Horse Racing Tips: Back Opportunity at Carlisle and two more chances on Saturday

Carlisle, 13:30 - Back Opportunity @ 7/42.75

Saturday is a rare chance for the north to showcase two of its smaller courses on ITV, with Carlisle - courtesy of Haydock's misfortunes - and Beverley taking centre stage.

The Cumbrian venue has taken over Saturday's cancelled Haydock meeting in its entirety, while also adding the Silver Bowl which wasn't able to be run due to the unfortunate circumstances that befell that particular track last weekend.

The opening race can go the way of the lightly-raced Opportunity, who boasts some strong three-year-old form and wasn't seen to best effect on his four-year-old bow at Ascot earlier in the month.

The William Haggas-trained son of Frankel was a winner in novice company at Haydock on his first start last season (beating subsequent St Leger runner-up Rahiebb) and was then thought good enough to contest listed and Group company after that.

While the selection didn't cut too much ice at that sort of level, he should be more than capable of turning into a smart handicapper at the very least this term. His comeback run displayed plenty of promise and he didn't get the best of runs.

Gelded prior to that run, there should be plenty more to come from Opportunity this season and his current mark of 92 may well underestimate him to fair degree.

Beverley, 13:45 - Back Urban Glimpse @ 2/13.00

The pair of two-year-old races at Beverley could well provide plenty of Royal Ascot clues, but they don't appeal as betting mediums and I'd much rather concentrate on the opening handicap, where Andrew Balding's Urban Glimpse will take all the beating.

A lightly-raced four-year-old, the selection ran with credit all three times in handicaps last season and those were stronger affairs than he gets to race in here.

The final race of his campaign looks a notably strong piece of form in the context of this event, with the winner King's Charter now boasting a Timeform rating of 114 having performed with credit in good handicaps out in Meydan over the winter.

Urban Glimpse should appreciate dropping into the calmer waters of 0-85 company having looked pretty rusty on his comeback in a 0-100 contest at Goodwood last time, while the trainer's strong record at this track only adds to the appeal (40% strike-rate in the last five years).

Unfortunately, the selection has shortened appreciably in the time it's taken me to type this column out, but I think his current Betfair Sportsbook price of 2/13.00 is just about acceptable.

Carlisle, 15:45 - Back Princling @ 3/14.00

The Silver Bowl has been rerouted to Carlisle from Haydock, having been cancelled last week, and I see no reason to desert my original selection Princling at this new venue.

This race nearly always produces strong form and this year's renewal should prove no exception, with 16 runners heading to post, several of which have the potential to graduate from handicaps into stakes races as the season progresses.

A son of Kingman, Princling got off the mark at the third time of asking in a novice at Wetherby on his seasonal return last month, still looking far from the finished article but only needing hand riding to assert.

However, it's not primarily the form of that contest that makes him stand out here but more the form of his second to Yazin on the second of two starts that Princling made as a juvenile.

That one bolted up again on his next start, which suggests the selection could well be a handicap blot starting out life in this sphere from a mark of just 87.

Of the opposition, Langstone may prove the main threat.

Clive Cox's charge has plenty of potential himself having won two of this three starts and his opening mark could also prove lenient given the form of his latest success at Kempton.

Now read more horse racing tips and previews here