Flat Racing - 27th of March

[Monterosso]

4:30 Leopardstown - Park Ranger - 2pts e/w @ 10/1 (WillHill) Usually a quirky type but plenty to be positive about here with conditions ideal and return to this 1m 2f trip likely to see him in a better light. This is a 60-100 handicap but I'm finding it quite easy to discount numerous runners and I think that Park Ranger could be a very lively candidate from a lowly weight here. He ran 6 times last year, 5 of those coming on the flat and once over hurdles. He was well punted nearly every time, including on his seasonal bow which was in June, on the back of a longer break than he faces now. That was a competitive 23 runner handicap at the Curragh and he opened 6/1 on-course, before being massively punted to go off the 9/4 favourite, an all-mighty move in such a short space of time. That was his handicap debut on the flat and the first time he ran over 1m 2f. Park Ranger traveled well throughout and was still bang in contention 2f out (hit 1.64 in-running), but he didn't seem to pick up on the Good-to-Firm ground that day, leaving the money behind. However, that defeat was avenged next time out when the then 4 year old managed to scoot in off a mark of 62 in a Yielding/Soft ground handicap over the same trip at Fairyhouse. The horse he beat that day (by 3 lengths) was running off a mark of 59 and has since won off 82 on the all-weather at Dundalk. Park Ranger was then stepped up to 1m 4f for his next 3 runs, well backed every time again but he failed to impress despite being obviously fancied. All 3 of those runs were off a 10lb higher mark than his win and he's now dropped 1lb by the handicapper and has a very capable 7lb claimer on board, leaving him with a featherweight of 7st 11lbs on his back. The drop back in trip is exactly what's wanted, along with the soft-ish ground and possible decent gallop to run at. He's tactically versatile, so the relatively poor draw in stall 11 should prove to be no hinderence to him and the flat, galloping nature of the Leopardstown track could eke out even further improvement. Connections obviously felt that his mark was still workable at the end of last season and if similar traits follow again, I think he could well be subject to another gamble in a race that I think is very winnable and not as open as it seems. The yard had a couple of winner over hurdles this month and come to this track with just 2 runners today. The other one is likely to be a decent price and looks interesting on his handicap bow but there's too many similar types in that race and they may have their best chance of a winner here. Whilst my selection doesn't have the class of an animal like the potential favourite, Gimli's Rock, he's in receipt of 26lbs from that runner and could be open to significantly more improvement, given that he's lightly raced overall (run 8 times on the flat) and unexposed at this trip. 10/1 is a very nice each-way price about this animal and I'll play medium stakes on him. It'll be tough to win first time up but if he's tuned then he'll be on the scene, and if not, I'll have chance to recoup the losses at some stage, as I think he's definitely one with a decent handicap in him, especially off this lowly mark. Hopefully he's ready to do the business and get his head in-front again.

[RussP]

Re: Flat Racing - 27th of March 15.30 Leopardstown A nice 7f 15 runner handicap to get stuck into here and there's one that sticks out to me. In the last 7 years, 6 of the winners have been drawn in stalls 1-7 so I'm striking out those 8 and above straight away in a bid to narrow down the field. This policy takes out 4 of the first 5 in the betting. Of the remainder, most of them look either poorly treated or may be better on the AW. Daring Man is not without a chance but its winless run is building a little too much for me and Like Magic looks well handicapped but has never done that much first time up. The one I'm following today is: West Coast Dream (8/1 Betfred BOG) - Very lightly raced, top apprentice on top and well handicapped, this one ticks many of the boxes today. Only 6 starts to date for this 4yo and has shown more than enough to suggest today will be the day. 3 runs as a 2yo to gain a mark and started last season in a big field 30 runner handicap over 7f at the Curragh. Raced off 72 and finished 1.5L back in 5th at 20/1, carrying a monster 9st11 as a 3yo. A superb performance, especailly as the winner that day finished the season on a mark of 100. Was then 2nd of 15 at Navan where the winner went on to run very well off 91 at the back end of the season. Our horse raced off 73 there and followed it with an average 4th on the AW where the fact it had to make its own pace and the surface probably didn't help. Now dropped 4lb for this reappearance run with conditions in its favour, I expect a huge run. Drawn in 2 is a big plus as is the 3lb apprentice on board. Owner trained too so he'll certainly pitch it right as he's paying the entry fee so I'm happy to be on the one open to most improvement with, generally, everything in its favour. No surprise to see this go off favourite.