IT'S quite rare for us to have this many runners so early in the season but because the horses all went out much earlier than usual they all come back in around June so are much more forward than they would usually be and we’ve had plenty of rain over the last week or so which means the ground should be perfect.

CHEPSTOW

2:12 Unibet You’re On Handicap Hurdle

Gunnery (Nico de Boinville)

To be honest I can’t really explain why he disappointed on his last run at Southwell but he finished a bit sore and didn’t jump that well which may help explain a few things because he’s much better than that. His front legs aren’t the best so I wouldn’t be running him on fast ground but the surface here will be ideal and he’s in great form so if he can bounce back, he should be running very respectably. 

2:47 Handicap Chase

Brave Eagle (Nico de Boinville)

He and Casablanca Mix do all of their work together, both want good ground and are much too high in the Handicap! But this is the first race available to them because they’re rated 150+ and to be honest the ground is probably going to be plenty soft enough for them as well- it certainly wouldn’t want to be getting bottomless that’s for sure. I had kept them for the nice prizes in the spring, waiting for the good ground, but we all know what happened with that plan so we’re trying to take advantage before it gets really, really soft and they’re in great shape. In fact they are the only two who have been on the grass this season because they love it and I was pleased with what I saw on Tuesday morning. They are very ready and should go well in their respective races. 

3:22 Novice Chase

Fusil Raffles (Daryl Jacob)

He made a very pleasing chase debut at Uttoxeter last month and to be honest we hadn’t intended running him quite so soon but he came to hand rather quickly and was telling us he was ready for a run so that’s why we went and it was a successful starting point. This looks a very good novice and we are coming back a bit quick but he just seems so well in himself we decided we might as well go. Two miles three furlongs will be perfect for him as he looks like he wants a tad further than two miles and while he’s not ginormous, he is extremely tidy over his fences and gets from A to B very efficiently so goes there with a big chance. 

3:57 G3 Silver Trophy Handicap Hurdle

Fix Sun (Daryl Jacob)

We thought about going over fences with him but I didn’t think he had quite enough experience to be honest with you, so we’re sticking over hurdles and I’m pretty sure he wants two and a half miles. He’s only had three runs over hurdles so there’s a lot of room for improvement, although I’m not entirely sure he’s that well handicapped on what he’s actually achieved so far. Obviously it’s another very competitive race but he’s fit and ready to go and I think he has a very realistic chance. 

4:32 Handicap Chase

Casablanca Mix (Nico de Boinville)

She is quite forward compared to many others in the yard and I’d assess her chance exactly the same as I would Brave Eagle.

5:42 Bumper

The Bomber Liston (Nico de Boinville)

He’s a beautiful looking son of Yeats who would have run in the spring but that obviously didn’t happen; if it did it’s very unlikely he’d have been running in a bumper here as we’d have gone straight over hurdles this season, but he’s still quite green and of the bumper horses we have already run, most of them have needed the experience and it could be the same for him but he’s a very nice horse and we’ll find out what he’s made of here.