7.10pm Ayr Tips & Betting Preview 31/05/2017

A Class 4 sprint here over six furlongs, the feature race of Ayr’s Wednesday evening card. Read on for our full runner by runner preview and expert tip.

IN SUMMARY: The Mcgregornator needs respect as all of Adrian Keatley’s runners here do, but the yard are still looking for their first winner of the season. Vallarta won last time out and has a decent record when racing here at Ayr but the vote goes to the unexposed BLACK ISLE BOY for David O’Meara. He scored in the style of an improving horse at Hamilton last time and should be able to make it three wins from just four career starts here.

1 DARK DEFENDER – Two of his four career wins have come at this track, supplementing those with a Class 3 triumph at York last summer from a mark of 85. He has struggled to find anything like that form since but in consequence he is back down to 82 and as such looks well handicapped. He was the clear paddock pick at Newmarket two runs ago, shaping better than the final position suggests, in a deeper contest than this. He didn’t look happy over further last time but would probably appreciate a drop of rain to show his very best.

2 ZAPPER CASS – Showed a fair level of ability when trained in France, shaping well on a pair of runs on the all weather for Roger Fell at the back end of 2016. He can be marked up on his first effort for Tony Coyle at Chester last time, all dressed up with nowhere to go as they turned into the straight, he was allowed to come home in his own time. Understandably the handicapper has been slow to relent, dropping him just a single pound for his three runs in the U.K so far. The ability is there from this sort of mark, if he can handle the quickest ground he has run on.

3 DANDYLEEKIE – A victim of his own consistency last season, all eleven runs coming within a seven pound band in the ratings. He was successful off this mark of 79 at Haydock in July. He shaped with plenty of promise for 2017 when third at Doncaster on his return but although he has a few bits and pieces of form on good to firm ground, he prefers to get his toe in, connections would certainly appreciate a bit of rain falling in Scotland to help his chances.

4 ART OBSESSION – Consistent sprinter, made a winning return at Thirsk earlier in May, taking full advantage of a mark some eight pounds below his peak. He is now two pounds above his highest winning mark and despite the ground officially being good to firm when scoring at Thirsk, it was well watered which had taken the sting out the ground. Trainer Paul Midgley said afterwards that he “has been ready to run for a while but there are not an abundance of races for him and the ground has been too quick,” so a drop of rain wouldn’t go amiss for his chances.

5 YEEOOW – Well backed with the cheekpieces reapplied at Carlisle last time, he was sent off favourite but never really looked like winning. He has scored off as high as 90 in the past so his current mark of 77 is certainly within reach and connections clearly felt that he should have run better that he did. Beaten in a pair of claimers over the winter, he is too well treated to simply dismiss but, he is in danger of becoming rather disappointing.

6 VALLARTA – A winner on good to firm ground at Catterick last time in a slightly lower grade, the form of the race was done no harm when the second and third that day filled the first two spots in another Catterick handicap the next time out. He boast two wins and three seconds from nine runs at Ayr so clearly performs well here, a two pound rise for the Catterick win isn’t punitive so he is worthy of some each way consideration at least.

7 BLACK ISLE BOY – The least exposed in the line up, he followed up a win in a modest looking maiden at Pontefract with a smart handicap debut win at Hamilton. Both of those came over this six furlong trip on good to firm ground, so conditions will hold no fears for David O’Meara’s charge. He appears to have done well over the winter, showing the benefits of a gelding operation. A four pound lift for the Hamilton win is more than fair and this unexposed sprinter looks capable of making it three wins from four career starts here.

8 DAWOODI – Shaped well on his first two starts for Hugo Palmer before spitting the dummy in first time cheek pieces and being comprehensively outclassed in a Listed race on his final juvenile start. He has since been gelded and moved to the Linda Perratt yard, a stable who are really struggling for form, much as they did for the entirety of 2016. A mark of 75 looks exploitable this season and he may prove a bargain at the 12,500 gns that current connections paid for him but he may just need this first run of the season to blow away the cobwebs.

9 THE MCGREGORNATOR – Any runner that Adrian Paul Keatley sends to Ayr automatically gets a second look. 14/49 at the track for a level stakes profit of £36.88, since sending his first runners over in 2014, he has plundered the Scottish track to great effect. He is a dismal 0/50 so far this flat season however, which raises some serious questions over the form of the yard. This horse stayed on in eyecatching fashion to grab third in a similar level race at The Curragh on his 2017 return, but this will likely be the quickest ground he has raced on. His dam did however win twice on good to firm so he may yet improve for a sounder surface.