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Today's Racing News: Have a bite at one of Friday's fantastic five

Daryl Carter
28 January 2022
4 min read

Doncaster plays host to the feature race of the day.

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Five fantastic meetings for punters on Friday with action from Doncaster, Huntingdon, Lingfield, Dundalk and Wolverhampton and as always, Daryl Carter is on hand to guide you through...

"The Big Bite is priced at 7/2 W/O Funambule Sivola and Before Midnight on the Betfair Sportsbook, and that's too good a price to turn down."

It was a fascinating day at Gowran Park yesterday. Royal Kahala turned over Klassical Dream to send shock waves through the Stayers Hurdle market, pushing the latter out to 5/1 with the former clipped into 14/1 on the Betfair Sportsbook.

For those of you that followed me in with Tathmeen at Newcastle, I suspect you would have had your heads in your hands as I did as he was continuously denied a clear run to finish on the bridle!

Onto today's racing, we head to Doncaster for their feature race of the day, one I am somewhat suspicious about, and we take a look at some more flat action.

Money Talk

Money Talk continues to highlight the Betfair Sportsbook big-money moves to keep you in the loop. This section highlights market moves between 1:00 am and 9:00 am.

14:00 Huntingdon - Storm Dennis 11/1 into 9/1
14:35 Huntingdon - Galice Macalo 9/1 into 7/1
15:00 Doncaster - Killane - 5/1 into 10/3

The morning market drifters !

Which horse is the Betfair Sportsbook market suggesting to Lay?

15:10 Huntingdon - Bells Of Peterborough 9/4 OUT 11/4

Mark your card

The Betfair Sportsbook is paying extra places today!

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The opening 12:25 at Huntingdon is worth keeping an eye on. Some useful horses have won this contest in the past, and Captain Broomfield 1.910/11 for Emma Lavelle offered plenty of promise on his racecourse debut at Haydock.

In division two of the above contest at 12:55, Shallow River 2.77/4 makes his hurdle debut under jockey Paddy Brennan who boasts a 31% strike rate for Fergal O'Brien at Huntingdon.

Jockey David Maxwell is profitable to back when riding for Philip Hobbs to the tune of £35 to a £1 level stake. Today he rides For Langy 17.016/1 in the 14:00 at Huntingdon.

Trainer Nicky Henderson has a whopping 35% strike rate over hurdles at Huntingdon, and he sends two runners, both ridden by Nico de Boinville and both for owner Miss Rita Brown. Royal Ruby 2.89/5 in the 13:25 and Mill Green 9.08/1 in the 15:10. I quite fancy the latter to run a big race.

At Lingfield in the 14:10 Handicap, trainer Robert Cowell has booked Joe Fanning for the ride on Jazzy Princess 13.012/1 and the pair have a 23% overall strike rate together and a 50% strike rate at Lingfield.

Sea Formula 2.77/4 looks like a winner in waiting, and the 16:45 Handicap step up to 1m1f will be in her favour as William Haggas will look to enhance his 24% strike rate at Wolverhampton. Jockey Adam Farragher has a 60% strike rate when riding for this owner.

Trainer Olly Murphy has a 46% strike rate in bumpers at Huntingdon. Today he sends Rambo T 5.59/2 in the 16:10.

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Horses for courses

This section highlights horses that have won twice or more at today's tracks and could be in with a chance today.

18:15 Wolverhampton - Nelson River - Has won here twice (40%)
19:15 Wolverhampton - Golden Force - Has won here twice (40%)

Weighted to go well

"Weighted to go well" highlights horses running that are more than 10lbs below their last winning handicap mark.

15:20 Lingfield - Too Shy Shy - Has won off 69 runs off 53
19:45 Wolverhampton - Qaaraat - Has won off 62 runs off 51

Form Watch

This section highlights a trainer, owner or jockey who is in excellent current form and their runners or rides for the day.

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Trainer Nicky Henderson has had ten winners from his last 34 runners with a healthy strike rate of 29%. He has two runners at Huntingdon today highlighted in the mark your card section and has a 35% and 40% strike rate over hurdles and fences.

Furthest traveller

Today's furthest traveller is trainer Paul John Gilligan with his runner Varna Gold 9.08/1 in the 15:10 at Huntingdon. At this venue, the trainer is zero for six, but market support would be interesting.

Race of the day

We head to Doncaster for their 13:15 Handicap Chase, a race trainer Venetia Williams won last year with Ibelo before his run in the Grand Annual at the Cheltenham Festival. This time around, she has the ridiculously well-handicapped Funambule Sivola.

Funambule Sivola heads the market and is surely one of the best-handicapped horses in training over today's two-mile trip. He can easily be forgiven his two runs this term over a trip too far of 2 1/2 miles and before that chased home Shishkin at Aintree, finding him just three lengths too good.

There is little doubt that this horse is worthy of a rating in the 160s, and he is an out and out two-miler, but he was given a very gentle ride at Cheltenham on New Years Day, and suspicion is that he has a bigger target down the line.

He has been dropped four pounds in two runs this season, and he surely has little chance against the likes of Shishkin, Energumene and Chacan Pour Soir, to name a few in the Champion Chase, and options are few and far between.

It may be paranoia setting in as the only reason not to back him here, but it might also be a little short-sighted to have a good lump on him.

He would undoubtedly wipe the floor with these under normal circumstances, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him given an easy time of things either with the future in mind.

The Big Bite likes it here with a victory and a second-place finish in this contest last year off the same handicap mark. He looks sure to pick up the running from an early stage, and he could prove tough to pass.

He is a good horse on his day, albeit no match for an on song Funambule Sivola, but the drop back to two miles is in his favour, as is the course and the good ground.

He needs to bounce back from a below-par effort last time, but he has likeable claims in this contest.

Before Midnight has been a progressive horse this term and saw his winning run come to an end at the hands of Shishkin at Kempton last time, it's hard to suggest he is well-handicapped off this mark of 148, but the return to a left-handed track (can jump left) is a positive to his chances.

He is entitled to be in the thick of things.

Big race verdict

It's tough to get involved with this race with the scepticism about Funambule Sivola, who will prove extremely hard to beat on a going day. He is not one I want to back or lay here because of the reasons above, which also leaves you in limbo with just the seven runners and two places when backing something else.

The Big Bite is priced at 7/2 W/O Funambule Sivola and Before Midnight on the Betfair Sportsbook, and that's too good a price to turn down.

Timeform have the winning formula at Wolverhampton

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Timeform's Andrew Asquith highlights a NAP, Next Best and Each-Way selection at Wolverhampton on Friday.

Read Timeform tips here.

Dudman at the double

Alan Dudman takes in another Dundalk race on Friday to form part of his 21/1 Sportsbook multiple...

Read Alan's column here.

Final Word

As if Tathmeen finishing on the bridal wasn't a big enough dig in the ribs, news broke that captain of the Cheltenham Festival Focus column Ferny Hollow will miss the Cheltenham Festival through injury.

If there was one horse I wanted or needed to at least get there, it was Ferny Hollow, thousands of pounds worth of multiples, including a Ferny Hollow Bob Olinger 66/1 double, a 119/1 treble with Honeysuckle went down the drain!

The risks of ante-post betting are undeniable, but it doesn't hurt any less when one as big as this drops out.

It's back to the drawing board and time to regroup and go again.

Until Monday, be lucky.

Follow Daryl Carter on Twitter @DarylCarter7

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