The Best Horse Racing Tips for Ascot & Haydock on Saturday

Hopefully, Storm Eunice will not prevent some excellent jump racing from taking place this weekend, in particular the card featuring the Grade 1 Betfair Ascot Chase at the Berkshire racecourse. Haydock Park is also due to host some top class action, including a couple of Grade 2 contests along with the William Hill Grand National Trial Handicap Chase.

For today’s Horse Racing tips, previews and predictions we head to Ascot for their 2.25pm and 3.38pm races, while over at Haydock Park our selection comes in the 11-runner Grand National trial at 2.40pm.

“Tip of the Day” – Ask Me Early – 2.25pm Ascot

The Harry Fry-trained grey can gain some compensation for having to miss this season’s Welsh Grand National by taking this valuable contest before a tilt at one of the big staying chases in the spring.

Ask Me Early (NAP) – 2.25pm Ascot

Things have hardly gone right for the Harry Fry-trained Ask Me Early this season. Ante-post favourite for this season’s Welsh Grand National, the unexposed chaser was injured when falling during a schooling session at home, causing the grey to miss the Chepstow stamina test.

The mount of Sean Bowen, winner of both of his starts this season over hurdles, only suffered defeat once in four outings over fences when running way below his best at Sandown 12 months ago. The son of Ask possesses huge potential and off a mark of 139 can prove too good for his nine rivals in this valuable contest.

In what is sure to become a severe test of stamina, stout stayer Fortesque is the other one to consider.

Bristol De Mai (Next Best) – 2.40pm Haydock

To say this Grand National trial is going to prove attritional goes without saying on ground that is expected to be barely raceable. It would be no surprise to see only a handful of horses completing the course in such testing conditions.

One contender who, despite having to shoulder top weight of 11st 12lb, will relish the ground is the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Bristol De Mai who is fancied to come out on top at the Merseyside track for the sixth time.

Three of the grey’s victories on the course came on heavy ground and while the mount of Sam Twiston-Davies was pulled-up in this season’s Betfair Chase, a race the eleven-year-old has won on three previous occasions, the ground was simply not testing enough against the likes of winner A Plus Tard.

A close third at Lingfield on his most recent start over a distance short of his best, the son of Saddler Maker can open his account for the season at the main expense of the lightly-weighted Secret Reprieve, winner of last season’s Welsh Grand National.

Waiting Patiently (Longshot) – 3.38pm Ascot

An open renewal of the day’s feature Grade 1 contest in which all eight runners can be given a chance, even outsiders Two For Gold and Waiting Patiently. With that in mind it could be worth an each-way investment in the latter who will be having his second start for trainer Christian Williams since leaving the stable of Ruth Jefferson.

The Flemensfirth gelding, winner of this race in 2018 when comfortably beating Cue Card, has not enjoyed the best of luck over the last couple of years. But is still capable of mixing it with the very best, as was the case when finding only Frodon too good in the 2020 King George.

The mount of Jack Tudor was quietly fancied for Haydock’s Betfair Chase last November when things didn’t go right for the 11-year-old, who didn’t jump with his usual fluency, along with being hampered by the fall of Imperial Aura.

In reality any of the eight runners could win on their best form. But in a race which is likely to be run at a good clip on the soft ground, the usually held-up Waiting Patiently could pick up the pieces in the closing stages at a decent price.

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