Doncaster best bet: Brave Nation poised to build on recent near misses
- John Fearn
- 5 July 2024
The country might be waking up to a new government, but it’s business as usual at Doncaster racecourse, where this intriguing five-furlong sprint offers the biggest prize on the card.
15:50 Doncaster: bettingsites.co.uk Betting Sites Handicap (5 furlongs)
Nine runners go to post, of which the top six in the market are covered by just a few betting points, suggesting they each have around the same chance of winning as they do finishing outside the frame in this wide-open contest.
Planet Sport Bet Daily Special: Bet £20+ cash on any runner in the race and if Night On Earth finishes in the first 3 places, get a £5 Free Bet
On a day of political change in the UK, it seems fitting that a horse called Brave Nation stands out as the most viable contender after showing signs of significant progress so far this season.
Michael Bell’s four-year-old remains winless since his career debut success over this course and distance in April 2022, but his runner-up spot over this same trip last month suggested he will relish another return to familiar territory.
Suggested best bet: Brave Nation in the 15:50 at Doncaster
He ran on strongly that day to finish a never-nearer half-length second behind Hiya Maite, and he was on the wrong side of another near miss two weeks later at Sandown, when coming runner-up of 12 after another strong run-in despite being denied a clear run in the final stages.
Bell’s string has been in fine form recently, saddling winners at Epsom and Yarmouth over the last couple of days, and indeed the yard is a few betting units up on the bookies so far this season.
Billy Loughnane becomes this gelding’s sixth different jockey in six outings, arriving fresh from winning aboard his last ride at Kempton on Thursday night, and the young jockey is as well-equipped as any to get Brave Nation back to winning ways here.
- Tip advised by DHT Tips on Tipstrr
Elsewhere, the bookies do not appear to hold out much hope for the three outsiders in the pack, but they might just be doing them something of a disservice.
Night On Earth and Cover Point have both made it into the winner’s enclosure within their last few outings, while a few of Tipstrr’s each-way specialists have gravitated towards the oldest horse in the field, Intervention.
With no less than 82 races under his belt, Michael Appleby’s seven-year-old cannot be accused of lacking experience, and although he is winless in 15 outings since finishing 2023 with an all-weather four-timer, he is always a willing performer over various sprint distances.
He finished a respectable sixth of 16 at York three weeks ago, and while this drop to the minimum trip might go against his ageing legs, he is back below his last winning mark and could give Alistair Rawlinson a good ride here.
Outsider punt: Intervention each-way in the 15:50 at Doncaster
- Tip advised by OutsiderSpeedPick on Tipstrr
