Flat Racing - 21 July

[Haystacks]

Doncaster RP Live Reporter: 'Going change It's now good, good to soft in places (from good to firm) after 10mm of rain last night.'

[chris34]

Re: Flat Racing - 21 July 3.55 Sandown Plenty of pace on here with so many front runners and this could be setup for a strong traveller and this race looks setup for Absinthe who showed signs of a return to form last time out. He looked a handicapper to follow last season winning 2 handicaps last season including at Windsor on soft ground when he was very impressive, that was off a mark of 83 and handicapper hit him hard for that with a 9lb rise and next ran in the Cambridgshire and ran a respectable race but has gone off the boil this season but handicapper given him a massive chance dropping him to a mark of 84 and this will be his first chance back on soft ground and has to have a massive chance. 3pt win Absinthe 10/3 pp 7.25 Doncaster York Glory is very near nap material for me and he looks a massive price in my opinion especially since the going has changed from G/F to G G/S in places! Kevin Ryan has always stated this his horse would be so much better on softer ground. Yet he ran his best race to date last time out on fast ground at Haydock over 6 with 1st time blinkers which have clearly been put on to try and keep him sttraight in a finish as he has been known to hang and they did there job well. He was a good second but was perhaps a little to keen in early stages and he is clearly not the most straightforward and has his quirks but also bags of ability, the first 2 finished well clear of a good benchmark in Thirteen Shivers by nearly 4 lengths who also finished well clear of the rest. He is set to race off a 5lb higher mark so this looks a golden opportunity to cash in before the handicapper has his say especially on softer ground. 5pt win York Glory 9/4 betfred 4.50 Bath Backing a horse in a low grade class 6 handicap off a rating of 46 that is fully exposed always comes with plenty of risk attached and isnt for some people. What Katie Did has shown signs of a revival recently for the Bradley yard who has enjoyed a good spell recently. She hasnt won for over 2 years but now finds herself on a career low mark off a 46 having won off as high as 65. As effective on good ground aswell as fast ground. Went off to hard infront last time out but did still stick to the task well for 4th to suggest she is in form. Both Miss Firefly and What Katie Did are the fornt runners in this race but both have to come from a wide draw so it will just depend on how hard it is to get to the front but with lack of other pace what ever leads could get a soft lead. 1pt win What Katie Did 11/2 lads 6.40 Epsom Would usually avoid handicaps at Epsom as they often chuck up strange results with some horses not handling the course. There is also no course winners here. Living It Large is well treated on old form and did win last time out but concern is that he needs fast ground and when it gets soft at Epsom it is soft! Boogie Waltzer ran a good race on return from short break last time out at Southwell but has recieved a rise for that and now needs a career best although soft ground will suit. But Clear Praise looks a big price, he is relatively lightly raced horse who has mainly been kept to the AW but has only had 2 starts on the turf first time was a competitive newmarket handicap didnt run with much promise but offered much more over 6f round here last time out finishing very well from the rear, obvious concern is the switch back to 5f but stamina might be a benefit tonight in testing conditions and therefore puts him in the picture having handled the course before! 2pt win Clear Praise 4/1 vc