Banker horse racing tips from Sporting Life and Timeform team for Saturday January 28
Billy Nash - HALSAFARI (1.01 Fairyhouse)
Sticking the "banker" tag on a 10-y-o without a win for well over 3 years may seem like an odd thing to do but Halsafari has plenty going for him in the 13.01 at Fairyhouse. He has done little wrong since returning to the care of his owner, Michael Bowe, earlier this year - making the frame on all 6 subsequent starts. The son of Solerina went down by the narrowest of margins in a handicap hurdle at Punchestown in November and looked the likeliest winner for most of the straight in a 2½m chase at Cork last time only to get run out of things late on. He tends to go well at this track and is once again partnered by a conditional who is very good value for his 7 lb claim.
Phil Turner - NOCTE VOLATUS (1.50 Cheltenham)
Four non-completions from eight starts last season is hardly the ideal CV for a horse about to tackle the cut and thrust of a large-field Cheltenham two-and-a-half-mile handicap chase, but there are grounds for thinking Nocte Volatus will be better equipped than most of his sixteen rivals there on Saturday.
For a start, that statistic is a misleading one as he’s usually a notably fluent jumper, whilst his style of racing could see him avoiding much of the hurly-burly going on in behind – Nocte Volatus tends to race right up with the pace, tactics which have regularly proved advantageous on the New Course’s chase track in recent years, particularly in handicaps with sizeable fields. He shaped as if still well ahead of his mark when bumping into the thrown-in Equus Dancer on his reappearance at Hereford last month (pulled 23 lengths clear of a last-time-out winner) and represents good each-way value at 18/1 off just 2 lb higher here.
Graeme North – TOUSSAROK (2.18 Lingfield)
The last two weekends at Lingfield has shown that siding with a fresh horse in the feature race who hasn’t been fighting things out of late on the all-weather has been no bad thing, and there might be plenty of upside going along with TOUSSAROK in the 2.18.
He brings something different to the table being a horse who has shown very good all-weather form either first time up or back from a break and, likely to go from the front in a race that lacks any rivalling pace, has a fair bit in his favour off a 1lb lower mark on his debut for Charlie Johnston than when winning a 0-90 at Epsom last summer.
David Ord - GO DANTE (2.32 Uttoxeter)
He showed good form despite looking very much a work in progress last season and GO DANTE can make a winning return on his first venture in a handicap.
The seven-year-old has gone well fresh in the past and an opening mark of 128 looks very fair judged on his fourth behind Stage Star and West Balboa in the Challow. The forecast strong gallop should help Fergus Gregory settle him in the early stages too.
Ben Linfoot - GOLD EMERY (3.07 Uttoxeter)
No surprises to see Donald McCain send GOLD EMERY straight over fences after one run over hurdles this season and he’s taken to make his chasing debut a winning one at Uttoxeter in the 2m4f handicap chase at 3.07.
A winning pointer for Colin Bowe, the Carlisle maiden hurdle he won in February 2022 threw up plenty of winners and he looked like defying an absence of over 300 days at Ayr in December before fitness told late on. That run in Scotland, in a handicap hurdle, suggests he’s well-treated off this sort of mark and this half-brother to Cilaos Emery can go in under Theo Gillard.
Andrew McLaren - Mister Coffey (3.15 Doncaster)
MISTER COFFEY was no match for L’Homme Presse when tried in Grade 1 company last season but he still had Pic D’Orhy and Fugitif behind him that day who have advertised the form well this season. He then filled the runner-up spot again in the Kim Muir and although that isn’t the strongest Festival form, he was probably an unlucky loser there having been stopped in his tracks by a faller at the second fence and did remarkably well in the circumstances to finish as close as he did.
There was plenty of encouragement in his comeback run at Chepstow where he travelled and jumped like the best horse at the weights (traded as low as 1.37 in-running) until the lack of a recent run in stamina sapping conditions took its toll and he was picked off by a progressive young stayer who was in receipt of over a stone. He’ll be much more at home back on better ground in a big field handicap like this and can belatedly get off the mark over fences on Saturday.
Josh Brame - PEMBROKE (15:35 Cheltenham)
Plenty of progressive types lining up for this Grade 2 contest, and the one I'm going to side with is the Dan Skelton-trained PEMBROKE, who can hopefully bag another nice Saturday prize for his in-form handler (8 winners from last 17 runners)Pembroke is seeking the hattrick here, having scored on each of his last two starts, including when kicking clear to win by 16 lengths at Ludlow over the Festive period, with the performance backed up by the clock, too.
From a pace angle, there should be a good gallop on here, and that should give him a smooth run into the race if ridden handy again by Harry Skelton.There's surely plenty more to come from the exciting son of Blue Bresil, and he can take this step up in grade at Prestbury Park in his stride.
Matt Brocklebank – MIGHT I (4.10 Cheltenham)
It could be a big day for Harry Fry with Boothill in the Lightning at Doncaster and a couple with chances at Cheltenham in Phoenix Way and MIGHT I.
Might I bumped into some of the best novice hurdlers around after bolting up first time out at Newton Abbot last season and he signed off with a Grade 1 second to Three Stripe Life at Aintree.
It was no surprise to see him sent off 100/30 favourite on his seasonal/handicap debut at Haydock in November but the extended three mile trip and really testing ground seemed to find him out. He’s well worth another chance off the same mark right back in trip here as he’s never been short of pace and he won’t mind what the ground’s like either.
In short, there is loads to like – not just this weekend but with a view towards the Festival as well.
David Johnson – AXEL JACKLIN (5.30 Kempton)
They say a horse doesn’t know it’s price, but the record of AXEL JACKLIN judged on his SP makes fascinating reading. When starting at 6/1 or shorter for his current yard, his record reads 11422125 but at 13/2 or bigger reads it reads 010000000000000.
There are a few reasons for thinking he’ll be fancied in the 5.30 at Kempton and it’s a race that won’t take a lot of winning. AXEL JACKLIN can go well fresh, he should have won on his reappearance last year but was reeled back late on having been sent for home too soon and had little trouble making amends on his next start. His loss of form last year has had the desired effect on his mark, dropping down from 54 to allow him to sneak back into this 0-50 company. He doesn’t have to lead but expect his rider to be fairly aggressive to get him prominent in the early stages and he’ll hopefully be difficult to peg back.
Andrew Asquith – ZIGGY (7.30 Kempton)
A good-quality handicap in which ZIGGY looks a solid favourite. He is relatively lightly raced for a five-year-old and has looked better than ever on his last two starts on all-weather, displaying a smart turn of foot when winning a mile and a half handicap at this track in November (solid form) and bettering that effort when runner-up in a Fast-Track Qualifier over a mile and a quarter at Newcastle last time (beaten one and a quarter lengths by a 105-rated rival off level weights).
Ziggy left the firm impression he would be suited by a return to further on that occasion and this race also has the potential to be run at a strong pace which will be in his favour. He looks very well treated back in a handicap off a mark of 95 and he also remains unexposed on an artificial surface.
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