-
Kevin Blake gives his Big Race Verdict on the Betfair Ascot Chase
-
Five runners go to post in the Ascot feature
-
Pic D'orhy to prove his class
-
Our Cheltenham offer is live! Get a completely free bet every weekend until the Festival
Timeform Superboost
Annsam is among the market leaders for the 3m Betfair Swinley Handicap Chase at Ascot this afternoon and is the NAP selection of Betfair tipster Daryl Carter. The horse has finished in the top five in two of his three races at Ascot and today you can back him at the super-boosted price of 1/12.00 (from 4/61.67 to finish in the top five once again.
To take advantge of this super-boosted price just click on the odds in the below bet banner to go directly to the pre-loaded betslip.
*Pleae Note: This superboost is provided by the Betfair Sportsbook and not by any of our tipsters or writers.
Back Annsam to finish Top 5 in the 15:00 at Ascot
Racing... Only Bettor. Listen to the latest episode now!
Betfair Ascot Chase the betting feature on Saturday
The Betfair Ascot Chase (15:37) is the main event on Saturday. It is a race that has produced some memorable winners over the decades. In the last 20 years alone, it was won by the great Kauto Star, twice by Cue Card (four years apart!) and Shishkin, but it has often proven to be a happy hunting ground for those that are well suited by mid-range trips such as Riverside Theatre, Silviniaco Conti and Cyrname.
This year's renewal has attracted five runners including two Irish raiders. On paper, it represents a real puzzle and promises to be an exciting contest. So, how is it likely to pan out?
Betfair Ascot Chase pace map
From a pace perspective, it would seem a relatively straightforward race to map. Last year's winner of this race Pic D'orhy looks to be the likeliest leader. He made all when winning this race last year and indeed has gained most of his career wins when making the running or helping push the pace.
L'Homme Presse likes to race prominently and can occasionally help push the pace, but he followed Pic D'orhy in this race last year. Flegmatik and Le Patron have been racing prominently in recent starts. Blue Lord can race prominently but hasn't been any more forward than that in recent times.
Can Pic D'orhy land back to back renewals?
We'll start with the likely leader Pic D'Orhy. Paul Nicholls have done an excellent job maximising the 10-year-old during his career. On all known evidence, the son of Turgeon is no better than a low-160s horse on his very best day, but Nicholls has campaigned him so well that he has won six Grade 2s and two Grade 1s over fences as well as the Betfair Hurdle earlier in his career.
A key part of the horse accumulating so much prize money over his career is that Nicholls has always been sensible with him, keeping him fresh and firing him up for races that play to his strengths at junctions in the season that other trainers that are one-eyed for the Cheltenham Festival either have their horses undercooked or under wraps.
Targeting this race is a prime example of that as while he was unlucky to bump into Shishkin on his return from an interrupted season in 2023, last year's renewal of this race allowed him to boss a four-runner field to gain his second Grade 1 win. While this is far from a soft-touch renewal of the race, connections of Corbetts Cross have referred to this race as a stepping stone for him to the Gold Cup, whilst L'Homme Presse may possibly have started to slide given he is officially rated 7lb lower for this than he was in last year's renewal of the race.
Nicholls has kept Pic D'orhy fresh since he made a winning return in a Grade 2 over this course and distance in November and one can be sure that he won't be sending him to this race anything other than primed for the job at hand. He represents the bar that the rest have to come to, so can any of his rivals surpass his level on the day?
L'Homme Presse and Corbetts Cross worthy contenders
As mentioned, L'Homme Presse did this column a turn when winning the Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham in late-January, but the style of his win was at the workmanlike end of the scale, beating Stage Star by ¾-length despite being in receipt of 4lb from a rival rated 4lb lower than him. He clearly retains plenty of ability, but might well be capable of 160 at best these days. Given that he seems a better horse going right-handed and over longer trips than this, he makes the least appeal of the main contenders.
The trickiest one to assess is the Emmet Mullins-trained Corbetts Cross. The eight-year-old has never been the easiest to pin down in terms of preferences, as his trainer hasn't been shy of testing his versatility in terms of trip. Over the course of his last two full seasons, he has won a Grade 2 novice hurdle over just shy of two miles at Naas as well as having won the National Hunt Chase over three miles and six furlongs at the Cheltenham Festival last year. His two runs this season have solid and he shaped better than the bare result on both occasions, but his trainer is clearly building towards the Gold Cup with him and this drop in trip probably isn't ideal for him.
Betfair Ascot Chase verdict
All told, there is every chance that Pic D'orhy will be able to dictate matters from the front. With his main rival Corbetts Cross likely to be dropped in, Pic D'orhy may well get the run of the race and thus the very best chance to prove that he is the best of these over this course-and-distance.
Back Pic D'orhy in the 15:37 Ascot