After a weekend of Cheltenham trials on both sides of the Irish Sea, it is back to more pedestrian fare this afternoon, but there are a few runners worthy of close inspection, Kauto Riko (2.40) being the most obvious in the first of the handicap hurdles at Catterick Bridge.
Tom Gretton’s six-year-old did not show much on his handicap debut last April, but looked a different proposition altogether when he returned to the track after an eight-month break at Market Rasen on Boxing Day. Kauto Riko travelled smoothly throughout and put the race to bed when asked with something to spare, and a 7lb rise in the weights is not excessive in the circumstances. He steps up another furlong today, and as the son of a half-sister to Kauto Star, no less, that will hopefully bring more than enough improvement to justify a bet at around 11-4.
I Just Know (4.10) also makes plenty of appeal in the stayers’ handicap chase on the same card. This seven-runner race could well end up being an effective match between I Just Know and Nortonthorpelegend, whose winning sequence ended at three last time out when he fell at the eighth in a race at Ayr. There is not much to choose between the pair of them on the bare form, but I Just Know is only four races into his chasing career, and that scope for further improvement could make the difference today.
Gardiners Hill (3.30) is on a roll and that should continue at Plumpton, where the lightly-raced Wishicould (4.00) is another who should be competitive in a race that may not take much winning.
On the Flat at Wolverhampton, meanwhile, Perfect Cracker (3.50) has a big chance in the most valuable race on the card, a handicap worth nearly £12,000 to the winner. Clive Cox’s runner is a model of consistency, and his last four wins have all come over today’s course and distance. The last of those was off a mark just 1lb below today’s, and he showed that he is close to his peak when finishing a close third here last month.
Plumpton
2.00 Phoeniciana
2.30 Royal Salute
3.00 Cobolobo
3.30 Gardiners Hill
4.00 Wishicould
4.30 Work
Catterick Bridge
2.10 Same Circus
2.40 Kauto Riko (nap)
3.10 Powerful Symbol
3.40 Snowed In
4.10 I Just Know (nb)
4.40 Mountain Hawk
Wolverhampton
2.20 Persistence
2.50 Haraka
3.20 Dutch Uncle
3.50 Perfect Cracker
4.20 Miss Dusky Diva
4.50 Dandilion
5.20 Fabulous Flyer
5.50 Siege Of Boston
