Raceday LIVE – West End Boy
Related horse(s):
West End BoyWest End Boy makes his seasonal and handicap debut this afternoon for the Coral Racing Club in the 13:10 Class 5 Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle over 1m7f at Wincanton.
Read our Raceday LIVE preview below and join us before the race for all the build-up and live updates from the track with the team and our lucky owners for the day on our Instagram account @Coralofficial.
Raceday LIVE Preview
West End Boy's last appearance on the track came over today's course and distance in April, where stayed on very well to finish in second place. Following that performance, he was given an opening handicap mark of 99, which trainer Joe Tizzard believes is a mark that should give him a real chance of getting his first win on the board.
WATCH: West End Boy finishes 2nd at Wincanton earning owners over £1,500 in prize money
Promising apprentice, and Joe Tizzard's nephew, Freddie Gingell takes the reins for the first time today. He takes off a valuable 3lbs, which would normally be 7lbs but is reduced due to the race being specifically for conditional jockeys. Freddie is operating at an impressive 33% strike-rate over the last fortnight, with his last victory coming on another Joe Tizzard-trained horse, Rose Of Arcadia, last Saturday at Newton Abbot.
Wincanton is a racecourse that Joe does particularly well at, and that's no surprise given it's just a 20 minute drive from his yard. Last year he had six winners, along with another 20 placed from 51 runners at the Somerset track.
Bertie Wooster is one of West End Boy's rivals in today's contest, and he is also trained by Joe. In his weekend preview, Joe told us that Bertie Wooster "probably wants further" and that today will probably just help "blow the cobwebs out", but the five-year-old gelding does have some form around Wincanton so he's probably one to keep an eye on.
Today's race should be very competitive, with as many as four course and distance winners set to line up, and a further three horses that have victories either at Wincanton or over the 1m7f trip.
- Celtic Art scored back-to-back victories over course and distance at Wincanton earlier this year and is the Racing Post's NAP of the day.
- Getaway Tom is another notable runner in the field, having won two of his last five races, and finishing runner-up in the other three.
- Shelikesthelikes has already notched up two wins this year for trainer Fergal O'Brien, and following a recent wind surgery could be one to keep a close eye on.
Racing Post verdict
Getaway Tom has done well this season and Cameron Iles got a good tune out of him at Worcester last month but the suggestion is CELTIC ART (nap). Jeremy Scott's 6yo ran poorly in a valuable handicap on his latest hurdling start but the form of his C&D maiden win in February worked out very well and, if judged on that evidence, he's on a good mark. Shelikesthelights and Him Malaya are also of significant interest. [Chris Wilson]