Dancing Welcome (14:45) returned from a three-month break in great heart, winning a brace of handicaps at Wolverhampton in January before running particularly well in four of her next five starts. That solid run of performances has marked the six-year-old down as being in the form of her life, and her latest effort, beaten only a head but finishing six lengths clear of the third when second to Valmina at Bath last week, did nothing to deter from that notion. Her current BHA turf mark of 56 looks very favourable, being some 19 lb below her all-weather rating, and she looks about ready to cash in on that with a mere repeat of that Bath effort likely to suffice today.
Doncaster's 15:55 looks a fairly competitive event, with just 7 lb separating the field on Timeform weight-adjusted ratings, but it may be worth taking a chance on the David Barron-trained Sohcahtoa to end his lengthy losing sequence. The six-year-old made the frame on three occasions over today's distance of two miles in October, when trained by Robert Mills, and he shaped better than the result when fourth at Catterick on debut for this yard just over two weeks ago. Held up and finding himself poorly placed, Sohcahtoa was denied a clear run in the closing stages and appeared to finish with running left. He has slipped in the weights as a result of his losing run, and this looks a good opportunity to get his head back in front.
Pearl Blue (17:00) caught the eye when finishing fifth to Sugar Beet at Windsor on her seasonal reappearance last week. The four-year-old was poorly drawn and forced to race wide that day, making an effort a furlong out but eventually being disadvantaged by the run of the race. Her form took off in handicaps last season, winning at both Sandown and Windsor, on soft and good to soft ground respectively, and, with her lightly-raced profile, she promises to do even better this year. The dangers are plentiful, headed by Bouncy Bouncy and recent SmartPlay winner Rafaaf, but Pearl Blue is fancied to land the spoils.
Timeform SmartPlays
all at Doncaster
Back Dancing Welcome @ 4.3100/30 in the 14:45
Back Sohcahtoa @ 4.94/1 in the 15:55
Back Pearl Blue @ 4.84/1 in the 17:00
