JamPizza

The trainer is more known for his flat runners, but he actually has a better strike rate with his hurdlers. This unexposed horse has a serious chance here on her bumper second. A look at the subsequent runs of the first and third there gives major clues that she's been underestimated in her first handicap hurdles run here. She's hurdled well enough in her three non-handicap hurdle races, and she should improve for the switch to handicapping.

This is real basement stuff, but I can't help thinking that the bookies have taken a chance in this amateur riders' race by quoting 40/1 on this one, which won a similar race on turf in the only other race that this jockey has ridden him before. That was over the same trip and even off the same mark, as recently as last summer. Clearly this is on the AW, but sire stats are strong, with 4 wins and 10 places from 31 races for progeny of the sire over this C&D.

If you watch a replay of this horse's first-ever run over C&D last time out, it looks fairly obvious that the penny has finally dropped. He was picking off horses with ease once the front two had flown. He has been dropped a pound for that fourth-placed effort, and I can certainly see him staying on into the places at the end of this race, where that seemingly improved attitude last time out can be built upon.