Neil Morrice shares all of his best bets and tips for Thursday’s racing coming your way from Chepstow, Ludlow, Sedgefield and Newcastle on 20 March 2025.
CHEPSTOW
Race 2 No7 JESSMAE (Each Way)
Trainer: Henry Oliver – Jockey: Lee Edwards
JESSMAE has troubled the judge in five of her seven outings over hurdles and fences since joining his trainer from Ireland. He’s been running well in cheek pieces, and in an open race rates a value win and place play.
Race 6 No2 FIVE QUARTERS (Nap)
Trainer: Kayley Woollacott – Jockey: Mr Josh Newman
FIVE QUARTERS will have good assistance from the saddle for this first handicap assignment, having run well over course and distance when troubling the judge last month. While at the head of the weights he faces a field of largely out of form rivals
LUDLOW
Race 2 No3 RASCALLION (Nap)
Trainer: Henrietta Knight – Jockey: Charlie Deutsch
Fields at this fixture have been affected by the drying ground, but one horse worth supporting is RASCALLION on his debut for Knight. The Nap has been ridden by Deutsch on both starts under Rules including when finishing second at this course back in November. Now with an established National Hunt trainer he can show further progress, and open his account.
SEDGEFIELD
Race 3 No3 BALLYDISCO
Trainer: Lucinda Russell – Jockey: Derek Fox
BALLYDISCO doesn’t do anything in a hurry, but the marathon trip on a first visit to this course can see him notch a first career success over fences for a stable whose chasers are running well.
Race 6 No6 SYNCHRONIST (Nap)
Trainer: Sarah Humphrey – Jockey: Sean Bowen
Champion jockey elect Bowen looks to have the answer to this handicap hurdle in SYNCHRONIST, who was ridden by him for the first time when raising his game to gain a first career success at Southwell. Humphrey has a good record with her runners in this part of the north, and isn’t bringing him here all the way from Newmarket just for the goodness of his health.
NEWCASTLE
Race 1 No2 REGINALD CHARLES (Nap)
Trainer: Geoff Oldroyd – Jockey: Warren Fentiman
Fentiman got the best out of REGINALD CHARLES when guiding the gelding to a first career win at the seventeenth attempt at Southwell in January. No wonder connections have booked the star apprentice again, and the combination look sure to take some stopping.
Race 2 No6 CHARLIE’S CHOICE (Each Way)
Trainer: David Simcock – Jockey: Warren Fentiman
Fentiman is making a name for himself as an apprentice heading for the top, and it’s probably significant that Simcock has snapped him up for CHARLIE’S CHOICE who has been in very good form on sand, but needs to overcome an outer draw. The selection seeks a sixth AW success but is still to add Gosforth Park to his places of victory.
Race 5 No2 MISS ATTITUDE
Trainer: Jack Channon – Jockey: Charles Bishop
Everything fell right for MISS ATTITUDE when she arrived late on the scene to score at Southwell a fortnight ago. The Cityscape mare can’t be assured of a similar outcome, but with her trainer shelling out the winners she’s hard to overlook, as she did us a good turn that day and it was her first run on sand.
Race 7 No5 KORROOR
Trainer: Julie Camacho – Jockey: Tom Kiely-Marshall
KORROOR was on a second run back from a wind op, had first time cheekieces and KIELY-Marshall in the irons for the first time when putting in a seasonal best at this course earlier in the month. If building on that podium finish the Kodiac gelding can make this a first success since joining his trainer.
