20:15 Wolverhampton

Friday 12 October 2018

All17:4518:1518:4519:1519:4520:1520:4521:15

Grand Theatre Wolverhampton Handicap (Div 1)

Off time: 20:15 | Winning time: 1m 50.81s

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Selected odds by:

(11)

War Department^v⁹

Age: 5| Weight: 9-8| J: T P Queally| T: K Dalgleish| OR: 71

3/1

Had fallen sharply in the weights before gaining back-to-back wins at Newcastle (7f), and vagaries of handicap system mean he is actually 3lb lower than for latest win in apprentice company. Stays this far, and claims there for all to see.

Form: 258511

(7)

Ebbisham^p¹⁴

Age: 5| Weight: 9-5| J: F Norton| T: J Mackie| OR: 68| C

7/2

Ran well when second in a 1m handicap at Nottingham in August, and claims on that, but only eighth of 12 to War Department at Newcastle last time, and not easy to see him turning the tables now.

Form: 374248

(2)

Caramuru^p¹⁷

Age: 4| Weight: 9-4| J: Raul Da Silva| T: J Santos| OR: 67| CD

14/1

Now 3lb lower than when winning over C&D in February, and ran well next time, but his form has fallen off a cliff since, and plenty to prove after latest unsighted effort at Kempton.

Form: 200990

(1)

Sharg⁴⁴

Age: 3| Weight: 9-3| J: Rossa Ryan⁽³⁾| T: R Hannon| OR: 70

5/1

Caught the eye under apparent tender handling (hung badly left under 7lb claimer) at Kempton in August, but beaten 9L when second next time, and ran poorly handicap bow. Drops in class now, and may prove better on a left-handed track.

Form: 53220

(4)

Screaming Gemini⁷

Age: 4| Weight: 9-3| J: Jason Watson| T: D H Brown| OR: 66

5/1

Failed to progress for Roger Varian, but got back on track when second of 13 to New Orleans in C&D handicap for new yard recently, and not without a chance if he can build on that. Overall record advises caution, however.

Form: 50-4332

(3)

Sounds Approving³⁶

Age: 3| Weight: 9-0| J: Amelia Glass⁽⁷⁾| T: C G Cox| OR: 67

14/1

Form of his second on handicap debut at Windsor in July doesn't amount to a great deal, and he could finish only 9L fourth of 8 to Fortune And Glory in apprentice event at Salisbury last time. Still looks a fair bit too high in the weights.

Form: 75524

(13)

Cashel⁷⁸

Age: 3| Weight: 8-13| J: Liam Jones| T: Tom Dascombe| OR: 66WS

50/1

Showed clear signs of ability when fourth of 14 to Arabian Coast in 7f maiden at Leicester in May, but has run badly on all subsequent starts, and hard to recommend after latest flop on handicap debut (tongue tied).

Form: 04967

(10)

Pact Of Steel^p1¹¹

Age: 3| Weight: 8-12| J: L Morris| T: H J L Dunlop| OR: 65| BF

14/1

Stepped up after a break in August, and off the mark when beating King Athelstan at Lingfield (1m2f) on penultimate outing. Too free when well beaten at Kempton last time, but that effort raises obvious concerns, with cheekpieces now tried.

Form: 337210

(9)

Barnay^v²⁴

Age: 3| Weight: 8-11| J: P Aspell| T: C Ellam| OR: 64

40/1

Belatedly got off the mark when winning a weak seller at Lingfield last month for Marcus Tregoning, and not an obvious one to follow up in handicap company, even without factoring change of stable into the equation.

Form: 623421

(5)

Herm⁴²

Age: 4| Weight: 8-9| J: A Mullen| T: P D Evans| OR: 58| C

20/1

Scored twice over 7f here during the winter and dropping down towards his last winning mark. Not disgraced when fifth after a break here last time, but has stamina to prove for this longer trip.

Form: 293455

(6)

Gembari^v¹¹²

Age: 3| Weight: 8-8| J: Jane Elliott⁽³⁾| T: J Balding| OR: 61

14/1

Runner-up over C&D in November for Ivan Furtado, but he's run below form on turf this year. Could bounce back returned to Tapeta, so market useful starting out for a new yard.

Form: 021-486

(8)

Sumner Beach¹⁸

Age: 4| Weight: 8-7| J: Ben Robinson⁽³⁾| T: B Ellison| OR: 56| BF

13/2

Without a win since scoring at Southwell (5f) on debut in April 2016, but back to form with placed efforts at Newcastle on last two starts, and latest run his best this year. Should remain competitive.

Form: 357633

Non-Runners

(12)

Black Salt¹⁴

Weight: 9-1| Age: 4

T: T D Barron J: R Winston

Forecasts

War Department (3/1), Ebbisham (7/2), Sharg (5/1), Screaming Gemini (5/1), Sumner Beach (13/2), Black Salt (12/1), Sounds Approving (14/1), Pact Of Steel (14/1), Gembari (14/1), Caramuru (14/1), Herm (20/1), Barnay (40/1), Cashel (50/1)

This track may not suit as well as Newcastle, but WAR DEPARTMENT is actually lower in the weights than for winning there last week, and it doesn't take much imagination to spot his chances here. He is readily preferred to the back-to-form Sumner Beach, while it's probably too early to give up on the giant Sharg, for all he's not looked an easy ride so far.