Top tipster Dave Nevison takes aim at the competitive handicaps across York, live on Racing TV, and Ascot on Saturday.
2.00 York: Jubilee Walk
Jubilee Walk looked a sprinter to follow when he won a similar big-field handicap at last year’s Dante Festival, but things didn’t pan out as hoped afterwards. He disappointed a few times when contesting valuable prizes overseas, but it definitely looked as though progress could be resumed.
He was sent off the well-backed favourite at Chester on his return, despite being drawn eight of nine, and raced wide and in behind until staying on late.
Nevertheless, it was a very encouraging run and off a rating just 2lb higher than his
York win last year, he must have a decent chance of getting back on track now.
3.00 Ascot: Yorkshire and Two Tribes
This is one of the most competitive handicaps of the year, and I am happy to have a couple of stabs at it, especially with bookies paying six places.
Ed Bethell’s
Yorkshire is my main fancy, and to my mind, has looked one for a big handicap for a while. He performed well at Royal Ascot to finish sixth in the Buckingham Palace Stakes, and could have got even closer if he had not needed to be switched when making a run inside the final furlong.
The handicapper has relented slightly dropping him a pound for that run, which could well be significant in an extremely tight heat. Bethell's string are in form, and if that last run can be regarded as a sighter for this, I will be disappointed if Yorkshire doesn’t figure here.
My other fancy is
Two Tribeswho is on a lengthy losing run, but he looks to have similar form to several runners who are available at much shorter odds than him, so certainly looks to be attractively priced to hit the frame at least here.
Richard Spencer has only upped him to seven furlongs this season and his charge has done really well in two of his three runs over this new trip. David Egan should be able to hold on to him off the pace from stall ten, with the likely pacesetters drawn in the middle, and hopefully Two Tribes will come through enough of his rivals to grab a place.
3.20 York: Bayraat
Bayraat has the look of a contender who has been aimed at this contest after he finished a close third in last year’s corresponding event. He possibly should have won that as, after starting slowly, he struggled to find a clear pathway through, and was beaten less than a length.
Tom Tate’s nine-year-old is out of the weights here, but is still running off a mark a couple of pounds lower than last season, and should be at his peak after just two runs this season that have definitely suggested he is still capable of a big run.
He looks to be drawn on the right side in stall six and providing David Noonan can get him out of the stalls a little better than sometimes is the case, he has a sporting chance at double-figure odds (14-1, at the time of writing).