hot handicaps

the rest of today´s cards are dominated by some very competitive handicaps. The big betting races are the two 6 furlong races at Ripon, in which we hope that low drawn horses have an advantage (this is often the case after rain). Kevin Ryan has a good record in such races and we like his Chooseday (Peter McDonald) at 15.50. The top race at 16.30 looks very difficult and it is possible to make a case for and against every runner. Regular Readers will nmow that we like veterrans in such eventsd and we therefore hope that 11yo Borderlescott (Robin Bastiman/ Jason Hart) and 9yo Regal Parade (Milton Bradley/ Matthew Lawson) will run well; both are drawn low, act on soft ground and have dropped a long way down the weights. Captain Ramius (Kevin Ryan/ Phillip Makin) is only 7, but also fits these requirements; he beat Regal Parade in last year´s Ayr Gold Cup on very soft ground, but the latter is now 10 lbs better off.
Another 11yo we fancy today is Tax Free (David Nicholls/ Fran Berry) over 5 furlongs at 17.15 at Doncaster, although in his case we hope the rain stays away.
At Chester we like Ayaar (Mick Channon/ Sam Hitchcott) in the 7 1/2 furlongs handicap at 16.10. He won the Zukunfts-Rennen at Baden-Baden last year and has finally come down the weights a bit after running in some hot races. He is well drawn and looks a decent each-way bet at a goop price.
All the above are very speculative but we are optimistic that at least some of them run into the money. A likely winner at much shorter odds is ex-German Kassiano (Saeed bin Suroor/ Neil Callan) at 17.00 at Newmarket; he has not run since finishing down the field in the Dubai World Cup, but should outclass today´s opposition.

Betting forecast:
1. Race: Cheeky Peta`s - Heroique - Ahoy There
2. Race: Gabbiano - Hopes N Dreams - Chooseday
3. Race: Baccarat - Spinatrix - Louis The Pious
4. Race: Robert The Painter - Annina - Le Chat D`Or
5. Race: Milly`s Secret - Hello Beautiful - Milly`s Secret
6. Race: I Say - Hot Rod Mamma - Nemushka
7. Race: Ambleside - Beat The Tide - Good Speech