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Telegraph
07-03-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
ITV Racing tips – Saturday March 8: Sandown, Hereford and Wolverhampton
ITV Racing presents action from Sandown, Hereford and Wolverhampton on Saturday. Seven races, covering both codes, will whet the appetite nicely for next week's Cheltenham Festival and the start of the spring Flat season later this month. Our betting expert has selections from the first four of the televised races, including a 25/1 shot in the big one – the Imperial Cup at Sandown (2.25). Catch all the action on ITV4 from 1.30 to 4pm. Today's best bets 1.50 Sandown – George's Lad @ 11/2 with Betfair 2.05 Hereford – Western General @ 6/4 with Betfair 2.25 Sandown – Ooh Betty each-way @ 9/1 with Betfair / King William Rufus each-way @ 25/1 with Betfair 2.45 Wolverhampton – Farasi Lane each-way @ 14/1 with Betfair Odds provided by Betfair and correct at the time of writing. If you already have a Betfair account and are looking for a new bookmaker to use for this week's racing, check out our list of Cheltenham free bets that can be used throughout next week's racing. 1.50 Sandown – Betfair EBF Novices' Handicap Hurdle (2m 4f) GEORGE'S LAD has produced some impressive collateral form in every race this season, most recently over 2m 3½f at Doncaster in January, when he beat a very well-bred Nicky Henderson horse, Calimystic, who won impressively next time out. That effort is also the reason why Ben Pauling's Meetmebythesea was last to be scratched off the shortlist. He steps up in trip after three wins over two miles, but the previous 12 winners of this race had all had at least one run over 2m 3f or further under rules, with seven of them having won. Liam Harrison takes over the reins for today's selection, with Harry Cobden obliged to ride the well-fancied Paul Nicholls-trained Belliano, but that is no cause for concern and 11/2 is a fair price. 2.05 Hereford – Dragonbet Handicap Chase (2m) WESTERN GENERAL has a clear form claim over the rest of the field as the only horse to win one his previous two races, whereas none of his competitors have even managed a place in that time. That win, achieved despite a mistake at the last, has resulted in a 10lb rise in the weights, but it was done in such impressive style you wouldn't want to bet against him following up here. Trainer Joe Tizzard's horses have been in fair form this season, including last Saturday, when Rivers Corner captured a three-mile handicap chase at Newbury. 2.25 Sandown – Betfair Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (2m) This valuable handicap usually attracts a varied field because of its proximity to the Cheltenham Festival. Promising handicappers often turn up here with theoretically weaker opposition than the Festival handicaps, along with others who have no hope of qualifying off their current marks. OOH BETTY is our first selection, having finished third last time out at Ascot behind the high-class Kagrese and Take No Chances, who have solid chances in the Mares' Hurdle at Cheltenham. The form of that race has also been boosted with the fourth winning since, albeit on their chasing debut. The second selection is KING WILLIAM RUFUS who, if you had enough extra places, would have returned a healthy profit when tipped at 40/1 four weeks ago at Newbury, where he led the field for a long way. His Chepstow run in December has provided multiple winners since and this Chris Gordon runner can add to that, having been dropped 1lb for a valiant effort behind some graded horses. Last off the list was Knickerbockerglory who could conceivably give Harry and Dan Skelton another big weekend handicap winner. However, the stats suggest he is up against it, despite beating the talented Nemean Lion here in December, since only two of the previous 11 winners had run at Sandown before, none of them having won. 2.45 Wolverhampton – BetMGM Lincoln Trial Handicap (1m) FARASI LANE rounds off today's selections and can come out on top in this trial for the Lincoln Handicap at Doncaster, the traditional first big race of the spring Flat racing season. The gelding showed promise when running on to finish fourth last time out over 7f at Southwell under today's jockey Hollie Doyle, who struggled to get a clear run. The vet also reported bleeding from the horse's nose after the race, again suggesting you can mark up that performance. In the last two seasons, Farasi Lane has won around this time of year, and a victory will be needed to qualify for the Lincoln as he is currently 55th on the list. With at least four places on offer, 14/1 offers good value in this field. Expert's Saturday tipping record
The Independent
07-03-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Saturday's Sandown Tips & Best Bets: G-Force to Hit Sandown Hard
Sandown tips George's Lad (Sandown, 1.50) – each-way @ 13/2 William Hill (1/5 odds, five places) Kepler's Law (Sandown, 1.50) – each-way @ 18/1 BetVictor (1/5 odds, 5 places) Go Dante (Sandown, 2.25) – each-way @ 7/1 bet365 (1/5 odds, 5 places) Goshen (Sandown, 3.35) – win @ 7/1 bet365 Cheltenham is looming large on the horizon as betting sites turn their focus to the biggest betting event of the year, but before all that hullabaloo, there's still the small matter of Imperial Cup day at Sandown to enjoy. Emma Lavelle's string have been rattling along at a terrific strike-rate since the turn of the year, and the in-form handler appears to have a healthy chance of landing the EBF Handicap Hurdle at Sandown. The Wiltshire trainer has sent out 16 winners from just 60 runners since January 1 and both Silver Thorn and George's Lad (Sandown, 1.50) look live contenders for the valuable novices' handicap. Slight preference would be for the latter who bolted up at Doncaster last time, thumping subsequent scorer Calimystic with ease, earning an 11lb rise in the handicap despite jockey Harry Cobden doing his best not to win too far. Sadly, Cobden is claimed to ride Belliano by his stable, but Liam Harrison is an able deputy aboard a horse which remains unexposed at this trip. I can't let Kepler's Law (Sandown, 1.50) run unbacked either, especially with former champion jockey Brian Hughes forsaking a normal trip to Ayr to head south. Laura Morgan's son of Jack Hobbs won in a canter at Leicester at the end of January and clearly operates very well on testing ground, so conditions should be to his liking, and he looks overpriced on horse racing betting sites. Sandown 1.50 tips Sandown Imperial Cup tips Go Dante (Sandown, 2.25) has been campaigned with the Imperial Cup in mind all season and looks primed to make a bold bid to repeat last year's success in the Saturday feature. True soft ground would have increased confidence in the nine-year-old's chances, but conditions may well still be exacting, and the selection will have plenty of pace to aim at in the straight with at least three confirmed front-runners in opposition. His latest effort behind Joyeuse in the William Hill Handicap Hurdle at Newbury hinted that he was approaching peak fitness, and he should relish returning to a right-handed track. Goshen at home in Esher Goshen (Sandown, 3.35) boasts form figures of 11243 at the Esher venue and has run better on both of his recent starts than his finishing position suggests. Sent off at 33/1 on betting apps for his penultimate outing over hurdles at Sandown, Gary Moore's popular nine-year-old stayed on well to take third behind the front-running Red Dirt Road who dominated from the outset and got loose on the lead. The gelding's subsequent display over fences in a warm Ascot handicap chase again highlighted he remains in good heart and this smaller field chase should really play to his strengths as his strike-rate in seven-runner fields or less is eight wins from just 22 starts. When using gambling sites, be aware that sports betting can be addictive, so please take steps to remain in control of your time and budget. The same applies whether you're using slot sites, casino sites, casino apps, or any other gambling medium. Bettors should always follow responsible gambling practices. Even the most knowledgeable punter can lose a bet, so always stick to a budget and never chase your losses. It's particularly important not to get carried away by any free bets or casino offers you might receive, both of which are available in abundance on gambling sites, but must be approached with caution. You can stay in control by making use of the responsible gambling tools offered, such as deposit limits, loss limits, self-exclusion and time-outs. You may also want to visit the following free organisations to discuss any issues with gambling you might be having:
