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Sunday ITV Racing Tips: Best bets for Hamilton and Leopardstown

Some tricky handicaps at Hamilton and three Group 3s at Leopardstown get the ITV4 treatment this afternoon, and we've a tip for each of the ten live races.

Our outright picks are listed below, with the reasons behind them further down the page, while anyone considering a punt would do well to check out the highly informative Hamilton and Leopardstown race cards, just a click away at Planet Sport's Racing Live Centre.

Selections:

Unitarian (15.50 Hamilton)

Agartha (16.05 Leopardstown)

Myristica (16.18 Hamilton)

Stone Age (16.35 Leopardstown)

Harswell Duke each-way (16.48 Hamilton)

Georgeville (17.05 Leopardstown)

Rayong (17.18 Hamilton)

Aasser (17.48 Hamilton)

Uncharted (18.18 Hamilton)

Mr Carpenter each-way (18.45 Hamilton)

15.50 Hamilton - Unitarian

Several of the eight runners have already run and shown promise and Pride Of Yorkshire might prove the best of these, but a chance is taken on the unraced Unitatarian, who represents the in-form Karl Burke.
He's out of sprinter Tasleet, who won three times at two and is from the same family as Battaash, and hails form a stable with a 5-11 record with juveniles on turf this year.
Some market support would increase confidence as connections will know where they stand with him.

16.05 Leopardstown - Agartha

Joseph O'Brien is very hopeful of winning a Group 1 with Agartha this season and this Group 3 fillies' contest should set her up nicely for a crack at the Irish 1,000 Guineas later this month.
It's not ideal that she carries a penalty for her Group 3 success last season but, crucially perhaps, she's already had a run this term, that yielding a fine second in another Guineas trial when conceding 3lb to the smart winner Homeless Songs.
O'Brien's father runs the main danger, History, who is sure to improve for her first run back, like several of her stablemates this term, and the same comment applies to Dermot Weld's Suwayra, who won a maiden here last July and hasn't been seen since.

16.18 Hamilton - Myristica

A wide open fillies handicap for which the hat-trick seeking Nordhalla is probably the one they all have to beat, but preference at bigger odds is for Myristica, whose trainer Peter Easterby said of her recently:
"She's done well and is a big, strong filly now, having been a bit weak previously. There are some nice handicaps coming up for her over a mile and two, and she's in good form."
This race is over slightly less but the stiff uphill finish here will hopefully compensate for that.

16.35 Leopardstown - Stone Age

This Derby Trial looks between Aidan O'Brien's Stone Age and Paddy Twomey's French Claim, both very impressive winners on their seasonal reappearance and well entered up in the coming months.
The latter horse hung left throughout when making all to win by nine lengths at Cork, so this left-handed track will suit him better, but the Ballydoyle runner may ultimately prove best suited to this trip of 1m2f.
Certainly, the gears he showed in putting his field away last time in a fast time could prove decisive here and he's taken to crown a fantastic week for the stable and Ryan Moore.

16.48 Hamilton - Harswell Duke each-way

Gweedore won four times last season and has clearly carried that improvement over into the current campaign, judging by his success at Musselburgh 22 days ago.
That was over 7f, though, and the suspicion is that this extended mile might just stretch him, whereas it could prove ideal for Roger Fell's Harswell Duke, who ran okay to a point over 1m2f at Newcastle last time before dropping away in the final two furlongs.
He'd run well on his seasonal reappearance previously and remains unexposed after just seven outings, with his sole win to date coming on soft ground last May.
Now dropping into class 4 company and off a 4lb lower mark than last time, he has a better chance than his odds would suggest.

17.05 Leopardstown - Georgeville

O'Brien and Moore are represented in this 1m Group 3 by likely favourite Ivy League, who is stepping up into Pattern company after winning a maiden and a handicap last time.
He may well prove up to the task but he has a tendency to drift significantly to the right once hitting the front and he may do best in a bigger field with plenty of horses in front of him, with his trainer mentioning the Jersey over 7f as a possible option for him.
For that reason we'll take a chance on Ger Lyons' Georgeville, a course 1m2f Listed winner who should come on plenty for his comeback run in a Group 3 at the Curragh following six months off.
He's just as effective over this mile and his stable is beginning to hit top form, with three winners on the board already this month.

17.18 Hamilton - Rayong

The two last-time-out winners looks the ones to concentrate on and Rayong is just preferred over Ava Go Joe, who made it 2-2 for the season at Ripon 15 days ago and is up another 3lb for that.
The selection has gone up 7lb for winning over Pontefract's stiff 5f on his seasonal reappearance, but that still leaves him 13lb lower than his peak rating as a three-year-old, when he was good enough to get into the Ayr Gold Cup.
Best with some cut in the ground and hopefully with a strong pace to aim at, he'll be powering home at the finish.

17.48 Hamilton - Aasser

Kevin Burke and Kevin Ryan are both double-handed and their representatives fill the first four places in the betting.
All hold decent claims but preference is for Burke's Aasser, who showed a fine attitude to run down Leap Abroad, who was getting 12lb and has won since, on the all-weather at Lingfield 23 days ago.
Progressive in three runs at Wolverhampton last last year, his short head defeat by Checkanchallenge on his second start looks even better now after the winner landed a Listed contest on his reappearance this term before being outclassed in the 2,000 Guineas.
That horse is now rated 108 so the selection's mark of 85 could prove highly generous and there's no reason why he shouldn't translate his form to turf.

18.18 Hamilton - Uncharted

Richard O'Brien's Morph Speed was well beaten in Friday's Chester Cup but stablemate Uncharted, who would have travelled over with him from County Limerick, might fare far better in this 1m5f handicap.
A Dundalk mile maiden winner at two, her two best efforts since have been over staying trips and her latest second in a fast-run 20-runner handicap run over the same trip as today's at Navan last month suggested she'd soon be back to winning ways.
Sam Davis takes over from a 7lb claimer this afternoon and we know she handles some cut, having finished an unlucky third of 16 runners on yielding ground at Gowran last September.

18.45 Hamilton - Mr Carpenter each-way

Life On The Rocks just got up in a strongly-run contest at Ayr on his seasonal reappearance and he should be able to cope with a 4lb rise.
He's a worthy favourite for this 1m3f apprentice handicap with the experienced Connor Murtagh taking the reigns, but Peter Easterby's Mr Carpenter makes plenty of each-way appeal at much bigger odds, with Amie Waugh taking 3lb off his back.
The six-year-old has been absent for almost a year, having got jarred up and pulled a muscle at York last May, but he's "back going well" and "looks great" according to his trainer.
Twice a winner on the Knavesmire, he's entered in a handicap there next Wednesday and while this run might put him spot on for that, he won't pick up a penalty if winning this afternoon.

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