Tuesday’s UK racing tips come your way from the meeting at Newton Abbot on 21 August 2023.
NEWTON ABBOT
Race 2 – RYDER’S ROCK 15/2
RYDER’S ROCK is winless in six starts ahead of the Joe And Sophie Finally Got Married Mares’ Handicap Hurdle.
Joe Tizzard’s charge has taken steps forward in her last two starts though, finishing a 17-length second in June before posting an even better effort to be beaten just under three lengths at Newton Abbot last time.
She did not jump the final two flights particularly well, so there might be something left to work with.
Race 4 – GLAJOU 5/1
GLAJOU can return to winning form for the first time in almost a year in the Andy Hobbs Memorial Handicap Chase.
He was a winner at Worcester last August before one disappointing run on easy ground, with Neil Mulholland promptly sending him off on a winter break to avoid the very worst ground of the season.
Conditions were probably still a bit too testing for his liking when he returned in the spring, but Glajou has shown signs of a renaissance in his last two starts, finishing a distant second at Southwell in June before an improved effort last month over the same two miles and five furlongs he faces here.
Beaten just under four lengths, a mistake at the last fence did not aid his cause and his effort could be slightly upgraded on that basis.
His current perch of 105 still puts him 4lb below his last winning mark.
Race 5 – CLEARANCE 28/10
CLEARANCE can improve on his admirable strike rate of two wins in his last three starts by adding another victory in the Talk Tidy Marketing Handicap Hurdle.
The nine-year-old had just over 12 months between victories, snapping his losing sequence when striking at Newton Abbot in June before having to settle for second at the track in mid-July.
He had a bit too much to do to catch a winner who raced prominently that day, but Clearance showed it was not his 4lb rise to blame for the defeat when striking gold at the end of the month.
Clearance did not appear to be all out to win by a length and three-quarters and a further 3lb may not be ideal, but it is still a way short of the highest mark in his career.
