HARRIET BETHELL, who rode her first winner on the Flat aboard Fujin Dancer at Pontefract earlier this week, has good prospects of banging in a second at Ayr tomorrow.
The 24-year-old amateur rider, who has ridden a couple of winners over hurdles and who has also scored in the point-to-point field, teams up with a horse in form, Boy The Bell, who has won his last two races.
Successful in an apprentices’ race at Ripon, the Norton gelding followed up at Newcastle last week.
He runs in tomorrow’s totesport.com Amateur Riders’ Handicap and, although he’s gone up 6lb, Bethell’s 5lb claim will help to offset the extra burden.
Wendy Gibson, another North Yorkshire-based amateur, who has been among the winners lately, may give Boy The Bell and Bethell most to think about.
Gibson teams up with the Paul Midgley-trained Dispol Grand on whom she recently won at Leicester. He is in good heart, and is expected to go well again, but a 6lb penalty may just find him out and Boy The Bell is marginally preferred.
Norton-based apprentice Shane B Kelly is fast approaching his 20th success, which will enable him to reduce his riding allowance to 5lb. For the moment, he claims the maximum 7lb and that will be a plus for his regular partner Beckermet in the Bet On Wimbledon Final At totesport.com Handicap.
The Ruth Carr-trained gelding has been in admirably consistent form for weeks and he underlined his current well-being when running Legal Legacy to half a length at Doncaster on his latest outing a week ago. He should go well on a course where he has won in the past.
Keith Dalgleish has elected to fit a visor on Joshua The First in the Friends Of Bob Stirling Maiden Stakes and if the headgear has the desired effect, his juvenile could well post a deserving first win.
In the same in all his four races and runner-up on his last two starts, Joshua The First failed by only half a length to beat the well-regarded Bop It at Carlisle last week. Now stepping up to seven furlongs for the first time, Joshua The First has strong claims, provided none of the newcomers is out of the ordinary.
The Campbeltown Bar Stewart Scott Memorial Handicap is the richest race on a low-grade card and High Resolution is napped to score for Scottish trainer Linda Perratt, who won the corresponding race last year with Silver Rime.
High Resolution, who enjoyed a purple patch last summer, has shown glimpses of returning to form in recent races, not least last time out in the Carlisle Bell, in which he was beaten little more than four lengths into sixth place by Miami Gator.
This race is not as competitive a contest and High Resolution is fancied to resume winning ways in the hands of Dale Swift, who is returning to the saddle after spending much of this week sidelined with suspension.
Market Rasen promises to rely on some of the bigger names of the jumping game to provide the winners. A note should be made of the biggest name of all, Tony McCoy, who has double prospects aboard Oasis Knight (3.00), trained by Nicky Henderson, and Another Trump (4.30), trained by Jonjo O’Neill.
Henderson and O’Neill, two of Britain’s leading trainers, can also score with Western Approaches (5.30) and Kensington Oval (3.30) respectively, while champion trainer Paul Nicholls can also get into the mix, courtesy of Pistolet Noir (4.00).
Racing selections
Ayr
2.15 Joshua The First, 2.45 Beckermet, 3.15 Petomic, 3.45 High Resolution (NAP), 4.15 Amazing King, 4.45 Roman Ruler, 5.15 Boy The Bell.
Market Rasen
2.30 Twisted, 3.00 Oasis Knight, 3.30 Kensington Oval, 4.00 Pistolet Noir, 4.30 Another Trump, 5.00 Bajan Sunshine, 5.30 Western Approaches.
There are no other meetings tomorrow.
Today’s meetings
Beverley, Carlisle, Haydock, Leicester, Nottingham and Sandown.
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