All-weather finals day takes place at Newcastle on Good Friday, with championship races across the board. Matty Sutcliffe targets the day with three best bets, two of which are available at 25/1…
1:50 Newcastle – All-Weather 3 Year Old Championships Handicap (Class 2) (3yo) – Master Technician 25/1 0.5pt EW 4 places
Rod Millman rarely visits Newcastle, but his nine runners here within the last five seasons have seen a return of three winners and four places, with a profit margin of £45.50 to a £1 stake. MASTER TECHNICIAN is his sole runner on the card to make the near seven hour journey, and they recouped the rewards when travelling a similar distance to Musselburgh with him to win a 30k pot in November.
The drop back to six furlongs wouldn’t be an obvious move for a son of Mastercraftsman, but he has a rare amount of speed for his sire, suggesting he’s gained the majority of his dam’s speed instead, who was a winner over five furlongs. Since dropping back from a mile to seven furlongs, his record on sharp tracks read 3111 suggesting a drop back to six on a galloping track like Newcastle could prove a shrewd move, and the two he pulled clear with at Wolverhampton last time out have both ran well next time out.
There’s a fair amount of pace in the contest particularly to the fore of the market with Berkshire Whisper, Carbine Harvester, Hello Zaman and Don Pacico all to have raced prominently last time out, and a proven surplus of stamina will favour this progressive son of Mastercraftsman, with George Wood retaining the ride to make it 3/5 for the yard.
2:25 Newcastle – Fillies’ And Mares’ Championships Handicap (Class 2) (4yo+) – Brazilian Rose 25/1 1pt EW 3 places
BRAZILIAN ROSE is one of nine fillies and mares running from out of the weights here as a result of last years winner Cloud Cover running back here off 103, but that one would have to run to a huge career high mark to give 11lbs to the field and it’s somewhat concerning the yard have give her a wind operation despite coming here on the back of two victories.
While she is 2lbs out of the weights, she pulled a length clear over course and distance with Mr Baloo last time out when perhaps hitting the front too soon on the outside ank, and the winner has since climbed 10lbs with two subsequent victories. With that in mind, she looks well handicapped off a mark of 79 even accounting for being 2lbs wrong.
Since stepping back up beyond five furlongs, her form at Newcastle reads 11132 and we can discount her effort at Lingfield in the trial for this, as she was ridden from the front there whereas all of her best form has come when held up. She was an eyecatcher on his first C&D start when beaten half a length when against perhaps hitting the front too soon on the unfavourable outside ank (1st/2nd came from stall seven and 11), but the form was franked healthily with the second taking the class two trial here at Lingfield, the fourth winning twice since and the fifth winning since too.
She is better drawn in stall 11 to drop in and come through the middle of the field this time around, and is certainly overlooked in the market presumably due to being wrong at the weights.
3:35 Newcastle – All-Weather Sprint Handicap (Class 2) (4yo+) – Fivethousandtoone 7/1 2pt WIN
Connections will have had this race in mind all season for last years winner FIVETHOUSANDTOONE, who’s course form reads 13214 and returns here for the first time since being beaten two lengths in the G3 Chipchase Stakes behind Montassib, who franked that form generously when taking the G1 Sprint Cup at Haydock next time out. The 116-rated second, Kinross, also franked the form when landing the G2 Park Stakes in September, the third won a handicap off 106 next time out and the fifth took a G3 in Deauville later in the season.
Fivethousandtoone’s turf season was something of a write off last season but he’s only 1/20 in that sphere, and he’s caught the eye back on the all-weather in his three starts this season. He has a 4lbs swing in the weights with We Never Stop on their last outing, and he lost his race at the start in a listed contest at Southwell in February, beaten two and a half lengths by Marshman. Though he was receiving 3lbs that day, he receives 9lbs this time around and the return of Oisin Murphy who on this on him last season bodes well for the in-form Easterby yard.
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