‘Keep an eye on this one’ – shrewd operator Tony Martin sends 16-1 shot to York 👀

Tony Martin is  shrewd operator and he certainly knows what he’s doing when it comes to valuable handicaps. The County Meath-based trainer is set to send one runner over to York on Friday, a track at which he has had four previous winners. Martin’s charge is 16-1 at time of writing and is certainly one to keep an eye on in a very valuable £120,000 race. Check out our free tips page for daily content across British and Irish racing.

1.50 York

Zannadabad (16-1, Betfair) was an impressive winner at Cholet in France for Aga Khan and Francis-Henri Graffard back in October. He made the switch to Tony Martin’s yard in December and made three starts over hurdles last winter. Perhaps the best of those efforts came on hurdles debut at Leopardstown over Christmas, when not beaten too far in seventh behind a useful Willie Mullins horse.

Martin’s charge was 12th in a 1m6f handicap at the Curragh back in May. He was a tad disappointing over an extended two miles here on Wednesday and didn’t appear to see the trip out. His best Flat form in France came over middle-distances so the drop back to 1m4f here is likely to suit. Jamie Spencer is set to take the ride and that’s an eye-catching booking.

Tony Martin has been in the winners during the last fortnight, with two winners from his seven runners during that time. It’s hard to know what to make of Zannadabad’s handicap mark but the fact that Martin has brought him over suggests that he thinks it’s a competitive rating. It would certainly be dangerous to overlook this horse and it may prove wise to keep an eye on how the market responds.

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