Timeform UK SmartPlays: Saturday December 21

It's an early start, our opening bet coming in the first race at 12:45. Even though it's just a 0-120, the race has attracted a field full of improvers and it's one with such a profile that we're putting up. Brave Buck has been transformed this winter, winning in good style at Ffos Las and particularly Chepstow last time. This is of course a tougher assignment, but it's not just recent progress that marks out Brave Buck. The Henry Daly yard continues in sterling form, while this step up to three miles promises to suit the stoutly-bred Brave Buck. Few can match that in terms of sheer weight of positives in this field, so Brave Buck is the selection.

We're asking you to hark back to the very beginning of 2013 for SmartPlay number two. Then, Charlie Longsdon chose the Tolworth Hurdle as the mid-winter target for his impressive novice Pendra (13:50), a decision largely vindicated by his second-placed finish to Melodic Rendezvous. The same horse was subject to an ante-post gamble in the Coral Cup on his next start, the feeling being a BHA mark of 139 was well within his reach, but he was luckless in running and never involved.

Fast-forward to the tail end of the year. Pendra is now an impressive novice chaser- two from two and looking a real natural along the way. Now, instead of the Scilly Isles or another graded novice, Longsdon has seen fit to enter Pendra in a handicap. Off 139.  This obviously isn't as competitive as a Coral Cup either and, although that's slightly offset against the idea that Pendra will ultimately do better over further, it's fancied that he'll be well up to completing the hat-trick over fences.

The Ladbroke is in the realm of competitiveness you'd normally expect of a Coral Cup, so here's a little disclaimer at the start to say there are no guarantees. Chatterbox could be destined for better things and Totalize is almost certainly well handicapped, though their current prices aren't anything to get excited about in such a well-contested heat, so instead back Swing Bowler win and place. Like Chatterbox, she could have a higher calling than handicaps, her first try in the David Nicholson at the Festival worth putting a line through. Swing Bowler is ultimately going to prove better suited to trips beyond two miles, but if she's ever to excel over the minimum distance it's in a big-field handicap over a stiff course; lo and behold, here's just such a chance. Swing Bowler deserves to be shorter than the 21.020/1 available at the time of writing. NON RUNNER

Timeform UK SmartPlays
All at Ascot

Back Brave Buck in the 12:45
Back Pendra in the 13:50
Back Swing Bowler win and place in the 15:35 NON RUNNER