2.15pm Wolverhampton Tips & Betting Preview 12/03/2016

Interestingly, Jamie Spencer rode Keystroke on his last run but it looks like he will be on board the David Simcock trained Intrude (7/1 Each Way) this afternoon, but is that a clue we wonder. The stable remains in good form with plenty of winners on the all-weather tracks over recent months, and this four-year-old son of Intikhab added to that tally last time out here over further, so a fast run race (as seems assured) may yet play in to his hands. Martin Dwyer produced him fast and late last time to win by a neck but we felt with a bit in hand, and if Jamie can keep him covered up for a late thrust, three pounds more may not be enough to stop him.

With just the two winners at double figure prices in the past ten years, we can’t be all that confident but an outsider to consider is Mick Easterby’s Father Bertie (22/1) who has bits and pieces of half decent form that would give him an each way shout. This mile is clearly his trip (we feel we can ignore his poor run over ten furlongs where he simply failed to see it out), but if we take his Redcar win as his best (beat Mystic Miraaj a nose in a decent Class Two handicap), and with a bit of a break to freshen him up he could well run better than his odds imply today though we doubt he can win.

Newmarket handler Jeremy Noseda is in a decent position with Keystroke (4/1) who won his first two races at Doncaster and Windsor before coming unstuck when ninth of ten at Newmarket after falling out of the stalls and then pulling too hard to catch the others. Again, if we ignore that run (we all have a bad day now and then), he would have to be of interest but be warned, we have no idea how he will handle this surface as he has only ever raced on turf until today.

Looking for a horse that just may have been set up for the race and the one that jumps out just has to be Si Señor (7/1) who is fit as a fiddle after three races since January (one win and two seconds), and who clearly loves it on the artificial surfaces and may improve again for the Wolverhampton Tapeta surface which he debuts on today with Adam Kirby in the saddle.

Lastly, taking fitness as the most important thing for any potential bet and Bold Prediction (15/2) belongs on the short list having last raced (and won) just the two weeks ago. Two wins out of three this season at Chelmsford and Lingfield and a second to Loyalty have been just reward for his consistency this year, and make it three wins in his last four, but those wins have not gone unnoticed and he will need a career best effort to win today.

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