Doncaster’s card on Saturday could rival Cheltenham for quality from start to finish. With multiple Grade 2s throughout the day, there will almost certainly be some pointers for even bigger races later in the season.
GG writer Joe Napier goes through-the-card to bring you his picks in every race, including the three which are live on ITV Racing.
All of the action on the card will be sponsored by SBK, where you can get a massive £30 in free bets when you first bet £10!
11:50 Doncaster – SBK Handicap Chase
This looks a handicap to focus towards the top of the market with. Traprain Law bolted up last time on just his second chase start, but that was on heavy, so while he is unexposed and has a good ground win over hurdles, he is worth taking on up in class.
The best-treated pair look to be Calico and top-weight FUNAMBULE SIVOLA. The latter is preferred with Ned Fox’s 5lb claim a valuable asset coupled with a sliding rating, while five of his seven career wins have come between January and March. This time last year he won his second Grade 2 Game Spirit Chase at Newbury and is 4lb lower than when winning this race two years ago, so can be forgiven his recent form, which has been steadily improving anyway.
12:20 Doncaster – SBK Fillies’ Juvenile Hurdle (Listed)
There’s no getting away from WODHOOH, who has not been foot perfect in her career, but possesses comfortably the best form, and it takes too much faith to back against her. Her Newbury win barely required Jack Kennedy to get serious and while the opposing Max Of Stars did the form no favours at Aintree, that should not matter.
Even with the 5lb penalty applied she should deal with these comfortably, especially as main rival Green Sky’s recent third took a major knock through the runner-up. Ezemerellda looks the main danger if her last-time-out success was as great an improvement as it appeared, though she still has 20 lengths to make up with the selection.
12:55 Doncaster – SBK Handicap Hurdle
This is fiercely competitive, so it might be worth taking a chance on the one horse who could take it apart. SANS BRUIT will be having his first run for Paul Nicholls since joining from David Cottin for whom he won six times over hurdles and fences, including in a three-year-old Grade 3 in September 2021.
Since then, he has also finished fourth in the Grade 1 Prix Maurice Gillois and seventh last year in the Grade 1 Grande Course de Haies d’Auteuil, won by recent Stayers’ Hurdle favourite Theleme. He finished in front of Haut En Couleurs, Flooring Porter, Asterion Forlonge and Kilcruit, all horses rated above 155 in some capacity. The ground raises a question for him, but an opening mark of 134 could look ridiculous come Saturday evening if he has acclimatised to conditions.
1:30 Doncaster – SBK Supreme Trial Rossington Main Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2)
The extremely exciting JERIKO DU REPONET could become the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle favourite if extending his unbeaten record in fashion akin to his first two hurdles starts. The five-year-old has needed little more than to wake up to defeat his rivals in two contests at Newbury, the latter of which looked a decent race. He faces three rivals who are also on a hat-trick here, so this may prove his sternest test, but everything he has done so far has suggested he is out of the ordinary.
2:05 – SBK Yorkshire Rose Mares’ Hurdle (Grade 2)
Two of the three favourites for the Cheltenham Festival Mares’ Hurdle lock horns while the market leader, Lossiemouth, goes to Cheltenham. They are Willie Mullins’ pair of ASHROE DIAMOND and Gala Marceau, who appear in reverse order in this market compared with their ante-post positions for Cheltenham, but largely because the former is in receipt of 3lb.
Ashroe Diamond has been third three times in Grade 1 company against the boys, including a very credible third to Teahupoo in the Hatton’s Grace in December. She is unbeaten over hurdles in mares’ only races and might be better suited stepping back to 2m than her stablemate. Nicky Henderson’s Under Control remains somewhat of an unknown, but could well be dangerous.
2:40 Doncaster – Albert Bartlett River Don Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2)
All of these novice hurdlers have the potential to improve for this maximum trip, with Destroytheevidence already placed in a similar race of this grade at Cheltenham. However, WELCOM TO CARTRIES needed every yard of 2m5½f to find full stride at Ascot last time, but eventually came clear to win comfortably in a useful race.
He was previously second over 2m3f to the promising Beat The Bat on his hurdles debut and that now looks a trip well short of his optimum. That he was able to go so close speaks very positively to his ability and this 16-length point-to-point winner could find even more now upped to 3m½f.
3:15 Doncaster – SBK Great Yorkshire Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap)
It would be no surprise if last year’s second Cap Du Nord found significant improvement on his recent efforts given the yard he hails from. He is now 11, though, and that is no longer such a guarantee at that age, so the percentage call is Irish raider SWEET WILL. Now with Emmet Mullins, he won over hurdles when still with Gavin Cromwell at Doncaster last March.
That was off a mark of 126, and while that is not so directly comparable to his rating of 122 over fences here, he has run very well on his first two starts for Mullins, with his latest fourth not representative of his effort given how badly hampered he was at the last. His hurdles win here came over 3m too and his trainer has won with four of his seven runners in Britain so far this season.
3:50 Doncaster – SBK Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase
Top-weight MONMIRAL could prove a class above these given good ground should be absolutely ideal for him. He has never run on such a surface before, but his best career efforts have been on good to soft. On softer ground last time, he failed to keep up in the December Gold Cup, though that was a markedly more competitive race than this one.
He is worth another go up to 3m and can put his extended chase experience to good use in this field down to a mark of 142.
Doncaster Through-The-Card Tips
Jeriko Du Reponet
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