DAILY RACING PREVIEW BY ANDY HOLDING
FRIDAY OCTOBER 3
4.05 ASCOT
The ratings suggest MANY MEN (best price 8-1) has plenty to find in his bid to bridge the gap between quality handicap form to listed level, but his speed figures tell a different story and Jim Boyle’s inmate is taken as viable each-way alternative to Arabian Force.
It must have came as a crushing blow to connections when the Tannoy announcer called out Tarriance as the winner of the Melrose Handicap at York rather than the son of Study Of Man as it looked as though when the pair flashed across the line together, Many Men had landed what turned out to be a substantial gamble.
The way he travelled before sweeping through the field to lead inside the final furlong was one of a horse who has improved significantly since landing a Doncaster handicap off a mark of just 74 back in March and he now looks ready to tackle opposition of an even higher standard.
The other thing that might end up in his favour is the possibility of a ground change caused by the impending Storm Amy driving across the country during today and if the Berkshire venue does get the amounts forecast, he will be one of the few in the field least inconvenienced (won on soft ground at Newmarket last season).
MANY MEN – ½ point each-way@8-1
4.40 ASCOT
TUCO SALAMANCA (best price 11-2) was one of many eye-catchers in a messy renewal of the Bold Lad Sprint Handicap at The Curragh last time out and he is fancied to make amends back at a track that saw him run a career high earlier in the campaign.
A horse who prefers to be switched off towards the rear of the field, tactics which have paid dividends several times this season, Ollie Sangster’s was fully entitled to be ridden in such fashion at the Kildare venue, but as events panned out, his hostage-to-fortune style of racing came back to bite him in the backside on this occasion.
The way he hit the line once out in the clear, however, pointed towards a horse who remains in good form and having run his face off to finish second from a poor draw on his only attempt over today’s C&D, the son of Belardo has the credentials to go one place better under conditions that will suit.
TUCO SALAMANCA – 1-point each-way@11-2 (four places)
7.30 DUNDALK
There are plenty in this contest with stronger form claims than STRAIGHT UP (best price 15-8), but there was something about the way Aidan O’Brien’s inmate scored on his debut which suggested he could easily be good enough to take his game to a higher level and with connections clearly thinking along the same lines, the hint deserves to be heeded.
Listowel is normally a baptism of fire for any two-year-old making his debut, let alone on heavy ground, but not only did the son of Wootton Bassett manage to overcome inexperience, he ended up winning in the style of an above-average performer.
Impressing with the way he jumped to race prominently, he then exhibited a smart turn of foot in the conditions to pull readily clear and with the strong possibility he will be seen to even better effect on tonight’s slicker surface, this promising colt to keep his tall reputation intact.
STRAIGHT UP – 2-points win@15-8