Free horse racing tips for Monday: it's time to take Flight

It’s been rare in recent years for a Derby to effectively be all over more than two furlongs out but that was the case on Saturday when Desert Crown cruised into the lead and quickly stamped his authority.

Some have already questioned the value of the form – it’s an annual event with the Derby - but you can only beat what’s put in front of you and he was much the best on what was only his third start after an interrupted preparation in the spring.

Ten furlongs may turn out to be his very best distance, for all that he’s clearly a major force over 1m 4f, and it would be quite something if he, Baeed, Bay Bridge, Native Trail and Mishriff all show up in the Juddmonte International at York in August.

Westover didn’t get the rub of the green on Saturday, with Rob Hornby having to sit and suffer at crucial stage. The general 5-2 available about him winning the Irish Derby could look a gift come the day, while the 6-1 available him winning the St Leger is also appealing given how strong he was at the finish.

He’s clearly inherited plenty of stamina from Frankel, who already has two St Leger winners on his CV in the shape of Logician and Hurricane Lane.

The action on Monday is unlikely to feature any future Classic winners, but you never know. I’ve got three fancies, starting with:

The Ben Haslam-trained four-year-old bounced back to form when beaten a neck at Haydock last time and, only 1lb higher, looks to have plenty going for him here in a race that lacks depth.

His rating had tumbled 12lb before his latest effort after some mediocre efforts on the all-weather but it now seems he’s happier on grass and the silver lining to his efforts on artificial surfaces means he is now 7lb lower than when scoring on turf last summer.

Macho Pride ran well the only previous time he has run at Pontefract, over course and distance, and he gets the nod over six-time track winner Round The Island, who is weighted to run well but not getting any younger.

Front-running Autumn Flight has slipped back to the same mark that he defied here last August and he could take some catching here provided that he is ready to roll after two months off. The general 12-1 looks big.

He ran better than the bare form suggests on his return on the all-weather at Lingfield in April and, unlike several in this field, he’s shown his effectiveness on easy/soft ground.

The only other one in the field who goes from the front is Lynns Boy, the favourite, but his form away from fast ground rings alarm bells.

The grey was sold from sold from Brian Meehan’s yard for £16,000 in January and it’s interesting that Harriet Bethell is wasting no time unleashing him on turf over a longer trip.

His mark of 58 on this surface looks one he can exploit given that he bolted up off that rating over a mile at Wolverhampton in the autumn before subsequently running well off 69 at Kempton.

There’s no strong evidence to suggest he will not be as good on turf, while the step up to ten furlongs looks overdue given his breeding and run style. The one potential stumbling block is his 168-day absence but that is offset by the 8-1 on offer.