Fresh from a pipe-opener on the Flat...

The manner in which Really Super, fresh from a pipe-opener on the Flat, scooted clear in the Summer Plate at Market Rasen yesterday set me thinking. 

Flat racing emerged from lockdown on June 1st while jump racing had to wait until July 1st. Since the resumption of jump racing, how have horses that ran on the Flat in June fared on their first run back over jumps? 

The detail below shows they've fared rather well, returning a level stakes profit of over 45 points... 

Southwell 01.07.20  

12:00 

No qualifiers; 12 ran

12:30

Issac Wonder [17F] 12/1 WINS

Azzuri [29F] 5/4f second

Tonto's Spirit [6F] 17/2 sixth

Cracking Destiny [30F] 9/2 UR; 12 ran

1:10

No qualifiers; 12 ran

1:40

Flintrock [18F] 18/1 fifth

Zenafire [16F] 33/1 eighth; 12 ran

2:10

Medalla De Oro [27F] 11/2 second

Rhosneigr [23F] 6/1 fourth

Thrave [24F] 100/30 fifth; 12 ran

2:40

Ashutor [15F] 5/4f third

Seeusoon [23F] 14/1 fourth

Harbour Sunrise [20F] 250/1 sixth

Let Rip [22F] 7/1 eleventh; 12 ran

3:10

Byron Flyer [25F] 9/2 fourth

Paseo [16F] 14/1 seventh

Final Choice [19F] 50/1 eleventh

Stynes [22F] 28/1 twelfth; 12 ran

3.40 

St Gallen [29F] 3/1f  WINS

Scorched Earth [16F] 6/1 second

Dino Velvet [22F] 4/1 third

See The Sea [25F] 16/1 fourth

Carntop [15F] 7/2 sixth; 12 ran

4.10

Hattab [22F] 13/2 third

Magellan [21F] 9/2 fifth

Prabeni [18F] 18/1 sixth; 12 ran

Southwell aggregates:

108 runners

25 qualifiers

2 winners: Issac Wonder (12/1); St Gallen (3/1f).

Profit / loss to 1 point win stake: -8 points

----------

Uttoxeter 06.07.20

12.55

Ginistrelli [26F] 2/1 WINS

Aleatoric [6F] 150/1 third

Employer [13F] 4/1 eighth; 11 ran

1.25

Check My Pulse [19F] 66/1 third

Fanfaronade  [13F] 40/1 eighth; 8 ran

1.55

Dariya [21F] 8/1 fifth; 12 ran

2.30

Diodorus [21F] 2/1 second

Escapability [24F] 11/8f third; 9 ran

3.00

Mister Universum [28F] 16/1 WINS; 9 ran

3.30

No qualifiers; 12 ran

4.00 

Whiskey And Water [18F] 13/2 second

Building Bridges [26F] 16/1 fourth; 12 ran

4.30

No qualifiers; 9 ran

5.00 

No qualifiers; 12 ran.

Uttoxeter aggregates:

94 runners

11 qualifiers

2 winners: Ginistrelli (2/1); Mister Universum (16/1)

Profit / loss to 1 point win stake: +9 points

----------

Newton Abbot 07.07.20

1.40

Hiconic [30F] 9/2 WINS

Peat Moss [14F] 6/1 third

Debt Of Honour [21F] 12/1 sixth

American Dreamer [20F] 22/1 seventh; 7 ran

2.10

No qualifiers; 9 ran

2.40 

No qualifiers; 8 ran

3.10

No qualifiers; 9 ran

3.45

No qualifiers; 8 ran

4.20

Hereia [32F] 8/1 fifth

Grapevine [23F] 14/1 sixth; 7 ran

4.50

Teaser [35F] 12/1 sixth; 9 ran

5.20

No qualifiers; 8 ran

5.50

No qualifiers; 9 ran

Newton Abbot aggregates:

74 runners

7 qualifiers

1 winner: Hiconic (9/2)

Profit / Loss to one point win stake: -1.5 points

----------

Stratford 08.07.20

12.15

No qualifiers; 8 ran

12.45

Beat The Judge [28F] 5/1 third

Oborne Lady [23F] 250/1 seventh; 9 ran

1.20

I'lletyougonow [31F] 25/1 second; 9 ran

1.50

Lady Reset [14F] 4/1 fourth; 11 ran

2.20

Romanor [33F] 28/1 WINS

Et Moi Alors [7F] 20/1 sixth; 10 ran

2.50

My Renaissance [20F] 8/1 seventh; 10 ran

3.20

Jamacho [17F] 11/4 WINS

Chelsea's Boy [23F] fifth 25/1; 9 ran

3.50

No qualifiers; 7 ran

4.20 

Valkenburg [23F] 13/8f PU; 8 ran

Stratford aggregates:

81 runners

10 qualifiers

2 winners: Romanor (28/1); Jamacho (11/4)

Profit / loss to 1 point win stake: +21.75

----------

Market Rasen 10.07.20

12.00

Bear Valley [14F] 9/2 second

For Pleasure [15F] 13/2 third

Crimson King [17F] 40/1 tenth; 12 ran

12.30

No qualifiers; 7 ran

1.00

No qualifiers; 8 ran

1.30

No qualifiers; 9 ran

2.05

Red Force One [13F] 5/1 WINS

Fair Mountain [24F] 12/1 second

Brandon Castle [20F] 11/2 fourth

Fiesole [34F] 20/1 seventh

Valentino Dancer [22F] 15/2 ninth

Red Tornado [22F] 33/1 PU; 10 ran

2.40

Really Super [38F] 25/1 WINS

Fidux [31F] 14/1 second

San Benedeto [24F] 17/2 eighth

Adrrastos [20F] 16/1 PU; 17 ran

3.15

Searching [10F] 8/1 WINS

Mantovani [19F] 15/2 third; 6 ran

3.50 

No qualifiers; 6 ran

4.20 

No qualifiers; 7 ran

Market Rasen aggregates:

82 runners

15 qualifiers

3 winners: Red Force One (5/1); Really Super (25/1); Searching (8/1)

Profit / loss to 1 point win stake: +26 points

----------

According to the back of my fag packet a 1 point win wager on runners on their first run back over jumps after a pipe-opener on the Flat in June is currently showing a profit of 47.25 points. 

Time for a lie-down I think.

Market Rasen Summer Plate 2020

For longer than I freely care to admit, I've organised my life according to the austere regimen dictated by the racing calendar; at present I'm experiencing unprecedented levels of disorder, disarray and confusion. 

In normal circumstances Market Rasen's Summer Plate meeting is run on a Saturday in the middle of July and marks the mid-point of the summer jumps programme. This year the meeting goes ahead behind closed doors on Friday, with jump racing having emerged from lockdown barely 10 days ago. 

Of course, we're pleased to see racing over the jumps once again but the elephant in the paddock remains - when will paying punters be allowed to return to the track?

Earlier this week the Anglo-Irish jump classification ratings were published. Sharjah, second behind mare Epatante in the Champion Hurdle, tops the hurdlers' listing while Al Boum Photo and Cyrname share top spot in the chasers' listing.

Since resumption on July 1st, trainers who have recorded more than one NH winner and caught the eye include:

Olly Murphy (5/14) 35.7%

Emma Lavelle (4/7) 57.1% 

Paul Nicholls (3/11) 27.2%

Michael Scudamore (2/3) 66.6%

Ben Pauling (2/4) 50%

Evan Williams (2/9) 22.2%

ITV4 are scheduled to broadcast both the Summer Hurdle at 2.05 and the Summer Plate at 2.40.

With 17 declared, and not an awful lot of recent form to go on, this year's Summer Plate looks particularly difficult. The going is currently described as good, good to soft in places.

Lough Derg Spirit, pulled up behind A Plus Tard in the 2019 Close Brothers Novices' Handicap Chase at the Festival off a mark of 142, is vying for favouritism. Previously with Nicky Henderson and now trained by arch-rival Paul Nicholls, he races off 137 tomorrow sporting a first-time tongue-tie, having undergone wind surgery some nine months ago. Recent rain may not have helped his cause but stablemate San Benedeto has helped by keeping the weights down. 

These days it's difficult to know whether to describe Alan King as a jumps trainer who has runners on the Flat over the summer or a Flat trainer who has runners over the sticks in the winter. Whichever description you prefer, Mr King sent out sent out three winners and a second from just five runners at Royal Ascot three weeks ago. The handler saddles two here: Fidux was given a spin on the all-weather at Wolverhampton last month while Potterman made hay chasing last summer, culminating in a creditable fifth behind Vinndication in the Sodexo Gold Cup at Ascot in November. Of the pair I prefer Potterman. 

Bags Groove is a talented individual I have plenty of time for and he appears to have been well supported this evening but the gelding hasn't been seen since finishing behind Kalashnikov at Aintree back in 2019.

In atypically prescient form I flagged up the chances of mare Casablanca Mix and Royal Village for last year's renewal, eventually opting to back the latter each-way; in the event the former beat the latter a comfortable eight lengths. 

Royal Village tries again tomorrow but current stable form is a concern and Copper West had this one and San Benedeto behind over course and distance in October. Two out Ian Williams' charge looked all over the winner that day but he was relegated to third on the run-in which is off-putting; he is weighted to reverse placings with Copper West.

The trends don't favour the chances of mare Really Super; I think last year's winner Casablanca Mix was the first mare to collect the spoils while the last six-year-old to oblige was the Peter Bowen trained Iron Man in 2007. 

Of the bigger priced runners the front-running Imperial Presence is of most interest on the back of his fifth behind the ill-fated Warthog in the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup at Cheltenham last December. 

Adrrastos ran well for a long way in the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot before finishing fifth behind Who Dares Wins. That day I thought Jamie Snowden's charge didn't quite see out the trip and, on balance, the formbook confirms the suspicion so, in a race where for the most part fitness has to be taken on trust and in which ordinarily I prefer a younger horse, I'm going to place a small each-way wager on previous course and distance winner Copper West. 

A hold-up ride, he wouldn't appear the best handicapped beast in the field, going up four pounds after being pipped by One Style at Ludlow in February. Still, Tom George's charge has run well after a break in the past and is generally priced up a 14/1 chance, with most layers offering one fifth the odds five places.

Copper West is the each-way suggestion.