing.com as well as every day over the major meetings! To see what our tipsters are backing in all the weekend’s races, check out our free daily horse racing tips!