Saturday’s racing is something to savour, as we’re treated to a variety of action. The day kicks off at Aintree, which treats us to a day over the National Fences, with further ITV action coming from Wincanton and Doncaster. The former venue hosts the return of the enigmatic Goshen and we’ll have horse racing tips throughout the day.
That from Breeders’ Cup, which hosts a spellbinding card that concludes with the Breeders’ Cup Classic. I’ll be focusing on the British action, where I’m hoping to find some big-priced winners. You can find all my selections and analysis below, and best of luck with your Saturday punting.
His best form has come over further, but Alright Sunshine (33-1) is actually unbeaten over the twelve-furlong distance and has a leading role to play. He gained his most recent victory back at Hamilton in May and he’s run well in three subsequent starts. That includes a narrow defeat in the Old Borough Cup and a lack of pace ultimately found him out at Haydock last time.
He’s just a pound above that Old Borough Cup mark and although he’d be a better proposition over two furlongs further, he’ll get a very strong pace to aim at which can help negate that. He runs well on softer ground and with Callum Rodriguez taking over the ride, he’s a strong each-way candidate.
Irish horses in Britain are never usually underestimated these days, so I’m more than happy to take The West’s Awake (12-1) at these odds. He comes to Aintree on the back of an ideal preparation, running home into third at Cork over an inadequate 2m 1f distance, and he’s able to race off the same rating here.
This unique test can bring out the best in certain horses and I think he can be one of those. He tends to get himself in a good jumping rhythm and his wealth of chasing experience shouldn’t be underestimated as he meets these fences for the first time. He’s just two pounds above his last winning rating and his trainer doesn’t send horses over to Britain often, which could be a tip in itself.
He’s not the most consistent, but Rocco (16-1) has gone close on two occasions this year and sits on a very tempting rating. He went down by a head at Ludlow back in March and although poor on his next start, he left that effort behind at Southwell, once again beaten by a head. He did run flat when last seen at Worcester, outlining his inconsistent profile, but he’s been given a break since and he has a good record fresh.
This is a tougher race than he’s used too, but his record after breaks of 50 days or more reads 110F522, which bodes extremely well. He’ll love the ground conditions and if Jordan Nailor can get a tune out of him like he did at Southwell two starts back, he’s more than likely to be in the firing line late on.
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