Four races from the jumps card at Newcastle will be added to ITV Racing’s coverage on Saturday after the afternoon’s only “Premier” meeting at Sandown – featuring the £100,000 Veterans Chase Series Final – succumbed to waterlogging, while the card at Wincanton is subject to an inspection at 8am.
Officials at the west country track remain optimistic that racing will proceed as planned, but the course is only 10 miles from Paul Nicholls’s yard at Ditcheat, which received what the champion trainer described as “once-in-15-years” rainfall on Thursday night.
A flash flood that forced Nicholls to evacuate some horses from their boxes receded as swiftly as it had appeared, but the ground is sure to be heavy at Wincanton if the meeting survives.
That is sure to suit Georges Saint (2.40), a winner on bottomless going at Ffos Las and Fakenham already this season, and Venetia Williams’s gelding is a solid bet at around 5-2 to land another decent prize for a stable that is already showing a 44-point profit to level stakes this season.
Wincanton 1.30: Prince Quali was entitled to need the run after 20 months off the track when only fifth on his British debut over hurdles in December but switches back to fences here on what could prove to be a generous mark.
Taunton
12.55 Insurrection
1.25 Tutti Quanti
1.55 Lhebayeb
2.25 Extraordinary Man
3.00 Just Loose Change
3.30 Shantou Flyer
4.05 Ilary De L’Ecu
Ayr
1.10 Cream Of The West
1.40 Dontyawantme
2.10 Readysteadybeau
2.40 Ginger Mail
3.10 Henry Gray
3.40 Wendigo
Newcastle
3.20 Brunello Breeze
3.55 Van Zant (nb)
4.30 Fletchers Dream
5.00 Pallas Lord
5.30 Desert Raider (nap)
6.00 Macho Mania
6.30 Atrafan
7.00 The Caltonian
Newcastle 1.40: Lucinda Russell’s Two Auld Pals won three times for the stable on the Flat over the summer and could be a money-spinner too over timber based on a promising debut at Bangor last month.
Wincanton 2.05: Not a race with much depth and Feach Amach may be able to build on her first win over hurdles at Sedgefield in November.
Newcastle 2.15: A short-priced favourite in Handstands, who was an easy winner on debut over hurdles at Hereford last month and should improve for the experience.
Newcastle 2.50: Empty Nest nearly went at the first at Catterick last time but got the hang of things as the race developed and finished strongly to get within a neck of the winner. He looks the safest bet here with further progress likely.
Plumpton: 12.45 Through The Ages, 1.15 Authorised Speed, 1.45 Classic Anthem, 2.15 Eldorado Allen, 2.50 Foxboro (nap), 3.25 Brown Bullet, 3.55 Bucephalus.
Wolverhampton: 5.00 Shaheen Saqaar, 5.30 Dream Of Hope, 6.00 Savvy Brilliance, 6.30 Summa Peto (nb), 7.00 Rock Opera, 7.30 Zarzyni, 8.00 Miss Moonshine, 8.30 White Mist.
Wincanton 3.15: He is now entering the veteran stage of his career at 10 years of age, but Rare Clouds showed that he can still be competitive off his current mark when beaten by less than a length in a fair contest for the grade at Chepstow in November.
Newcastle 3.25: Yealand dropped back to two miles when qualifying for a mark in his third start over hurdles at Bangor-on-Dee in December but is back up to what promises to be a much more suitable trip for his handicap debut.
