Salisbury best bet: Ciara Pearl can regain sparkle after recent setback
- John Fearn
- 11 June 2024
With a week to go before Royal Ascot, it’s a relatively quiet Tuesday at the races, but the card at Salisbury serves up some decent races, not least this competitive fillies’ handicap.
17:07 Salisbury:Sorvio Insurance Brokers Margadale Fillies’ Handicap (1 mile 2 furlongs)
The morning withdrawal of the strongly-fancied Elladonna has nudged the surviving 10 runners up a notch, with market leaders Alhattan, Quietness and Xiomara all covered by half a betting point at the time of writing.
Of those, the Marcus Tregoning-trained Quietness catches the eye after winning impressively last time out, and the four-year-old’s chances of doubling up on that success appear to be enhanced by the significant booking of Oisin Murphy.
Deeper in the betting, husband and wife Tom Marquand and Hollie Doyle are both capable of bringing out the best of double-digit-priced Glimmer Of Light and Pratigya respectively, while the lightly-raced Miss Bielsa looks interesting on her turf debut after coming first and third in a couple of encouraging all-weather starts.
Planet Sport Bet Daily Special: Bet £20+ cash on any runner in the race and if Mis Bielsa finishes in the first 3 places, get a £5 Free Bet
However, it is the four-year-old mount of Richard Kingscote, Ciara Pearl, who appears to offer the most realistic value, and at the time of writing she was still available at a double-digit price in some quarters.
A promising three-year-old campaign saw this filly bookend a maiden victory on Lingfield’s all-weather track with close-up runner-up efforts (beaten a short head and a neck) at Bath and Newcastle, before carrying that promise seamlessly into an impressive start to the 2024 season.
Suggested best bet: Ciara Pearl in the 17:07 at Salisbury
Back-to-back all-weather wins at Lingfield and Kempton were quickly converted into a tidy hat-trick when Ciara Pearl won on her season turf debut at Bath in late April, taking easily to the softer ground and running on well to win cosily by over a length.
Last time out, excuses could be made when she took on strong 0-85 company at Ascot a month ago, as she missed the break, but still rallied to finish a creditable fifth out of 10 runners.
Her mark remains unchanged after that effort, albeit still 13 pounds higher than for her winning season debut in early April, but if Kingscote can get her out of the stalls better, then Ciara Pearl might well show that the handicapper has not fully caught up with her just yet.
- Tip advised by OutsiderSpeedPicks on Tipstrr
READ MORE: Salisbury racing tips: Best bets for Tuesday June 11
