2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Tips – DS
2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Preview
I Am Maximus ran out an easy winner of a brilliant Grand National on Saturday. A lovely ante-post touch for us at 25/1. We also landed a couple of places with Buddy One (NAP) and Kinondo Kwetu. The latter is a horse that I’ll be keeping a very close eye on going forward. We have a midweek mix of jumps and flat racing this week, check out Dave Stevos’ 2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday preview below.
1.50 Newmarket – Global Stallions App Handicap (Class 2)
We are back at Newmarket for the first time this year and we start off with this 6f handicap. The one I like in this from stall 5 is Wobwobwob for Mark Winn, Adrian Keatley and Ontoawinner. We backed this horse last season when he finished second on heavy ground at Goodwood (7f). He went on to win the Ayr Silver Cup off 87 two starts later and with Winn’s 3lb claim, he is effectively a pound lower here.
I would imagine all roads lead back towards Ayr for this 6yo son of Prince Of Lir. His trainer likes to target the Gold Cup meeting and if this lad is to get a run in the big one, he’ll probably need to win a couple of races to get a hike in the weights to get into the race.
Fitness Edge
Wobwobwob has already had a run this season so he should be pretty fit. It wasn’t a great effort at Doncaster but it should have blown away the cobwebs. He ran without the visor he sported for his Ayr win and that is back on today.
He has run twice at Newmarket previously, returning a win and a place. Mark Winn hasn’t ridden him before but he is 1/4 with another two places when riding for Keatley. Genuine good ground is fine but if there is rain, he likes a bit of cut too. At odds of 22/1, Wobwobwob looks well worth backing e/w.
2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Tip: Wobwobwob e/w @ 22/1 (5 places) NB
2.05 Cheltenham – Kingston Stud Handicap Hurdle (Class 2)
A very tricky race but the consistent Artistic Endeavour is surely a shade overpriced at odds of 22/1. Trained by Tim Vaughan, this eight race maiden has finished in the first three in six of those starts. He has run well on ground ranging from soft to good and he has course form in the book.
In a novice handicap hurdle here back in November the 6yo son of Kayf Tara shaped really nicely over 16f, getting a touch outpaced but finishing off well for fifth of seventeen, 11L behind the winner Impose Toi.
On his last two starts he has finished a close third, beat 0.5L over 20f (sft) at Sandown off 110 and at Plumpton last time out, he was beat 4L over 25f (sft) into second.
Solid Form
At Lingfield in December he was beat 1.25L by Tintintin who was running off 111. He won again last month and is now rated 122. Nordic Tiger was 3rd off 103 and he has since won two and is now rated 114. That’s decent form for the grade and while this is the toughest task he has faced to date, hopefully Artistic Endeavour can run another solid race and reward e/w support at 22/1.
2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Tip: Artistic Endeavour e/w @ 22/1 (5 places)
2.25 Newmarket – Feilden Stakes (Listed)
A tough race to try and weigh up. Bar Narkez, who is the 10/3 fav, we haven’t seen any of these 3yos in action this season. Andre Fabre’s charge landed a 3yo conditions race at Saint Cloud three weeks ago on heavy. The ground today will likely be extremely different to that and he was beat 7L on his sole previous run on ground with good in the description on his debut.
At a price, I’ll take a punt on Whip Cracker for Hughes and Crowley. This Cracksman colt ran a really good race on debut over 7f here, chasing home Broadway Act.
On his next start at Chelmsford Hughes’ charge made no mistake. He hosed up by 6L over 7f and no cracking of the whip was required. The third, 10L behind, came out and won a maiden next time so there is at least a little bit of substance to the form.
Another plus is the form of Hughes. Seven winners from twenty runners in the last two weeks and plenty of places too. Jim Crowley is 7/32 with seven top four finishes for this owner, hopefully he can steer Whip Cracker into the places here at odds of 16/1.
2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Tip: Whip Cracker e/w @ 16/1
2.40 Cheltenham – Silver Trophy Handicap Chase (Grade 2)
The only one I can make a solid case for at double figure odds is Gemirande. Trained by Venetia Williams, this 8yo ran really well in this last year off 135 to finish second (demoted to third). He’s only been seen twice this year and on both occasions, he didn’t get his preferred good ground. Today he does.
Charlie Deutsch’s mount gets in off 131, four pounds lower than he was last year. He ran with credit to finish fifth in the Grand Annual last month considering the ground and he’ll be a fresher horse than most here as he is having just his third run of the season.
Venetia Williams won this in back to back years in 2008 and 2009, hopefully Gemirande can get her back into the winner’s enclosure at odds of 14/1.
2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Tip: Gemirande e/w @ 14/1 (4 places) NAP
3.00 Newmarket – Earl Of Sefton Stakes (Group 3)
It is difficult to make a strong case for any of the three big outsiders here. Claymore seems best on the all weather these days and hasn’t won since June 2022. His stablemate Blanchland is 0/5 on turf and was well beaten when last seen at Newcastle. Novus has tended to need a run to hit top form in previous years and the rest of these are 12/1 or shorter. This is a race I am going to duck, no bet.
2024 Newmarket & Cheltenham Wednesday Tip: No Bet
3.35 Newmarket – Nell Gwyn Stakes (Group 3)
I really like the chances of the Richard Fahey trained Pretty Crystal in this G3. She had a relatively busy 2yo campaign, running five times. Admittedly, she only won one of those but she ran really well in defeat in the other four races, all at G3 level.
She was only beat 3.5L into fifth (of 17) in the Albany at Ascot (6f gd/fm), finishing just a nose behind Persian Dreamer. She ran another fine race over the same C&D in a G3 in July, chasing home Sacred Angel. That filly went on to finish an excellent third in the G1 Cheveley Park.
Soft Ground No Good
Her next two starts at Goodwood (7f sft) and Ayr (6f gd/sft) weren’t quite as good but I’m not sure she enjoyed the cut in the ground. Today’s conditions will be more suitable and I think 7f on good ground could be perfect for the daughter of Dubawi.
Given her sire, you’d imagine she’ll progress from 2yo to 3yo and her dam was a G3 winner over 7f on fast ground at Goodwood five years ago. It must be said that a few of Richard Fahey’s have been needing their first runs back so that does temper enthusiasm slightly. However, I believe that a rating of 97 underestimates this filly and the odds are big enough to warrant a small e/w interest.
