Timeform Radio Racing Tips: Big fat Gypsy winning?

Timeform Radio Tip / Jeremy Grayson / 05 February 2011 / Leave a Comment

Jeremy is hoping for a big price winner at Wetherby today

"Finding a very solid-looking each-way proposition is the way to go, and Gypsy George is exactly that."

Lots of young hopefuls take to the racecourse for their probable final pre-Cheltenham outings this afternoon, but it's to the far older guard that Jeremy Grayson turns for two recommendations.

Dom D'Orgeval has been allowed to drift back down to a historically very low rating of 124 by the assessor ahead of his appearance in this afternoon's 3m4f handicap chase at Ffos Las (15:10), and this despite posting several placed efforts in spring 2010 that were some way ahead of his mark.

A staying-on second over 3m2.5f at Newbury last March particularly encourages in the context of this race, given Ffos Las's near-identical course configuration to the Berkshire track and today's slightly longer trip. Ground drier than that day's soft won't inconvenience, either, judged on the Listed Aintree second on good which followed that effort.

Over at Wetherby, there may be plenty tempted to lay the returning Cheltenham Foxhunter hero Baby Run in the hunter chase at 15:50 on the grounds of jockey inexperience, the race being 16-year-old Willie Twiston-Davies's first over regulation fences. However, the very stylish, mature winning rides that he gave his first two point-to-point rides at Dunthrop recently sound a note of caution against assuming he won't be up to today's task.

Finding a very solid-looking each-way proposition instead looks the way to go in this race, and Gypsy George is exactly that. Despite dabblings with extreme-distance races such as the Welsh and Midlands Nationals during the last two years, a straightforward 3m-3m1f around a left-handed course has endured as his best trip / track combination, and his 10l second to Ballabriggs at Ayr a year ago looks even better now than it did then.

Going will remain fine so long as it gets no firmer (rain is forecast), and Seanin and Graeme McPherson are in a fair run of form for a small yard at present, with two wins and two places from eight runners this last week alone.

There's a good quality card at Leopardstown in Ireland, but Musselburgh also features a couple of really interesting contests, including the Scottish Triumph Hurdle......

Timeform run the rule over the next week's racing, which starts with an all-star card at Leopardstown on Sunday and ends with another at Newbury on Saturday......

The Irish Hennessy meeting at Leopardstown is the last stepping stone before the Cheltenham Festival for many leading ante-post fancies from across the Irish Sea and the four Grade 1 events on the card all promise to be high-class renewals....

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