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16/1 each-way tip in 6f sprint for Kevin
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He also likes the jolly in competitive handicap
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Would love to see Auguste Rodin win the feature
Qipco 2000 Guineas day at Newmarket has arrived. As we are all familiar with, the Flat season tends to stutter along in the first month or so after it commences, but this is the first big battleground.
Pecking orders are tested, new orders are established and stallion careers can well be made.
The threat of rain before Saturday's card makes assessing it at this stage somewhat tricky, but siding with selections that are not ground dependent in either direction will hopefully insulate us from the unexpected.
Hoping 16/1 tips finishes Above his rivals
Newmarket, 14:50 - Kev's Tip: Above each-way @ 16/1
The Howden Handicap (14:50) is a deeply-competitive heritage handicap and the one I like for it is the Stuart Williams-trained Above.
The six-year-old hasn't been a regular visitor to the winner's enclosure in recent times with his last success having come back in November 2021, but he looks particularly well handicapped and it seems only a matter of time before he strikes.
While it is a tough ask for the breakthrough to come in such a competitive race, it isn't as fanciful as it might seem when one considers he finished second in this race last year off a 6lb higher mark. While he has been more miss than hit since then, there have been glimmers of promise, including in his last two starts.
He shaped quite well on his seasonal return at Chelmsford and was well fancied to go close over this course and distance at the Craven meeting, but he got upset in the stalls, missed the kick and that was game over from there.
The hope is that he will avoid similar dramas this time around and bounce back to form. He is a big price for those willing to take a chance on him, with the Betfair Sportsbook paying a generous six places for each-way bets.
Jimi a better horse than ever before
Newmarket, 15:25 - Kev's Tip: Jimi Hendrix @ 4/1
The Howden Suffolk Stakes (15:25) is another brutally-tough heritage handicap, but I'm hoping it might prove to be a bit more straightforward to decipher as Jimi Hendrix looks to have excellent claims under a 5lb penalty.
The four-year-old had lost his form after winning a valuable handicap on the July course at Newmarket in July, but the application of first-time blinkers proved to be transformative on his most recent start in a valuable handicap at Newbury a fortnight ago.
The blinkers seemed to have a profound impact on him, as he looked a substantially better horse than he ever has before. The runner-up Lattam is a well handicapped horse in his own right, but he couldn't lay a glove on Jimi Hendrix.
He has to shoulder a 5lb penalty for that victory, but I'm not sure if 15lb extra would have stopped Jimi Hendrix winning on that day at Newbury. The key is whether he can produce that same level of form a fortnight later at Newmarket, but I am hopeful that he can.
He won't be a huge price for a race that is so competitive, but it wouldn't at all surprise if he followed up here.
I'd love to see Auguste win the 2,000 Guineas
As for the main event the Qipco 2000 Guineas, there are too many unknowns to have a strong view on it, in my opinion.
Little Big Bear put up one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen from a two-year-old in the Phoenix Stakes last year, but his stamina for a mile is a concern, particularly if the rain arrives.
Noble Style is another that I was very fond of last season, but the same question is attached to him. However, my heart would love to see Auguste Rodin win, as victory would set him on the path to the Derby and potentially the St Leger.
Such chat is undoubtedly premature, but we can but dream!
Racing... Only Bettor. Watch below.