Chris Dixon’s eyecatchers: Horses to follow and winners in waiting

It was great to see the Flat season back last weekend and although there was the odd worrying sign given a few small field sizes – most notably in the Spring Mile – it left me wanting more and I am very much looking forward to the season ahead.

Clearly, there’s some top-class action still to come over jumps, including Aintree next week, but my attention for suggested Racing TV Tracker additions this week is focussing on the level.

I have found a quartet of horses who were beaten at the weekend but won’t be long in finding winning opportunities this term.

Trainer: Adrian Nicholls.

Persian Force was an impressive winner of the Brocklesby on Saturday, and with his performance impressing on the clock, he looks set to do well in the early season juvenile races.

Several of those in behind also have the scope to win races in the short term, especially as many are eligible for lesser races where the prospects of bumping into one as good as the winner here are limited.

In addition, they will have the advantage of some much needed experience on their next couple of starts, and one who I think may progress plenty from what was an encouraging debut is the Adrian Nicholls-trained Mascapone.

Very green from the start and through much of the race, he still managed to make progress, despite drifting left late on, to finish a never-nearer fourth.

He pulled clear of the fifth and shaped as though he could take a significant step forward with a run behind him.

Trainer: Tom Clover.

Rogue Bear showed himself to be a likeable and progressive horse in his five races as a three-year-old but promised plenty more for this season when finishing third in the Lincoln on Saturday.

Thrust into a much deeper race than he’d been in previously, he found plenty to run on in a race where it proved difficult to get involved from too far back, while also easily faring best of those drawn high, with the first seven home coming from stalls 4, 3, 19 (Rogue Bear), 1, 5, 9 and 8.

Left on the same rating of 87 after this, his mark won’t get him into many of the other top handicaps in the short term. However, the Spring Cup at Newbury isn’t as valuable as some races and therefore appeals as a suitable type of target plus perhaps an opportunity for him to get his mark up, which will allow him to contest some other top handicaps this season.

Trainer: Philip Kirby.

Mr McCall hadn’t shown much in his career going into the closing race on the card at Doncaster on Saturday but showed improved form in this apprentice riders race, and he suddenly looks to be a horse of interest for a low-level handicap off his revised rating of 61.

In a race that appeals as solid form for the grade (winner was dropping in the weights, second thriving and racing off a generously lower turf mark, third unexposed and going the right way) he was the last horse off the bridle, impressing with how he travelled. He also finished with a bit more to give under an inexperienced rider.

He definitely appeals as one with a bit in hand off his mark, and it won't be long before he records his first career success, especially with lower graded races an option for him.

Trainer: Mick Appleby.

Zim Baby didn’t manage to get her head in front last season but she ran some fine races in defeat and did so again on her seasonal return at Doncaster on Sunday.

Down in class but up in trip off her slightly reduced mark, she travelled sweetly close up and only gave way late on over a trip that perhaps just stretched her stamina.

Looking in top form on this reappearance, she’s clearly on a nice mark to start the season and will have an excellent chance if taking up her entry off the same mark at Windsor next week where the track, and return to six furlongs, are likely to be ideal.

Trainer: David O’Meara.

Cold Stare was one of the most obvious eyecatchers of the Lincoln meeting when finishing sixth in the 6f handicap won by Bernado O’Reilly on Sunday.

Covered up in mid-field early, he travelled kindly but the race didn’t open up for him at any stage and he crossed the line with plenty more to give.

Extremely effective on soft ground, he’s one to consider in the weeks ahead when racing under suitable conditions.

I always enjoy my trips up to Musselburgh for Racing TV duty and that was definitely the case when covering a really competitive jumps card at the track on Friday for the opening day of the Racing Post Go North Series Finals.

With good prize money on offer attracting big fields of in-form horses, it was always likely to attract strong fields, too, and there were several races across the three days of that are likely to work out well, as was the case last season.

So, I’ll be keeping a close eye on the form of a number of those races while the one I believe might work out best from Musselburgh is the 2m handicap hurdle won by The Navigator.

I mentioned last week a few of the obvious big stables that usually do very well with their horses on the back of breaks in the early stages of the flat season and, on a similar theme, I’m going to nominate another couple of stables to keep a close eye on over the next few weeks.

Tom Clover often does well with reappearing horses and clearly has his team in good form, while the other is Darryll Holland who saddled four winners from 11 runners in March and heads into the new season with his horses in rude health.