Best bets for the Horse racing this weekend

It's a proper mixed bag of horse racing on Saturday and I am getting involved in the Jumps at Cheltenham and on the All-Weather at Lingfield. 

Best bets for the horse racing at Cheltenham  

I tipped up Al Dancer for the Grade Three Paddy Power Gold Cup Handicap Chase over 2m4f at 2.15 on Thursday afternoon. I hope you jumped on then at the 8-1 as he is generally 13-2 now!  

They get underway at 12.30 with the JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle over two-mile and that’s the other race at the meeting I am betting in. Magistrato made a winning debut over timber here in the Uk taking the Champion Hats Juvenile Hurdle at Chepstow last month for Paul Nicholls in convincing fashion even though he looked as if he has more to learn yet. Second on his one start in France the one that beat him that day was Porticello who has subsequently won on debut for Gary Moore here in a Listed race at Wetherby a couple of weeks back – third and fourth from the French race have both won in France since so the form looks solid. This looks a good opportunity to me and though short enough in a race such as this at 7-4 I am on as of Friday lunchtime.

Best bet for the horse racing at Lingfield Park

Over in Surrey the race I am playing in is the 1m2f Listed Betway Churchill Stakes at 3.40 which is an All Weather Championships Fast-Track Qualifier. Pyledriver has to give weight to the field but is considerably the best horse in the race and the one time he ran on Polytrack, at Kempton in the G.3 Unibet Classic Trial Stakes, he was second suggesting the surface is not an issue. Not seen for six months he was winning the 1m4f G.1 Coronation Cup when last seen which tells you the sort of performance he is capable of, I am more concerned about the drop in trip than the absence from the track. I was surprised 7-4 was available and I have happily taken it on Friday afternoon. Felix is probably the biggest danger but even getting the 7lb he does he still needs to find 5lb on OR’s.  

The other  All Weather Championships Fast-Track Qualifier on the card is the Listed 6f Betway Golden Rose Stakes but I will be watching rather than punting in that as it looks a wide-open affair. 

Be lucky