Ffos Las Five!

     Manuelito is one of our 5 runners today!
We have five runners today at Ffos Las, Manuelito, Activist, Mr Tambourine Man, Paricolor and Heure De Gloire.  Behind the Curtain was also declared but he does not run.  Manuelito makes his handicap debut in the 2.30pm hurdle over 2 miles and Jack Tudor rides.  Our four year old has just had the three starts over hurdles and has improved with each run, winning a novice event at Wincanton last time.  He races today off a mark of 113 and while the race looks competitive I think he has scope for improvement off this rating and also gets a four year old age allowance as well.  The track and ground will be fine and he is a horse I like a lot.  The horse he finished second to at Taunton won again last week at Kempton, so the form looks solid and I expect him to put up a bold show at 11/2 second best in the betting.

Activist runs in the 3.00pm handicap hurdle over 2m4f and Jack Tudor is on board.  He won two races in quick succession in February at Plumpton and Taunton and while he couldn’t quite bring up the hat-trick I think he found it one race too many at that time.  We have freshened him up since and he seems in good form at home.  He does have to race off a career high handicap mark of 105 but he steps up in distance today and I think that will bring further improvement.  His is 8/1 third best in the betting and I hope he won’t be too far away in another competitive looking contest.

Paricolor (Tom Bellamy) and Mr Tambourine Man (Jack Tudor) run in the 3.00pm handicap hurdle over three miles.  Both horses have similar profiles with some good form in the book but their recent efforts have been a little disappointing.  This represents a drop in class for Paricolor and the handicapper has given him some help.  We have left all the headgear off and he will like the track and ground.  Hopefully Tom can get a good tune out of him today, he is about 9/1 in the betting.  I think Mr Tambourine Man will appreciate Ffos Las today more than he did at Plumpton last time where he found things happening all too quickly.  He has course form and runs in a first time visor today.  While I wouldn’t probably back him myself, I would not be surprised if he were to put up a better performance this afternoon.  He is the 14/1 outsider of the field and he has ability but is a little bit of a character!

Heure De Gloire completes our quintet of runners and she runs in division two of the 3 mile handicap hurdle and Jack Tudor rides.  She loves Ffos Las and will have welcomed the rain that fell earlier in the week.  She won at this track over two miles earlier this season but that was on very testing conditions.  That is what she loves ideally but she ran well enough over 2m4f at the track last time on some quicker ground, staying on really strongly over the last half a mile to be nearest at the finish and Jack thought she was worth a go over three miles while the ground was less testing.  She has finished placed on her only try over three miles in the past and I think she is each way value at 14/1 because she does save her best for this track and she is back to her last winning mark.

Ffos Las is not the only jumps fixture today with racing up at Perth as well.  On the Flat we have the first day of York’s Dante Festival and also racing at Bath.  In Ireland they have a jumps card at Tipperary and race on the flat at Sligo. 

Last night in the football, Man City 2-0 Spurs. Man City moved within one win of a historic fourth successive Premier League title with victory at Tottenham.  

There are two Premiership matches this evening with Brighton at home to Chelsea at 7.45pm and Manchester United play Newcastle at 8pm.

The man who invented throat lozenges died last week.

There was no coffin at the funeral!

Have a great Wednesday!