The Daily Yankee
NAP OF THE DAY: Brace Yourself, (1405 Fairyhouse), 1pt win, 10/1:
A hugely competitive race, but as so often with these handicaps it’s the lightly raced novices that are likely to have the improvement needed to win. Plenty of them in this, but Noel Meade’s Brace Yourself makes the most appeal. This will be his first handicap after 11 runs, but the raters have not fully factored in his improved effort in a good novice chase last time, hence why he is 12lbs better off with Court Maid despite beating that one by 10l. Maybe the form isn’t wholly trustworthy, but it doesn’t need to be for him to still look well in. Worth a punt.
Lunch In Adare, (1200 Fairyhouse), 7/1: has had plenty of experience for one now making her handicap debut. Won her novice hurdle over this course and has been slowly improving as a chaser giving by far her best effort when narrowly beaten last time. She still gets in here off a pretty low weight and is likely to have had this race targeted all season given her previous success here.
Beacon Edge, (1435 Fairyhouse), 10/1: obviously it’s going to be hard to beat the unbeaten Honeysuckle who was very impressive in this before winning the Irish Champion and the Cheltenham Mares hurdle. That said, this is her seasonal debut and if she is vulnerable it could be now. Beacon Edge is a horse we have liked since his bumper days and after a quiet novice season he has come back in evidently flying form this year. Despite two easy wins he is officially the worst horse in this line up, but he is on the rise, in great form, and still unexposed at this trip. Looks the likely one to benefit if the mare turns up anywhere below her best.
Campeador, (1505 Fairyhouse), 18/1: a seriously deep handicap hurdle with many of those involved reopposing from a good recent race at Down Royal. The winner there Cayd Boy is the obvious starting point but is short enough under top weight. It may be worth chancing old rogue Campeador. He was lucky to walk away from a crushing last flight fall with a Cheltenham festival race at his mercy a few years ago. That he is 11lbs lower than that day now tells us much about his chequered from since. He showed first signs of renaissance when a never nearer 4th in that Down Royal race last time, and if trainer Elliott has worked some magic then he is a massive price off this weight. Equally that could have been a mercurial flash in the pan, not to be repeated, but at these odds it’s worth chancing he can rediscover the form of past glories.
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