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Latest Profit & Loss Figures
A small loss of -£5.54 for the week ending Sunday, April.
The horse racing action moves up several gears during the week ahead, culminating in Saturday’s Randox Grand National. Aintree’s three day meeting gets underway on Thursday afternoon, with the ground expected to be on the soft side of good.
- P/L for the week ending Sunday, 5 April: -£5.54
- P/L for the year 2026 to date: +£63.06
- P/L for the year 2025: +£22.38
- P/L for the year 2024: +£200.42
- P/L since 1st September 2022: +£563.72
Alan Kelly's Tips - Tuesday, 7 April
Tuesday’s turf action takes place at Pontefract on the Flat and Exeter over jumps.
The ground at the West Yorkshire racecourse is currently described as good to soft, soft in places, the feature race on the 8-race card being a Class 2 sprint handicap at 3:57pm.
2:57pm Pontefract - Kokanee
John & Sean Quinn’s Zowal ran an excellent race on his reappearance to finish 6th of 22 behind Mezcala in Doncaster’s Spring Mile on the opening day of the turf Flat season. Jason Hart’s mount can be a risky proposition however, as the four-year-old has had problems with his breathing in the past.
Not seen on the Flat since finishing 8th at Wolverhampton for trainer Tom Clover almost two years ago, the five-year-old Character Testing is now with Mark Walford and is interesting back on the level following three three runs over hurdles this year, including a narrow defeat at Market Rasen.
Joanna Mason’s mount is worth a look for any market support, but I like the chances of the Ed Dunlop-trained KOKANEE and jockey Rossa Ryan. The son of Kameko won on his handicap debut at Beverley around this time last year off today’s mark of 74, the gelding’s best effort in six subsequent starts coming over today’s course and distance six months later.
Despite a slow start and taking a keen hold, Kokanee kept on well to be beaten just a length in fourth place off a mark of 75. Fifth at Newmarket on his final run of the season, the four-year-old will be more at home on today’s good to soft ground and is more than capable of winning a race of this nature with conditions to suit.
Recommendation: Kokanee - 11/4 with bet365
3:57pm Pontefract - Purosangue (Nap)
There are few better trainers of sprinters than Robert Cowell, the Newmarket handler particularly successful in rekindling the form of horses from former stables. Previously with Andrew Balding, the Aclaim gelding PUROSANGUE (Nap) will be having his first start for Cowell in this Class 2 handicap run over the minimum trip and with jockey Rossa Ryan in the saddle.
A winner on his two-year-old debut at Haydock in the summer of 2023, Purosangue’s only other victory to date came in York’s Listed Rockingham Stakes later that year. Despite 15 consecutive subsequent defeats, the selection has produced many fine efforts in defeat, in particular when finishing a close fourth in last season’s Ayr Gold Cup as the 5/1 market leader.
Purosangue begins the new campaign on a mark of 97, 6lb lower than when beaten less than than five lengths in last year’s Wokingham at the royal meeting. On ground that should suit, and with the five-year-old’s fitness unlikely to be an issue, Purosangue can end his long losing run with a victory on his first start for connections.
Ed Bethell’s Atomic Force is on a hat-trick following all-weather successes at Lingfield and Chelmsford, but will find this much tougher back on turf and off a career-high mark of 94. Along with Purosangue, Cowell is also represented by joint top weight Kylian and Seven Questions. The former will be having his second outing since joining Cowell from Archie Watson and may prove the main danger to his stablemate following his promising run at Southwell last month.
Recommendation: Purosangue (Nap) - 15/2 with bet365
Grand National (Antepost) - Final Orders (Each-Way)
With less than a month to go before the 2026 renewal of Aintree’s Randox Grand National, a good time to try and pinpoint a bit of early value in the ante-post market for the world’s most famous steeplechase. At the 50/1 currently available with William Hill about Gavin Cromwell’s Final Orders, I think last week’s Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase winner is way overpriced for the extended 4m 2f test of jumping and stamina.
Currently standing at number 40 in the pecking-order and with a maximum permitted field of 34, the 10-year-old is not guaranteed his place, but with several doubtful runners higher up in the handicap I will be surprised if the Camelot gelding ends up as one of the reserves. A greater doubt revolves around possible ground conditions at the Merseyside racecourse on April 11th, as Final Orders needs decent going to produce his best form.
With current top weight I Am Maximus (winner in 2024) a certain runner barring accidents, Final Orders has a lovely racing weight of just 10st 5lb. Five of the first 12 winners of the race in the 21st century were 10-year-olds, and while Cheltenham's cross country chase has only been going since 2005, dual Grand National winner Tiger Roll won that unique three miles five and a half furlong contest in both of the years he was victorious at Aintree.
Of Final Orders’ seven successes over fences, five came over distances ranging from two to three miles, showing the kind of versatility needed to win a race requiring both pace and stamina in equal measures (also a winner over 1m 4f on the flat). If conditions are similar at Aintree to those of last week (good to soft), a reproduction of his comfortable victory over favourite Favori De Champdou would give the selection a much better chance of emulating Tiger Roll than his current odds would indicate.
Recommendation: Final Orders (Each-Way) - 50/1 with Unibet (4 places)
* Betting odds correct at the time of publication. All odds are subject to changes.
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About Alan Kelly
A passionate follower of horse racing for over 50 years, Alan has enjoyed a 40-year career in the betting industry, 28 of which he spent running his betting shop as an owner/manager.
A successful punter with a keen eye for value, Alan has had many betting highlights, including a Scoop 6 win and has shown a consistent profit in the battle with bookmakers since joining Freebets.com in 2008.
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