Harry Allwood’s top tips for Monday: Rocks a solid bet at Leicester

We were treated to some brilliant racing at the weekend and, while the action isn't as high quality on Monday, there is still some competitive racing in Britain and Ireland.

Lucky Vega impressed with his victory in the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday and earned quotes of 16-1 for next year's Qipco 2000 Guineas afterwards, which is fair given the manner of his victory, and he beat some decent youngsters in the Group One contest.

Whether he will stay a mile remains to be seen, although there is some stamina in his pedigree and he wasn't stopping at the finish on Sunday.

He travelled noticeably well throughout the race and looks a high-class colt in the making.

If you did miss any of the action from the weekend, you can watch it all again for free in the results and replay section here.

I am hoping the three selections below will help us get the week off to a flying start on Monday. Best of luck.

Fergal O’Brien could not have got his season off to a better start and has been operating at a strike-rate of 33 per cent in the past fortnight, plus is top of the jumps trainers' championship!

The Gloucestershire handler runs Robyndzone - who has taken his form to another level since being sent chasing – in the opener at Southwell and the progressive six-year-old ought to take all the beating in his bid for a hat-trick here.

Having shown plenty of promise on his chasing debut at Taunton in December, the winning pointer built on that performance to score in good style at Huntingdon on his next start, and a 7lb rise did not stop him from winning on his seasonal return at Bangor in July.

He travelled and jumped well on that occasion and was well on top at the finish once he had put the race to bed. Another career best will be needed here with a further 10lb rise to contend with, but I expect there will be plenty more to come, and he is entitled to strip fitter for his run last time out.

This four-year-old went off at a decent pace last time out in a 0-85 handicap at Windsor, which set the race up for those held up, and his early exertions took their toll in the closing stages.

He was eventually beaten a shade over four lengths into fourth, and now finds himself on the same rating he finished a close second off at Newbury 12 months ago.

That is not the first time Henry Candy’s charge has caught the eye in defeat, as he also finished fourth in a hot handicap at Yarmouth last year – the first three home are all now rated over 100 – plus he looked unlucky not to finish closer at Kempton on his final start last season when suffering trouble in running.

One slight concern it that he disappointed on his only start at Leicester, but he was held up on that occasion when racing over ten furlongs for the first time, and it could be best to forgive that effort.

Marco Ghiani, a hugely promising apprentice who has impressed this season, rides Canal Rocks for the first time on Monday and takes a useful 5lb off his back. I am hoping he will be able to get a decent early position from his draw in stall eight and it will be disappointing if his mount is not capable of going close in this 0-80 contest.

Dargel is probably the main danger, especially if he reproduces his recent Newbury effort, and Society Red is becoming dangerously well-handicapped on his old form, although he hasn’t been at his best all season.

True Blue Moon produced his best effort since joining Tim Easterby at the start of this season when third at York last time out off a rating of 80 and a repeat performance will see him go close here.

The five-year-old came with a strong challenge and hit the front two furlongs out before his rider dropped his whip shortly afterwards. Whether that made the difference between True Blue Moon winning or losing, we will never know, but it was still a good effort nonetheless, and the handicapper has dropped him a pound for that run.

The former Listed winner also shaped better than the result suggests when ninth over the same course and distance on his previous start where he was denied a clear run at a crucial stage and was not given a hard time once the writing was on the wall.

True Blue Moon remains well handicapped given he was successful off a rating of 87 when trained by Joseph O’Brien last year plus has a handy draw in stall five, and that will hopefully allow David Allan to get a prominent position early which is a huge advantage at Chester.

Easterby and Allan have both been operating at a strike-rate of 17 per cent in the past fortnight, so let’s hope their good run continues on Monday.