WHEN William Haggas has an unexposed handicapper heading to a big York handicap it often pays to take notice.
His Bullet Point looks to hold obvious claims in Thursday’s Clipper Handicap (3.00pm), having already won two valuable handicaps at Newmarket and Ascot this season, either side of just being touched off in the Royal Hunt Cup.
However, as a result of those excellent runs he has shot up in the weights and I’m willing to take him on at the prices.
APIARIST looks to be coming to the boil at the right time for trainer Kevin Ryan.
He finished fourth in a big three-year-old handicap at last year’s York Ebor Festival, and has won three times since.
Having been kept busy through the winter, he was given a break in the spring, before returning and running with plenty of credit to finish eighth in the Buckingham Palace Handicap at Royal Ascot.
A trip to Galway didn’t bear fruit last time, but he looked unlucky when badly hampered inside the final two furlongs and did well to finish as close as he did.
That run hinted that another win wasn’t far away, and now back at a track he has won at in the past, with a decent draw in stall seven, he should go well.
At a double-figure price, he looks nice value in World Pool’s Win and Place markets.
It’s a bold move to leave Bullet Point out of the frame, but with a World Pool Quinella there’s the chance of a major payout if we can select two horses at bigger prices that finish in the first two places.
With that in mind, I think the Owen Burrows-trained REMMOOZ is a horse on the up and should be included.
Unraced as a juvenile, he won his first two starts of the season, before running a reasonable race in the Jersey at Royal Ascot.
He confirmed himself as a high-class prospect when winning a competitive race over this course and distance last month, beating several decent yardsticks in the process.
NORTHERN EXPRESS is a horse that often saves his best for the Knavesmire, with three of his seven career wins having come at York.
Michael Dods’ charge has been running competitively in top-class handicaps recently and his mark has now dipped back below 100.
He certainly has the ability to be involved off this mark.
POINTERS THURSDAY
Apiarist (Win and Place) 3.00pm York
Apiarist, Remmooz, Northern Express
(Quinella) 3.00pm York