Neil Morrice brings you all of his best bets and tips for racing from around the UK on Thursday18 April.
Cheltenham Best Bets
Race 2: GRACEFUL LEGEND (2)
Trainer: Ben Case
Jockey: Max Kendrick
GRACEFUL LEGEND should offer a bit of value against some similarly in form rivals as she is a better mare at this time of the season and has her tail up after jumping her opponents silly at Newbury last time. Her stable is firing in the winners and she can surprise the likes of Desrable Court and KUPATANA.
Race 4: CAP SOLEIL (2)
Trainer: Fergal O’Brien
Jockey: Paddy Brennan
Having been out of action for the entire season, CAP SOLEIL ran respectably when thrown back into the deep end at the Cheltenham Festival. Her midfield finish behind Roksana is there to be improved on, even though she would prefer the easier ground.
Newmarket Best Bets
Race 4: THRAVE (7)
Trainer: Henry Candy
Jockey: Harry Bentley
With two of the eight declared holding alternative engagements thus could cut up to the advantage of THRAVE who with just four public outings to his name is very hard to assess. He broke his maiden impressively on this course at Newmarket 18 months ago and was not disgraced finishing n the money in last year’s Lingfield Derby Trial. His stable was under a cloud for most of that season, but THRAVE has shown plenty of gusto in his preparation for this return to HQ.
Race 5: MUSTASHRY (1)
Trainer: Sir Michael Stoute
Jockey: Dane O’Neill
Proved a revelation for his connections in 2018 when interestingly he scored in Listed company on his seasonal reappearance. MUSTASHRY went on to land a Group 2 and ended the campaign with a deserved crack at the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Churchill Downs. He’s been giving out some very promising signals and is more than capable of defying his Group 2 penalty.
