2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Preview

This weekend is not the highest quality of fare but we do at least have a couple of decent betting heats to get stuck into. Check out Dave Stevos’ 2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday preview and free tips below.

1.50 Kelso – Mares’ Hurdle (Listed)

Thankfully, we avoided a blank on the Friday at Cheltenham. Overall, it was a tricky four days and a couple of poor decisions on my part cost us at least one huge winner in Golden Ace. To be honest, I am glad it is all over and we can now get back to the bread and butter of Newbury and Kelso on a Saturday.

I was going to put Lavida Adiva up for this race but after checking the weather forecast, I am leaving her alone. The step up to 3m should be in her favour, but the rain that is due to fall is not. No bet.

2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Tip: No Bet

2.05 Newbury – Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (Class 3)

When I looked at this race earlier this week Norn Iron jumped off the page at odds of 16/1. I half forgot about him until declarations on Thursday and I couldn’t believe it when I saw he was now priced up at 4/1! I think he is going to appreciate the step up to 2m3f and the way he was ridden last time out suggested that connections had another race in mind. If this is it, he could be hard to beat.

One that could go well at bigger odds is Kalium for Tim Vaughan and Alan Johns. By Gentlewave, this horse has been written off after a middling effort on handicap debut at Carlisle. However, he made a good impression when hosing up in a Fontwell novice on Boxing Day, beating the now 124 rated Andashan into third by 13.5L.

Kalium gets in off 120 here and he is bred to stay this longer trip. A bit of rain won’t be an issue for him and he will be suited by the return to a left-handed track. Norn Iron may be better treated but at the prices, I’ll take a chance on Kalium e/w.

2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Tip: Kalium e/w @ 20/1 NAP

2.25 Kelso – Go North Handicap Hurdle (Class 2)

The one I’ll take a punt on here off a mark of 105 is Ridin Solo. Donald McCain, whose horses have been in good form recently, trains this consistent son of Ocovango and he comes into this race on the back of a confidence boosting, pillar to post maiden hurdle win at Sedgefield (20f, good to soft) 45 days ago.

Previously, Ridin Solo finished a close fifth off a mark of 105 in a Catterick handicap, beaten just 1.75l for the win. With Charlie Maggs taking off 5lb, he should be capable of being thereabouts again off effectively 5lbs lower.

This horse seems to act on most ground so he won’t be inconvenienced if the forecast rain arrives. He has finished in the first three in six of his eight career starts over hurdles, hopefully he can do the same again today at odds of 25/1.

2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Tip: Ridin Solo e/w @ 25/1 (5 places)

2.40 Newbury – BetVictor Handicap Chase (Class 2)

Real Stone may be the outsider of the entire field at odds of 28/1 but I’m not sure he should be that big a price. Trained by Dan Skelton (who also runs Riskintheground), Kielan Woods will ride the stable ‘second string’.

He ran very well at this venue just over a year ago, finishing a 5.5l second on heavy ground off 128. That race was over 16.5f but he needs further these days, as was evidenced by his 5l win at Wetherby early last month over 2m3f. That win came off 125 with Tristan Durrell claiming 3lb but Real Stone ran a creditable race off his revised mark of 131 at Kelso three weeks ago and the assessor has given him a pound back.

That Kelso race was run over 2m1f so the step back up in trip is in Real Stone’s favour here and he handles soft ground, so any rain that falls shouldn’t harm his prospects. There’s a fair bit of pace in this race but that doesn’t worry me too much as he is versatile tactically.

My biggest concern is that he may be used as a pacemaker to set the race up for his stablemate. Even if he does that, he might still be able to hang on for a place and with odds of 28/1 on offer, it’s worth the risk for small stakes.

2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Tip: Real Stone e/w @ 28/1 (4 places)

3.00 Kelso – Mares’ Novices Handicap Hurdle Final (Class 2)

The one that might represent a bit of each way value here is the southern raider, Rula Bula. Trained by the O’Neill’s, this 6yo has already picked up black type in a listed bumper at Sandown on soft and a Newbury listed mares’ hurdle on good to soft.

She makes her second handicap start off a mark of 121 but with her rider’s claim, she effectively runs off 114 here. She got to within 1.5l of a now 127 rated rival three runs back at Newbury and the horse that was a head behind her is also now rated 127.

Now, she does need to bounce back from a couple of below par runs but the combination of heavy ground and 2m3f may not have suited her when she was pulled up on her handicap debut at Chepstow and the ground may have been too testing for her again last time at Lingfield. She is surely capable of better than that, hopefully she shows that here at odds of 14/1.

2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Tip: Rula Bula e/w @ 14/1 (4 places)

3.15 Newbury – NH Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (Grade 2)

She comes with risks attached but at odds of 25/1, maybe Of Course You Can will outrun her odds here for Neil Mulholland and Richie McClernon. By Yeats, this mare is returning from a three month break. That isn’t a negative though as she won easily at Ludlow (2m5f, good) after a similar break back in October.

She won that class 4 handicap by 9.5l off 94 and she followed it up with another solid effort off 10lb higher over the same C&D. She must have made a noise that day because she had a wind-op but she ran another sound race back in novice company on her first run after the procedure.

This is clearly the toughest assignment she has faced so far and it is a very different track to Ludlow. However, Neil Mulholland’s last runner in this race finished third at 20/1 in 2023 and he has seemingly had this race in mind for Of Course You Can for some time. Once the worst of the rain stays away, she will hopefully outrun her odds of 25/1.

2025 Newbury & Kelso Saturday Tip: Of Course You Can e/w @ 25/1 (5 places) nb

-DaveStevos