3.05pm Newbury Tips & Betting Preview 02/04/2016

3.05pm Newbury – Betfred Mobile Handicap Chase Class Two – 2m 3f 187yds

Not the best handicap chase you will ever see but some intriguing contenders nonetheless headed by Emma Lavelle’s Fox Appeal the best horse in the race according to the official handicapper. The nine year old gelding has to give three pounds or more away to all of his rivals here but hasn’t won a race since November 2014 which has to be a serious concern for his supporters. At least he has been dropped a further four pounds after his last race when he was eleventh of twenty-three in the Ultima Chase at the Cheltenham Festival, weakening after a mistake two out, but he could be interesting off his new mark and dropped in both class and trip today.

Oliver Sherwood is one of racing’s true nice guys and he has Morning Reggie in here as the seven year old looks to follow up his win at Sandown on soft going last month. Admirably consistent with seven wins or places in his last eight races,  no one can deny he deserved that victory and he has only been put up a couple of pounds for that clever victory and with the excellent Leighton Aspell once again in the saddle he looks to be overpriced to us and the one we want to be on this afternoon.

Charlie Poste riding for Robin Dickin is always a formidable combination and they have the amusingly named Thomas Crapper in here off a rating they will feel he can win from. Eleven races so far over the larger obstacles have yet to reap a solitary win but he has placed in the first three eight times so far and will no doubt try his level best to do the same again this afternoon.

Meanwhile, Charlie Longsdon is probably having sleepless nights wondering what he has to do to get Shantou Magic back to his peak and add another race to his CV at the age of nine. He has won three of his nine chases and five of his fifteen races overall but may need three miles to be seen at his very best and there is a real risk things will all happen a bit too quickly for him over this sort of trip, and cause him to make mistakes he could certainly do without to have any chance of winning again this season.

Lastly, with Kerry Lee seemingly able to do little wrong it may be worth at least considering Simply Wings her as he looks to go one better than when runner up to Stilletto in mid February. Although that isn’t really up to the standard required for a race of this calibre it does at least prove he is still in some kind of form as the season winds down to completion and puts him potentially one step ahead of all of those who have actually had enough for the year and ought to be resting in the paddocks already.

Channel 4 tips for every race – click here to see all Saturday’s tips!