Saturday tips: Dave Nevison has a 25-1 Ayr Gold Cup fancy

Looking at the view from my hotel room window not far from the racecourse on Friday morning, I am going to work on the basis that conditions are going to be pretty close to heavy on Saturday.

If so, that will suit Thunder Roar so much better than most of his rivals in this competitive opener. The six-year-old has won three times on heavy ground and is a real mudlark and gets his ideal conditions for the first time this season.

He won the Spring Mile at Doncaster back in March, but the short head margin was overturned by the stewards, somewhat controversially.

Thunder Roar has only ran three times since this season, but went well last time at Ascot and might well be fresher than many of his rivals. He looks set to go well in these conditions.

Jason Hart is my favourite sprint handicap jockey and has won twice on this useful handicapper on heavy ground each time. Eye Of Dubai hit form at the end of August last term and had a really strong autumn campaign

He went off favourite last time in a handicap at Goodwood, the market move likely coming because the going went heavy, but he disappointed, so the four-year-old doesn’t come without risk.

He does, however, have a decent draw in stall 8 with some of the best pace just inside him, so definitely has an opportunity to show his best form. A reproduction of his fine effort three starts ago when second at Ripon would see him go very close at big odds. 

Coming Attraction might be something to bet on here. She was quite an expensive purchase at £340k but has done plenty to suggest she might be worth the money in three runs so far.

She has won her last two in good style and thoroughly deserves this step up to Group 3 company here. Both her wins have come on sound surfaces, but her dam won the Listed Harry Roseberry Stakes here on very soft ground.

Hopefully that gives plenty of hope she will act under today’s conditions and show herself a class act for her very much in form trainer.

The ground went against Solar Aclaim last time out at Ascot and he wasn’t knocked about when clearly not going to figure. Previous to that he had won two soft ground handicaps in decent style confirming that he revels in today’s underlying conditions.

He had previously won on heavy ground for Roger Teal before he went to Qatar where, unsurprisingly, he found the fast conditions unsuitable and didn’t trouble the judge too much.

He is looks to have a decent draw here and seems to have been largely ignored by the market, and looks value at 25-1.