Newcastle best bets (1425): Sommelier holds the aces, Cross The Tracks bidding to make the frame

14:25 Newcastle: BetMGM All-Weather 3 Year Old Championships Handicap (6 furlongs)

A quick glance at the betting and the form book suggests that any horse finishing in front of top-weighted Sommelier will have run a decent race.

Planet Sport Bet Daily Special: Bet £20+ cash on any runner in the race and if Sommelier wins by more than 1 length, get a £5 Free Bet

After a solitary outing over the minimum trip last spring, Marco Botti’s gelding found six furlongs much more to his liking when returning from a seven-month break, winning with plenty in hand at Chelmsford (3.75 lengths) and Kempton (8.5 lengths) in two eye-catching November outings.

His only other appearance was his handicap debut over this course and distance on New Year’s Day, when he finished a close-up half-length runner-up behind the re-opposing Blue Prince.

However, he is four pounds better off with that rival here, and could well turn the tables with Rossa Ryan at the reins for the first time.

Suggested best bet: Sommelier in the 14:25 at Newcastle

• Tip advised by TryTips on Tipstrr

With four places widely available for this 11-horse race, Tipstrr’s each-way aficionados have come out in some force behind a candidate at the other end of the weights, where Cross The Tracks is expected to defy his double-digit price.

Richard Spencer’s three-year-old made a quick impact when winning on career debut on Yarmouth’s turf in September, and has been making steady progress during his winter campaign on synthetic tracks.

Everything clicked together under Hollie Doyle at this venue a fortnight ago, when the result was never in doubt once they took the lead with two of the seven furlongs remaining, eventually drawing almost four lengths clear of the runner-up, with the remaining six rivals strung out in their wake.

Cross The Tracks clearly has more on his plate with this step up in grade, but he comes from a yard that is producing horses in top shape right now, with Spencer having saddled nine winners from his last 18 runners.

Furthermore,  the five-pound claim of jockey Sean Dylan Bowen (last seen riding Destinado to victory at Doncaster last weekend) can only further enhance his prospects of staking a claim for at least a frame finish.

Best each-way punt: Cross The Tracks each-way in the 14:25 at Newcastle

• Tip advised by The Profit Rocket on Tipstrr

 

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