Friday tips: best bets for Meydan and Bahrain

Jamie Osborne has four runners on Friday’s card at Meydan, with Heart Of Honor expected to get him off to a flyer. 

This colt made a promising debut when runner-up at Southwell in October and Osborne afterwards identified him as a possible UAE Derby candidate. That looked a tad ambitious but much less so after the dirt-bred Heart Of Honor bolted up over course and distance last month. 

Osborne toyed with heading straight for the UAE Derby after that success but has opted to give him some more experience. He’s up against a couple of other winners but the main threat is likely to be Royal Favour, a Southwell runner-up trained by Simon and Ed Crisford. Like Heart Of Honor, he is bred to for the dirt. 

The four Godolphin-trained runners are the obvious place to start in this 7f handicap but Magsood, formerly trained by Roger Varian, is an interesting each-way proposition on what will be his first start for Michael Costa. 

This Too Darn Hot colt has flashed plenty of potential, but has often paid for being a little too exuberant. 

He’s been gelded since we last saw him in action, at Yarmouth at the end of June, and his usual hood has been discarded. 

His efforts as a two-year-old included finishing a close third to Aablan (now rated 102) with Bellum Justum (rated 110) a couple of places behind. He runs off 85 here and will surely exploit that kind of rating at some stage if he ever learns to race with a bit more efficiency. 

This grey gelding is unlikely to be much of a price but he’s going to take plenty of stopping in this 6f Conditions event. 

He’s got the best form, is the highest-rated runner in the line-up plus represents the Dubai dream team of Charlie Appleby/William Buick from a fair draw. 

Symbol Of Honour disappointed on his final start in the Group Three Tattersalls Stakes at Newmarket but that can be attributed to the combination of soft ground and 7f. 

He had been hard to fault before that, including when a close sixth in the Coventry and when runner-up in a Listed contest at Doncaster when being isolated. There’s more to come from him and this looks a good opportunity. 

Stewards’ Cup hero Get It features among the runners here and the speedy front-runner seems sure to give all those drawn low a good tow. 

That’s good news for the James Ferguson-trained Jubilee Walk, who is drawn next to him and is easily one of the most unexposed runners in the field, having had only seven races. 

He ran creditably here over 5f three weeks ago, but that trip is probably on the shy side for him and the run was probably needed. 

It would be no surprise if he now resumed the progress he showed in the first half of last season, when he won a 17-runner handicap before going off favourite for a similar affair at Royal Ascot (when he finished second in his group). 

Jubilee Walk has got some impressive sectionals on his dance card and could have a fruitful time in Bahrain over the weeks ahead.