De Rigueur to Land Cesarewitch for Botti
Well, the pressure is well and truly on to bag the Cesarewitch winner following Bronze Angel and Intransigent doing the business the past two weekends. The fact that there is 36 runners and a bend to negotiate with 9 furlongs to go all points to this race being a bookies benefit. That is how the past two renewals have worked out with 66/1 outsiders landing this prize so hold no fear of backing a horse at a big price. The key question is whether the horse will last this gruelling 2m2f trip.
As you know by now we like to back two against the field in these big field Saturday handicaps especially when Paddy Power, Betfair Sports book, Skybet, Ladbrokes, Titanbet & Racebets are all paying out on the first six finishers. The horses picked to carrying our hard earned today are De Rigueur & Mubaraza. The key to these staying races is to have a good travelling sort that can lay up wherever the Jockey wants and conserve enough energy to gallop on strongly at the finish.
De Rigueur is just that sweet travelling sort that will never win be much as he runs so lazily. This race is ideal as he can get a good toe all the way up the long straight before taking up the lead near the line. His form when beating Pallasator by a neck at Haydock over 1m4f back in July reads well especially with Pallasator having won since and competed at Group 1 level in the Irish St Leger. Marco Botti mentioned the Cesarewitch as a late season target following De Rigueur’s Haydock win so this has been the plan for a while. He enjoyed a good blow out at Chester when third over too short a trip & jockey Andrea Atzeni knows him really well having won on him twice this season. His draw in stall 13 is not bad at all with low draws preferable over this trip.
Mubaraza is a horse that I have followed for a long while and ran a cracker on his seasonal debut when looking the likely winner before been passed on the line losing by a neck to Angel Gabrial at Ripon last April. Subsequent exploits by Angel Gabrial show that form to be really good with Angel Gabrial gone from a rating of 88 back then to currently 106. Mubaraza has just run twice since his seasonal debut finishing fourth in the Chester Cup as favourite and then running three weeks ago on this same and trip in the Cesarewitch trial when bang there two furlongs out before most likely tiring and needing the run. That prep run should leave this strong travelling sort spot on for today’s race and he arrives a fresh horse having just the three starts this season. The draw in stall 30 presents a challenge for Jockey George Baker but more importantly the ground looks like being good which Mubaraza appreciates. I have some concerns about him not finding much when push comes to shove but all going well he will enjoy plenty of cover for most of this race before being switched out for a final surge for the line.
Selection A – 1 Point *EW De Rigueur Newmarket 15:50 25/1 generally use bookie paying 5/6 places
Selection B – 1 Point *EW Mubaraza Newmarket 15:50 33/1 generally use bookie paying 5/6 places
Best of luck,
Nicky