Newbury - Coral Gold Cup Day: Best bet, each-way selection and treble
Recommended bets include:
Best Bet: Indeevar Bleu to win the Gerry Feilden Handicap Hurdle
Best Each-Way Bet: Hyland each-way in the Coral Gold Cup
Newbury hosts the second afternoon of their major midwinter jumps meeting on Saturday and the Coral Gold Cup is the main event.
The premier handicap – known to a generation as the Hennessy - is run over three miles and has a stellar list of winners including Cheltenham Gold Cup heroes Denman and Native River in recent times.
Here is everything you need to know including the day's best bets.
Newbury - Coral Gold Cup Day - Key info
First race: 11:55am Mares' Novices' Hurdle (Listed)
Feature race: 2.55pm Coral Gold Cup Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap)
The big event goes off at 2.55pm and features 10 Irish runners bidding to hand the raiders just a second win this century, including top-weight Monty's Star for Henry de Bromhead.
Best bet of the day
Indeevar Bleu to win the Gerry Feilden Handicap Hurdle (2.15pm) @ 7/2
Dan Skelton's top-weight Live Conti is a smart prospect, but he carries 12st here on his seasonal return and that is a worry. Also returning is Olly Murphy's Indeevar Bleu, the mount of champion jockey Sean Bowen.
They were last spotted scoring in good style at Ffos Las over this sort of trip in April. The gelding has won off a layoff before and a mark of 126 – with just 10st 11lb to carry – looks very fair.
Best each-way bet of the day
Hyland each-way in the Coral Gold Cup (2.55pm) @ 9/1
The main event features a field of 24 contenders and LiveScore Bet are paying SIX places instead of four.
Nicky Henderson has won this with the likes of Trabolgan, Bobs Worth and Triolo D'Alene and the Seven Barrows supremo could see Hyland going well now.
He won twice over fences last season and finished second to The Jukebox Man in a Grade 1 novice at Kempton before also filling the runner-up spot in the Ladbrokes Trophy, both over 3m, there in February.
He did not get home in the Grand National and should be much sharper for last month's comeback at Cheltenham where he was ninth behind Three Card Brag.
He is 8lb better off with that rival here and the fact he likes to race prominently is a major positive in this race.
Newbury Saturday acca
We are providing an accumulator suggestion for Newbury's Saturday card and our treble pays 384/1 with LiveScore Bet.
Bet 1: Whimsy to win the Mares' Novices' Hurdle (11.55am) @ 13/2
This does not appear the strongest of races for Listed level and Irish raider Whimsy has to hold strong claims based on her recent Grade 3 third at Navan taking on some useful geldings.
Bet 2: Hunter Legend to win the Sir Peter O'Sullevan Memorial Handicap Chase (12.30) @ 9/2
The Venetia Williams-trained Hunter Legend was not beaten all that far on his comeback at Cheltenham this month despite giving off a vibe he would come on for the run.
He is a dual winner at this trip, so going back up will do him good and his current mark of 128 is workable.
Bet 3: Hyland to win the Coral Gold Cup (2.55pm) @ 9/1
This Seven Barrows inmate has some promising novice form from last season, twice ran well here over hurdles and his racing style promises to suit this contest with the handicapper easing him 2lb for his comeback run last month.
