There’s a competitive card at Ayr on Wednesday afternoon, and we’ve got free Ayr tips on-site from our top tipping team of Alan Kelly and Charlie McCann, including Charlie’s Nap of the Day selection.
Charlie McCann - 3:20pm Ayr - Minstral Star (Nap)
The feature race at Ayr is the listed 10f contest for fillies and mares and there is also rain due to hit the track but not until about 10am, with a heavier band from mid-afternoon.
Conditions were described as good on Tuesday morning, with the ground likely to ease during the meeting.
David Menuisier surprisingly ran Heartache Tonight from the front in the 1m 1f Dahlia Stakes on her reappearance on fast ground - a race she could not possibly win. One could argue that should put her spot on for today’s race and Paul Mulrennan takes over in the plate. The more rain, the better for this half-sister to the yard’s Group 1 winner, Wonderful Tonight, and her best form is at this ten-furlong trip.
Marginal preference, however, is for MISTRAL STAR (Nap), who improved throughout her three-year-old campaign. This culminated in a second at Saint-Cloud in a similar contest over 1m 4f when she gave the impression she would appreciate the return to this afternoon’s trip.
She lacks a recent run, which is a slight concern, but Hughie Morrison could hardly be in better form. Like Menuisier, he has booked a top northern jockey – Jason Hart – although Hart has experience on the filly, having been in the plate for her racecourse debut.
Alan Kelly - 3:50pm Ayr - Cancan In The Rain (Each-Way)
Despite having to carry a 5lb penalty for his victory over a furlong shorter on this course last week, Jim Goldie’s Kelpie Grey will be fancied by many to record his fourth consecutive win of the season, the last two coming with today’s rider Paul Mulrennan in the saddle. The grey has certainly hit a rich vein of form over the last month or so. But with Garden Oasis expected to take the market leader on for the lead, I think the Charlie Johnston-trained CANCAN IN THE RAIN (Each-Way) represents a decent each-way alternative to the Jim Goldie-trained favourite.
The four-year-old has won two of his 8 starts on turf, the latest coming off a 1lb higher mark when taking a Newmarket handicap last June. The Muhaarar gelding finished fourth, beaten less than five lengths, behind the 97-rated Oh So Grand on Newcastle’s Tapeta surface last October, since when Joe Fanning’s mount has been gelded.
Off a mark of only 75 and with a break of seven months unlikely to be a problem, Cancan In The Rain can take advantage of the 8lb he receives from Jim Goldie’s top weight. The other horse to consider is David O’Meara’s Nikova, who was unlucky not to land a hat-trick of wins since joining the stable in March when beaten just over a length at Leicester recently despite suffering serious interference approaching the final furlong.
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