Monday hands us four meetings and a fairly even split between the ones we are confident about and the ones we are taking a chance on. Nine of our seventeen picks are 3/1 or shorter. The other eight are prices worth a second look, and most of them are under floodlights.
Catterick opens things up and it is the meeting we have the most on. Five selections across the afternoon, starting with Super Hit in the 2:15. He heads to one of James Owen’s stronger tracks and the good ground is exactly what his record has been asking for. He was third last time in a reasonable time, so there is no great leap required here. Edmond Halley in the 3:15 and Black Storm in the 4:45 are the two we are most comfortable about on the card, with Eevee Star at 9/1 in the 2:45 the one for anyone who wants a bigger price out of Yorkshire.
Lingfield runs alongside it and it is a shorter afternoon in every sense. Three picks, and Veil Of Clouds at 6/5 in the 4:00 is the shortest thing we have all day. Poppy Foxy at 4/1 in the 2:30 carries the same stake and looks the better bet of the two on price alone. Bergamo Gold rounds it off in the 5:00.
The evening is where it gets interesting
Windsor gives us five and it is the meeting we would point you towards. Sunlit Sea kicks it off in the 5:20, back after only nine days on ground that suits her, with two wins from her last four. The one that beat her at Lingfield has since gone in off a mark 5lb higher, which reads a lot better than the bare form. Later on, Just King High at 7/1 in the 7:25 is not a form call in any sense. He is winless in six. But Burdon does better at Windsor than his overall record suggests, and the rival who edged him half a length here in June has won since. Pershalla in the 7:55 is a similar sort of proposition. The figures do not shout, but she was under two lengths off a Sandown rival in July who has since won off a mark 10lb higher.
Wolverhampton fills in the gaps and So Sassy in the 5:10 is the one we like best there. She is improving rather than already quick, which is what the win last time out was about, and she has gone well over course and distance before. Stall three helps.
Yesterday gave us Mdawi (A) at 10/3 with Darzah and Mary Shoelaces both placing off five picks, so the day paid for itself.
Plenty to work through before the lights come on at Windsor.