Saturday ITV racing tips: Best bets for Sandown and Wincanton
- Planet Sport writer
- 6 January 2023
The ITV cameras are rolling at two meetings on Saturday, January 7 and the Planet Sport tipsters have a red hot selection for each of the eight live races.
Some Grade 1 action to warm-up a chilly Saturday in Surrey, as the Tolworth Novices' Hurdle gets underway at 14:25.
Strange place Tolworth. The London suburb is famous only for its hideous 1960s tower and a bowling alley. Its only real connection with leafy Sandown is the thunderous A3 bypass. But we digress...on with getting you some winners.
We start with a quick canter through Saturday's tips, you can find some more detail on our leading fancies further down the page.
Don't forget to check out the racecards, results and live odds in the
Planet Sport racing live centre.
Selections:
13:15 (Sandown) Precious Eleanor
13:30 (Wincanton) Celebre D'Allen
13:50 (Sandown) Grey Diamond
14:05 (Wincanton) Another Crack
14:25 (Sandown) Tahmuras
15:00 (Sandown) Saint Xavier
15:15 (Wincanton) Chianti Classico
15:35 (Sandown) Lightly Squeeze
13:15 (Sandown) Precious Eleanor
Precious Eleanor, who won a Listed race over an extended 2m4f at Cheltenham last April, is likely to be suited by dropping back in trip after finding three miles to be a taxing distance on her seasonal return at Market Rasen 58 days ago.
Henry Daly's mare acts on the forecast going and is taken to get back to winning ways.
Certainly Red was brought down on her penultimate start but showed now ill effects when winning over 3m1f at Wincanton last month. He is respected, while Gemirande cannot be ruled out either.
13:30 (Wincanton) Celebre D'Allen
Celebre D'Allen's stamina appeared stretched by the 3m distance on his reappearance at Warwick in November and he could bounce back to winning ways now returned to his last winning distance.
Elixir De Nutz is dangerous when gaining an uncontested lead and could prove a threat if allowed to dictate from the front.
Kiltealy Briggs is another who likes to force the pace and rates a bigger danger.
13:50 (Sandown) Grey Diamond
Grey Diamond only weakened late on when third on his return at Cheltenham last November and the form of that race has worked out extremely well since.
A winner over course and distance, Sam Thomas' charge looks to be on a workable mark, with his main danger possibly being The Last Day, who won a valuable handicap at Aintree when last seen and has gone very well fresh in the past.
A winner over course and distance last month, Corrigeen Rock will have a tougher task off a 9lb higher mark, while fellow hat-trick seeker Dreams Of Home must also enter calculations.
14:05 (Sandown) Another Crick
This can go the way of Another Crick, who landed the corresponding event last year from a 3lb higher mark.
Noel William's gelding hasn't been at his best in recent starts, but the application of first-time blinkers could help spark a revival.
Desque De L'Isle demands the utmost respect as he bids for a hat-trick following his brace of victories at Ludlow, while Not Available, who finished a good third at Newbury last Saturday, is another to note.
14:25 (Sandown) Tahmuras
Tahmuras can successfully graduate to the top level in the Unibet Tolworth Novices' Hurdle.
Trainer Paul Nicholls has already claimed the first Grade One prize of the new year on four occasions, with Thisthatandtother, Noland, Silverburn and Breedsbreeze also striking gold between 2003 and 2008.
It has clearly been a while between drinks as far as the Tolworth is concerned for the Ditcheat handler, but in Tahmuras he appears to have an ideal candidate to get him back on the winner's board.
The Irish point-to-point winner managed to land a bumper at Wincanton last spring and is two from two over hurdles since returning from his summer break.
The Falco gelding had a couple of subsequent winners behind him when making an impressive reappearance at Chepstow and backed that up with a similarly dominant display in a Listed event at Haydock in November - form which has been well advertised since by the third-placed Snake Roll.
Tahmuras proved on Merseyside he relishes the sort of testing conditions he is set to encounter this weekend and if anything, the more taxing nature of the Sandown straight could suit him even better.
15:00 (Sandown) Saint Xavier
There are some familiar names on show in the £100,000 Unibet Veterans' Handicap Chase - the final of the 2022 Veterans' Chase Series.
Under a light weight, Saint Xavier should go well in the hands of Lilly Pinchin as he bids to defy a 5lb hike for a Haydock success in late November - a race in which subsequent Welsh Grand National hero The Two Amigos finished third.
15:15 (Wincanton) Chianti Classico
Chianti Classico has looked like a natural since beginning his career in this sphere and a mark of 131 on his handicap debut could prove lenient, going by the way he saw off the opposition at Market Rasen last month.
Stoner's Choice is fairly handicapped on old form and his most recent effort at Doncaster wasn't overly discouraging, while the capable Sir Psycho is of interest back over hurdles having fallen on his chasing bow at Bangor.
15:35 (Sandown) Lightly Squeeze
A fairly open contest in which preference is for Lighty Squeeze.
He bolted up on his most recent run at Kempton in November and a 6lb raised mark looks unlikely to stop him following up, but Paul Nicholls is in flying form so Iceo should not be underestimated arriving off a 315-day break.
Djelo remains very unexposed and has shown plenty on all three starts to suggest he can also have a say in proceedings.
