Paul Jacobs’ Sunday Racing Tips
13:15 Punchestown – Desertmore House
13:25 Uttoxeter – Toss Of A Coin
14:25 Punchestown – Journey With Me
14:50 Exeter – Ioupy Collonges
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
13:15 Punchestown – Desertmore House
A Pertemps qualifier to start and as always the question is do you act as a shrewdie and hit the first four to try and hopefully secure a place in the March final? Or do you try and land the first prize for a nice success in its own right? I suppose if you need to go up the weights to appear in the March run off, there’s no debating whether to win or not. There are a few runners here in between those two cauldrons of form/fitness and ratings.
That aside! A Tipp For Gold definitely needs a hike in the weights, but he’s only going to improve on what he’s shown so far. His third of eight behind World of Fortunes showed this extra yardage holds no fears for him and he could take the requisite next step to trouble his more experienced rivals. Fairyhouse winner Whatsavailable and the well handicapped Francisan Rock also come into the equation, but rated some 16lbs lower over the smaller obstacles, DESERTMORE HOUSE is certainly the value call with the ground set to be more testing.
The last time he ran over timber was in an eye-catching, staying on third of 14 behind Noble Birth (who recently ran well at Cheltenham), off a mark of 125. Pulled up in the Kerry National, this stuffy individual left that form behind last time out, in third to French Dynamite in the BetVictor Chase, and that second run should have brought him nicely to a peak.
13:25 Uttoxeter – Toss Of A Coin
There are plenty of questions to be answered in this six runner field for this novices handicap chase over 3m. Does Hillcrest retain all of his ability after nearly three years off the track as he is made to jump a fence? He was a 148 rated hurdler after a big setback when pulled up in the Albert Bartlett of 2022, but a quick glance in the parade ring at this lovely physical specimen could show more.
Olly Murphy’s Roccovango is certainly going the right way, following victories at Hexham and Worcester, and a second behind Guard Your Dreams at Warwick last month. But he shapes as if two and a half miles is more his trip and I’d rather side with the Paul Nicholls’ TOSS OF A COIN even though many of his runners so far this season have needed their first outing.
Winner of a point-to-point and two of his three starts over hurdles (went too quick on the third of them at Wincanton behind Issam) he’s made for this game both in physique and breeding and I think Nicholls has found him a lovely starting point – with young Freddie Gingell taking 3lbs off – he looks nicely treated off 125 if he takes to the larger obstacles at the first time of asking.
14:25 Punchestown – Journey With Me
This is arguably the best strength in depth renewal of the John Durkan since it was first run in 1968 over 2m (first run under its current guise in 1998) and there is no bigger talking point than round seven of Fastorslow vs. Galopin Des Champs. Of the pair there is little doubt that this trip, just short of two and a half mile, suits the former better, but there are some seriously good horses in this field of nine that are much more aligned to the distance.
One of those is JOURNEY WITH ME who remains a work in progress at this discipline despite being an eight-year-old. His third win over fences in the Grade Two Fairyhouse Chase – when he crushed Appreciate It by eight lengths – was a cracking performance and you can massively upgrade his subsequent weakening seventh of nine in the Punchestown Gold Cup. If you look at the replay of that extended three mile Grade One, nothing was travelling as well at the son of Mahler turning for home, as he ranged up to the leaders. However, once push came to shove under Darragh O’Keefe there was little left under the bonnet.
This is almost certainly his optimum trip and with more rain forecast, he will get the dig underfoot he needs to show his best form, and if ready fitness wise I can see him readily outrunning huge odds.
The dark horse is of course the Brown Advisory hero Fact or File and he remains a youngster firmly in the ‘could be anything’ category. But he was beaten on his chase debut first time out last season, and I’m clinging to that fact here, for what it is worth! I’m sure we are yet to see the best of Grangeclare West (possibly needs further), while Blue Lord ran well in this race last year to a point and the progressive Spillane’s Tower is three from three here over fences.
14:50 Exeter – Ioupy Collonges
This looks an absolute crackerjack of a class three handicap chase at the West Country track and my eyes were first drawn to Broomfield Present who I always thought would make into a smart staying handicap chaser after I saw him win an extended three mile handicap hurdle at Haydock Park under 12 stone off a mark of 122. He ran well here on his chasing debut, behind Make Me A Believer last November, but was brought down at Uttoxeter in a horrible incident before blowing out as a short priced favourite in the Haldon Stayers Crown Handicap in December. Not seen since, he’s obviously had a few problems, and you would understand if one of them was a mental one after that incident. However, it’s still early days for him and he’s suited by the layout here so any money for him would be significant.
The Paul Nicholls’ trained IOUPY COLLONGES won a handicap hurdle here off 112 in April 2023, but chasing was always going to be his game, and after suffering from an irregular heartbeat on his chase debut behind Chianti Classico he opened his account at the third time of asking with a smooth April win at Perth. Always at the sharp end, he travelled well all the way around, and jumped with ease and efficiency. Propped up a mere 3lbs in the weights I fancy he could be a Cheltenham horse in Spring and is an exciting staying chaser in the making.
Paul Jacobs’ Sunday Racing Tips
13:15 Punchestown – Desertmore House
13:25 Uttoxeter – Toss Of A Coin
14:25 Punchestown – Journey With Me
14:50 Exeter – Ioupy Collonges
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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