Newbury hosts two days of racing to begin the weekend among four cards in all. Andrew Mount gives you his best bets at that venue and more on Friday.
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Posted: 8:35pm, Thursday, February 27th
1.55 Lingfield – NAASMA (1pt e/w – 20/1 bet365, 18/1 William Hill)
NAASMA has a good record when fresh since joining Pat Phelan from Kevin Ryan, with her first run of the year for her current handler producing a half-length 12-1 third at Epsom (7f, good), an 18-1 neck second over today’s course and distance and a 25-1 Windsor win (1m3.5f, good to soft). The six-year-old has won or placed in four of her five starts on Polytrack (beaten by just over three lengths when a 33-1 sixth of 12 in the other) and, though this trip is on the short side for her, they often go too hard up front in apprentice races and she’s worth chancing at a big price on her first start since October.
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2.48 Newbury – ESTATE PLANNING (0.5pt e/w – 16/1 bet365, 14/1 generally)
Regular readers will know that I love this 2m juvenile novice contest, as the race has a history of shocks. Plenty of short-priced penalty carriers have been beaten over the years and my theory is if they are good enough to concede a penalty then they’d be heading to Cheltenham for either the Triumph Hurdle or the Fred Winter not running in a Class 3 contest at Newbury on a Friday. Sadly, there are no previous hurdle winners to oppose today but I’m still going to chance ESTATE PLANNING at a big price, despite him refusing to race on his latest outing. Trainer Bernard Llewellyn won this race with a 25-1 shot back in 2016 and I was quite taken with his in-the-frame efforts at Warwick in December and January, as that track didn’t suit his patient running style. He fared second best of the closers when an 18-1 fourth to Lavender Hill Mob on the second of those runs and horses he beat by 11 lengths and 15 lengths (both also ridden patiently) have run well in defeat since. In-form jockey Ben Jones, on board for the two good Warwick runs, was missing when the gelding refused to race at the same venue last time, and Estate Planning is worth a speculative interest.
7.15 Southwell – SAX APPEAL (2pt win – 7/4, bet365, 6/4 William Hill)
I’m still a little annoyed that I didn’t make SAX APPEAL a bet at Wolverhampton last time, as I was worried about him getting stuck on the ‘dead’ rail from his low draw. However, Callum Shepherd managed to switch wide and Charlie Johnston’s five-year-old ran on strongly to score by two lengths to make it two comfortable wins from two starts since fitted with blinkers. The son of Saxon Warrior should be suited by the switch to Southwell, and he might be able to dominate in this six-runner line-up. He tends to peak at this time of year, with his latest win taking his record in the month of February to 2111 (3-4).
Andrew Mount’s Best Bets
1.55 Lingfield – NAASMA (0.5pt e/w – 20/1 bet365, 18/1 William Hill)
2.48 Newbury – ESTATE PLANNING (0.5pt e/w – 16/1 bet365, 14/1 generally)
7.15 Southwell – SAX APPEAL (2pt win – 7/4, bet365, 6/4 William Hill)
Estate Planning
Andrew Mount’s tips for Friday, 28th February 2025
Andrew Mount’s Cheltenham Focus – Punting Angles for the Mares’ Chase
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