1.50pm Newmarket Tips & Betting Preview 07/05/2017

An ultra competitive handicap to start the day and one that hasn’t seen a single winning favourite in the last ten years with Knight Owl scoring at odds of 20/1 last season for James Fanshawe and five other winners at 10/1 or bigger. Mark Johnston won this in 2010 with Tartan Gigha and has an interesting runner in 2017 with Final (10/1) who will be fitter than most having already raced eight times in 2017 with a second to UAE Prince at Ripon last time out over a mile and a quarter. He fan on strongly that day to be beaten three quarters of a length at the line and ought to appreciate the return to a mile and a half this afternoon though he does look in the handicappers’ grasp and others may well have sneaked in under the radar.

Going Up (20/1 Each Way) would be a good example for the Rae Guest yard who are having a quiet spell but have still managed one winner from just the three runners in the last two weeks for an impressive 33% success rate. A very lightly raced four-year old with just the four career starts he has taken his time to get the hang of what is needed but hacked up in a Wolverhampton maiden over a mile and three quarters last time out in November and looks to be improving at a rate of knots. He beat Adalene by an easy six lengths that day and the runner up has won since, so the form has a better than average look to it yet he gets in here off of a mark of only 85 which may yet prove generous if he improves with age as expected.

Meanwhile, Charlie Appleby sits joint top on the winning percentages in this particular race and has entered Frontiersman (6/1) here who has won two of his six races and looks to be a late maturing son of the great Dubawi. A course and distance inner after taking a similar race here last September by an easy four and a half lengths, the handicapper put him up eleven pounds for that which hardly helps his chances. Sixth next time out to Duretto in the Group Three St Simon Stakes it may have been the softer ground that was his undoing that day, while his return saw him try and make the running along with Muntahaa at Doncaster which saw them both burned out when the race began in earnest. He may well be a bit less buzzy with that effort behind him now and he doesn’t need to make the running either, so expect an improved display on Sunday on the faster ground if not a winning one.

Big Country (3/1) is another with winning form this season after taking a Wolverhampton maiden by seven lengths and then a Class Two handicap by a length and a half from useful yardstick Wild Hacked. Trainer Mick Appleby certainly didn’t mince his words after his last win saying “Big Country has already been schooling and he’s absolutely awesome. He could be our first Cheltenham horse next year. He’s still a big baby and he’s got some engine. He’s the best middle distance horse I’ve ever had”, which is high praise indeed, and if he can transfer recent form to the turf he ought to be a serious contender for some of the prize money this afternoon.

Mainstream (11/2) can end the preview for Sir Michael Stoute and owner The Queen and would as always, prove a popular winner. A gelded son of Dansili he has won two of his nine starts and placed in another four with a second to Southdown Lad at Newbury when last seen in September. He looks in the grip of the handicapper for now but has been gelded recently and if that has brought about any improvement, he could be another to get involved in the finish.