In Cumbria the feature is the Carlisle Bell, which must be the only Class 4 handicap that commands its own consolation race (15:35). We actually see a stronger bet in the consolation than the typically competitive main event. Imperator Augustus has just snuck into the race off 64, that being a mark he scored from not 12 months ago (he has won from as high as 74). Big-field handicaps are what suits Imperator Augustus, his strong-travelling, late-coming style very much befitting the way such races tend to be run. A stiff finish could help, too, acknowledging that today's trip of a slightly-curtailed mile at a track as stiff as Carlisle will be towards the upper end of his stamina. Still, if Jack Garritty is able to get a tow through the race, Imperator Augustus is handicapped to put up a bold showing at double-figure odds.
We make a brief trip to Wiltshire for Salisbury's big race on the day, the Bibury Cup at 16:20. It's a 12-furlong handicap, competitive for the numbers, though Hymenaios stands quite literally head-and-shoulders above them. This huge colt hasn't really gone on from his Doncaster maiden win on his reappearance, though that's excusable: he faced heavy ground at Sandown next time and shaped well at Epsom on Derby day. You can mark him up on more than one account on that most recent run, forced to challenge wide having conceded first run while the undulations of the track are unlikely to see such a physically imposing sort to best effect. Salisbury is a much flatter track and this a less competitive event than that hot race, so Hymenaios is a justified favourite to take his first handicap success here.
We return to Carlisle just in time to catch their last (17:15), a fillies' handicap over just shy of seven furlongs that looks at the mercy of handicap debutante Angel Flores. She's making her first start of the year, though there was plenty to like about her two-year-old form. Two seconds preceded a win at Wolverhampton in November, when Angel Flores looked ready for a step up in trip in accounting for Oriental Relation, the pair well clear. The runner-up has lost his way in recent months, but immediately after losing to Angel Flores he went on a roll, his best performance coming when he won easily from a BHA mark of 81 at Kempton. Today Angel Flores steps up in trip, which is bound to prove beneficial, and races from a mark of just 71. If she's ready to go, which with her being trained by Richard Fahey you don't doubt, she could make a mockery of prices around 4.03/1.
Timeform UK SmartPlays
Back Imperator Augustus @ 15.529/2 in the 15:35 Carlisle
Back Hymenaios @ 3.39/4 in the 16:20 Salisbury
Back Angel Flores @ 4.131/10 in the 17:15 Carlisle
