HARRY SKELTON: Chepstow Saturday
We didn’t have any luck on Friday, although Beau Quali ran a lovely race on his debut and Le Fauve will improve for his return, writes HARRY SKELTON.
There will be another day for all our runners, and we have got some strong chances on a valuable card at Chepstow once again.
CHEPSTOW
SATURDAY
KOUROSH – 2:10pm Chepstow
He bolted up last year at Wetherby, but things just didn’t quite go his way after that. He’s a big, scopey four-year-old and has had a wind operation this summer which will have done him a world of good having done loads of work at home. I’d hope that, off his mark, he can go very close here. It’s good to get him into this race and have a real crack at it.
BOOMBAWN – 2:45pm Chepstow
He got some good runs under his belt over the summer which saw him win well at Warwick, but things just haven’t happened for him since then in races we thought he’d have a good chance in. He’s had a bit of a break and freshened up since then and has experience over fences but has a few pounds to find with the top-rated challengers here. We think he’ll enjoy the good ground around the chase track, and we’d be delighted if he could pick up some money.
DOYEN QUEST, TAKE NO CHANCES & FOREVER WILLIAM – 3:20pm Chepstow
Doyen Quest is my ride. He was an improving horse last year and has always just done enough in his races, so is still ahead of the handicapper. He’s been going nicely at home but there are still some things to work on. He’s definitely fit enough but there’s still improvement to come for his first run. The long straight at Chepstow will be right up his street so he looks to have a good chance in what is a competitive handicap.
Harry Atkins rides Take No Chances, who has been given quite a lot of weight so Harry will be taking seven pounds off with his conditional licence. This mare has been doing well which is why the handicapper has her off such a high mark. She has been going really well at home though, and can run well, the question is just whether or not she has much left in her mark.
Forever William is down at the bottom of the weights and Heidi Palin will take seven pounds off as well. He ran well at Newton Abbott in his comeback run which definitely blew away the cobwebs and now he looks a lot sharper. Heidi gets on well with him and he has an each-way chance coming into this race if the pairing’s last outing is anything to go by.
THE KING OF RYHOPE & FLEGMATIK – 4:00pm Chepstow
The King Of Ryhope is a course and distance winner but was slightly disappointing towards the end of last season when not staying over three miles at Aintree. His jumping is okay, but he didn’t have that much experience last season when taking on a test like Aintree so hopefully this year he should be a bit wiser in that department. He goes really well fresh and holds every chance if he finds a good rhythm and is ridden patiently.
Flegmatik has been a grand old servant for us and won last year under Tristan Durrell at his beloved Kempton. This race is very much a starting point for him this season as he’s a harder horse to get fit, but we’ve done as much as we can with him at home so it’s about getting him out on the track now. Win, lose or draw he should tighten up for the run but the handicapper has a tight grip on him so we will see how he goes – there should be easier opportunities that crop up throughout the season.
BALLYGRIFINCOTTAGE & SAIL AWAY – 4:35pm Chepstow
I ride Ballygrifincottage who had some sort of resurgence last year when racing in some pretty competitive races without winning. He looks to be off a nice mark, and we’ve done lots of work with him at home. We’re fitting cheekpieces and a tongue tie which he’s worn before and seemed to work . If everything drops into place, on his day he’s more than able to run a good race and the three-mile trip should suit him well here.
Sail Away didn’t get much falling right for him at the backend of last season . The handicapper has him high enough but we’ve seen it before that when things fall into place he looks very good, but, it can also work the other way and he can at times throw in bad runs. He comes here fresh with Harry Atkins on board who’ll take seven pounds off so provided he finds a good rhythm at the front, he can run well around this track and get some confidence back.
MONEYGARROW – 5:10pm Chepstow
I’m very hopeful that he’ll run well, and we’ve loved everything we’ve seen from him at home. He has a great attitude to work and already has a point-to-point win under his belt, which he won nicely. This track is really going to suit him and we think he’ll have a good chance. We’ve done plenty of work for a four-year-old bumper horse first time out and he ticks all the boxes to run a competitive race.
Good luck,
HARRY
STAR PROMOTIONS