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Latest Profit & Loss Figures
Two winning days to begin the week, commencing Sunday, 26 April, followed by five successive losing days produced a loss of -£6.72 on a £1 level stake. We had a few winners, and I originally tipped both Transmission and Havaila for the bet365 Gold Cup, but then changed my copy and went each way on Transmission. I have got the latter wrong, and he does need a bit of cut in the ground.
Three losing weeks on the spin, and I am now looking down the barrel of April being a losing month.
Latest Profit & Loss for the week ending Sunday, 26 April 2026
- Cumulative profit since August 1, 2022: +£1,544.62
- Week ending Sunday, 26 April: -£6.72
- April 2026 to date: -£1.90
- Year 2026 to date: +£154.41
- Year 2025 ended: +£312.73
- Year 2024 ended: +£364.90
- Year 2023 ended: +£469.27
- Period 1/8/22-31/12/22 ended: +£243.31
(All figures to a £1 level stake)
Charlie McCann's Tips - Thursday, 30 April
4:50pm Punchestown - Release The Beast & McLaurey
My two against the field in the 2m handicap chase are RELEASE THE BEAST and McLAUREY, and have backed both, who ran well when last seen at the Cheltenham Festival.
Release The Beast finished fourth in the Grand Annual, and trainer Paul Nolan takes off a valuable 5lbs by putting up talented 5lbs claimer Eoin Staples. A winner of just one of his seven chase starts, he will relish the ground and has good form in big fields.
McLaurey travelled very well for a long time in the 2m4f+ Plate last month and gives the impression he will appreciate dropping back down in distance. He was carried right off the home turn when holding every chance but finished tamely. The form has been franked by the 1-2 Madara and Will The Wise, who finished third and first respectively in the Topham earlier in the month.
Emmet Mullins has decided to fit cheekpieces to his seven-year-old, who, in an ideal world, would appreciate softer ground, but he ran well at Cheltenham, and he should have the race run to suit with plenty of confirmed pace in the race.
Recommendations: Release The Beast - 8/1 with Coral & McLaurey - 7/1 with bet365
6:05pm Punchestown - Bob Olinger
My two against the field in the Grade 1 Champion Stayers' Hurdle are six-year-old Kawaboomga and the 11-year-old BOB OLINGER, and preference is for the latter, who lost his Stayers' Hurdle crown at Cheltenham last month, but didn't get the best of runs and should have finished a bit closer to the winner, Home By The Lee.
That form has been franked by the Aintree success of the winner, where Honesty Policy again suggested that three miles stretches his stamina. Jockey Mark Walsh deserts him this afternoon in favour of Kawaboomga, who looked ready for a step up to this trip when second, staying on very well, over 2m4f in a Grade 2 at Fairyhouse over Easter.
The evergreen Bob Olinger was well-held by Teahupoo – another former Stayers' Hurdle winner – at Leopardstown over Christmas, but that was the selection's seasonal reappearance, and this will be just his third start of the campaign. He should be fresher than most. He has never won at this meeting previously but, surprisingly, has only run once, although he has scored at the track, albeit over fences, back in January 2022!
Teahupoo heads the market and will be blinkered for the first time by Gordon Elliot after a laboured showing at Cheltenham. He has won this corresponding race for the last two years, and he is bidding to follow the Willie Mullins-trained Klassical Dream, who won the race from 2021-23 inclusive.
For a horse whose connections insist is best fresh, he has a good record here, having come on from Cheltenham for both those course and distance successes. I just favour Bob Olinger, who has beaten Teahupoo twice in their last three meetings, but is a much bigger price.
Recommendation: Bob Olinger - 11/4 with bet365
5:02pm Redcar - King Of Berkshire
I narrowed the 10f handicap at Yarmouth last week down to KING OF BERKSHIRE (11/2) and Room Fourteen (11/4) and, as is our current run, went with the former, who went down by a short head to the latter with the third a further three-and-a-half-lengths away.
P J McDonald takes over for Andrew Balding this afternoon, and he has been raised 6lbs from the weekend, although he can race from a 1lb lower mark than Yarmouth this afternoon. I thought both three-year-olds looked worth following, and note the selection has also been entered to Goodwood on Friday. This is being written before the declarations are announced, but you get the impression connections want to take advantage of what they perceive as a lenient mark.
He will likely go off a short-priced favourite, but I have missed winning recommendations in recent weeks because I have felt selections would go off at prohibitive odds when that has not been the case.
Recommendation: King Of Berkshire - 4/6 with bet365
5:30pm Yarmouth - Del Corso (Nap)
Armstrong has finished second in his last couple of starts but was beaten a long-looking 4l at Bath last time on soft ground. The return to a quicker surface will suit, and he can race from the same mark today.
The vote goes to the Ed Walker-trained DEL CORSO (Nap), who did not have the best of trip when third at Nottingham last time and the hope is that this straight mile is more suitable, although he has been nudged up 3lbs for that half-length defeat earlier in the month.
I like the booking of James Doyle – who rode Naga expertly to victory for us on Saturday night – for the lightly raced son of Dubawi, who I think will get ten furlongs going forward. I would not want the race to develop into a sprint – selection is out of a 10f winner in France – and the hope is that Doyle takes the bull by the horns if there is no early pace in the race.
Okiru has led in the past – at a steady gallop – but there is no guaranteed pace, and the hope is that Doyle goes forward, given Del Corso is bred to get the mile and more very well.
Recommendation: Del Corso - 5/2 with bet365 (Nap)
*Betting odds correct at the time of publication. All odds are subject to changes.
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Charlie McCann’s Horses to Follow
Last updated, Monday, 30 March
Anniversary (Four-year-old trained by Ralph Beckett)
Blindedbythelights has form figures since winning at Newbury in June 2023 of 2-2-4-2-2-2-2, and his handicap mark has risen from sixty-eight to a mark in the early nineties, given that he finished second at Kempton from a mark of eighty-eight in the Queen’s Prize at the end of March.
His profile hardly strikes you as being one to have onside going forward, but he is lightly raced for one of his age, and I have always thought there was more to come from the flashy gelding.
He was very well supported at Kempton, however, whereas Anniversary was weak in the market with blinkers reapplied by Ralph Beckett, and the jury is still out as to whether he truly stays two miles.
The stable’s inmates ran well in defeat on the opening weekend of the turf season, and this four-year-old has not won since beating the subsequent Goodwood Cup/St Leger winner Scandinavia at Newmarket on his racecourse debut as a juvenile.
There is a 1m6f handicap at Newmarket on the Sunday of the Guineas weekend at the beginning of May and that would strike me as a suitable target for the gelded son of Sea The Moon who may have races such as the Copper Horse Stakes at Royal Ascot as a mid-summer target although he would have to win to get into the race as the bottom weight was rated ninety-five last year.
At the time of writing, Anniversary is rated ninety-one, but you would imagine he will be eased at least 1lb for his Kempton run. He will need to win to sneak into the bottom of the handicap if the Royal meeting is a realistic target.
Blue Bolt (Three-year-old filly trained by Andrew Balding)
Blue Bolt was beaten more than 5L on her racecourse debut over 7f at Southwell on debut but she has looked a different proposition on turf, with that experience under her belt, winning both starts over a mile at Windsor and Newbury.
Her latest success in a valuable Novice under Colin Keane suggested she was ready for a step up in grade and she holds an entry in the listed Coral Distaff on Eclipse Day at Sandown.
Her Group 1 entry Matron Stakes at Leopardstown in September suggests connections are taking it slowly slowly with this daughter of Blue Point - no entry in next week’s Falmouth Stakes - but I am convinced she is at least up to listed level.
Keane was jockey up on the filly as soon as the entries were announced and both turf wins have been gained on good or faster ground. There is a possibility of a shower on Wednesday morning, but the forecast is set fair for the rest of the week.
Gunship (Three-year-old trained by James Ferguson)
Gunship was not guaranteed on breeding to appreciate the step up to a mile-and-a-half at Royal Ascot and so it proved with the dual tapeta winner fading from two out in the King George V Stakes.
It is possible that the Sea The Stars colt will always be a better horse on the all-weather, but he travelled as well as anything save winner Merchant at the Royal meeting. We will know more about his long-term prospects after his next start which is likely to be at Newmarket on the Friday of their July Cup meeting.
That bet365 sponsored contest is one of the hottest three-year-old 10f handicaps of the season and he needs ten to come out to be guaranteed a run, but he remains a colt with plenty more to come, and his next start should tell us whether his best days lie solely on an artificial surface.
The form of his previous three quarters of a length defeat of War Hawk at Newmarket has been franked by the runner up who has since won at Chester and Epsom. He would meet Gunship on 6lbs worse terms if they both faced the starter on the July course.
Midnight Tango (Two-year-old trained by Ed Walker)
Midnight Tango really ought to have won the listed Empress Stakes at Newmarket (July) at the end of June when Kieran Shoemark tried to come from last to first on the wrong side of the track. She passed six of her seven rivals in the last couple of furlongs, and I wonder if the jockey will consider it one that got away.
She has only got a modest Hamilton success to her name, but she is held in some regard by Ed Walker, and she is up to at least listed class. It would be no surprise if she landed a Group race between now and the end of the season with something like the Lowther at York’s Ebor meeting under consideration.
Charles Darwin (Two-year-old trained by Aidan O’Brien)
The “lads” at Ballydoyle nominated Albert Einstein as their Coventry horse over 6f at Royal Ascot after making it two out of two in the Marble Stakes at the Curragh. That left Charles Darwin as their Norfolk representative after his fluent Naas win at the minimum trip.
When Albert Einstein was a late defector ahead of the Coventry, connections gave Gstaad the green light to run on the opening day and left Charles Darwin in the Norfolk rather than “upgrade” him to the Coventry which is widely considered the premier juvenile race of the meeting.
Gstaad duly bolted up by 3l in the Coventry while Charles Darwin landed Thursday’s Norfolk by more than 2l hitting the line hard and giving every impression he would relish another furlong. Aidan O’Brien, it would appear, already has the three best juvenile colts in Europe and it will be fascinating to see how connections keep them apart.
If there is a batting order at present, you feel the yard consider 1) Albert Einstein 2) Charles Darwin and 3) Gstaad. Charles Darwin has the physique of a four-year-old let alone a two-year-old and a crack at the Group 1 Nunthorpe over 5f at York in August was muted given the weight-for-age allowance juveniles receive against their elders.
I would prefer the son of No Nay Never to step back up to six furlongs next time, but you get the impression that Albert Einstein will dictate and be campaigned as the yard’s number one until results say otherwise.
As a half-brother to the yard’s dual Group1 winning juvenile Blackbeard, Charles Darwin is not guaranteed to train on next term, but I am convinced he will win at the top table between now and the end of the season.
Aeronautic (Four-year-old trained by Joseph O’Brien)
The lightly- raced Aeronautic finished fifth in the 1m6f Copper Horse Stakes on the opening day of Royal Ascot for Joseph O’Brien who endured such a frustrating week.
The stable had four winners in Ireland on Saturday, and most of their Ascot team ran terrific races in defeat with six finishing in the first four of their respective races.
Aeronautic was no match for French Master at Ascot but ran a cracking race on the quickest ground he has encountered to date. He was beaten less than 4l in the Copper Horse over that mile-and-three-quarter trip and I wonder if connections will consider dropping him back in distance at some time given how well he travelled on that occasion.
After just six career starts the son of Gleneagles has a big race in him between now and the end of the season. The Ebor and Melbourne Cup were races connections may have had in mind for the gelding had he won at Ascot, but I am still convinced there is a big pot to be had with the gelding this term and he won’t go up the weights for finishing fifth.
Classic Encounter (Three-year-old trained by George Boughey)
Classic Encounter was weak in the market, then backed near the off at Newcastle on his first start for George Boughey and belated seasonal reappearance.
He was squeezed out at the start of that hot Novice contest before making good late headway into a never nearer fifth over a mile.
That should have blown the cobwebs away, and I expect him to be more forcefully ridden next time. He will get further than a mile and looks the type to win a maiden/novice on turf in the short turn while he may be eased a couple of pounds from his mark of 82.
He is very much one to keep onside in the months ahead.
Charming Whisper (Three-year-old trained by Charlie McBride)
I appreciate you can go skint backing horses who have been unlucky, but I feel Charming Whisper should have won his last four races for Newmarket handler Charlie McBride.
A winner of two-mile handicaps from marks of 72 and 74 in June, the gelding has met trouble in-running from his last couple of starts over the Bunbury Mile and at Brighton - not convinced he was in love with the track - and I feel he is more than capable of defying his current rating of 80.
A stiff mile on good or faster ground are his optimum conditions, and he is one to keep on the right side of in the short term.
Ride The Thunder (Two-year-old trained by Roger Varian)
He cost 400,000 gns as a yearling and went into my tracker when recovering £1700 of his purchase price when finishing second in a Doncaster Novice to God Of War - had previous experience - on debut over seven furlongs.
I appreciate that the Varian yard lacks consistency, but I will be disappointed if this inmate does not go one better next time. The step up to a mile is likely to suit going forward, although 7f looks his trip in the short term.
Jagwar (Five-year-old trained by Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero)
Jagwar ran with the choke out at Uttoxeter in their competitive 2m 4f handicap hurdle last weekend and a blunder two out put paid to his chance. He was beaten 10L at the line, but he travelled like a well-handicapped horse for much of the race and the hope is that he will eventually cut out the jumping issues that have blunted his progression to this point. He was dropped 1lb to a mark of 118 by the handicapper after Uttoxeter.
Better ground should suit this spring and I wonder if he might be worth a try back at the minimum trip. The conditional jockeys’ event at Aintree might enter calculations at next month’s National meeting.
Frederick Daly (7lb Claimer)
It is rare to be as impressed with a jockey, especially one who arguably won by too far, having his first ride under rules. Still, I was blown away by the quiet style of amateur Daly, who rode Golden Shot to win the amateur riders’ event at Ffos Las on Monday for Sir Mark Prescott. As Ian Bishop might have said: “Frederick Daly - remember the name”.
The 16-year-old was as polished in his postrace interview with Sky Sports Racing as he was in the saddle, and he suggested that he would spend little time as an amateur and would soon be turning professional.
His 7lb claim is likely to prove very popular when that happens. However, you get the impression that his father, who I remember as a former assistant trainer in Newmarket, and Sir Mark Prescott will manage his progression diligently as he works through his claim.
It might be daft to draw such conclusions after just the one ride, and he never had to get serious on the 29L winner, but there was just something about his style that suggested he was no ordinary amateur jockey. I, for one, will be monitoring his progress and will take note to see if other trainers book the jockey for similar contests in the short term.
Royal Rhyme (Three-year-old trained by Karl Burke)
Goodwood was largely a disappointment, with the rain putting a dampener on proceedings on and off the track. The week was summed up when the last three races were abandoned on the Saturday as the rain returned in spades.
On the track, the highlights were the continued brilliance of Paddington in the Sussex Stakes on Wednesday, but he must play second fiddle to Royal Rhyme, who showed himself to be a Group horse when running away with what is invariably a competitive three-year-old handicap.
The handicapper has seen fit to raise him 13lbs to a mark of 108 for his six-and-a-half length romp, while his winning time was three seconds quicker than that clocked by Al Husn in the Group 1 Nassau Stakes later in the card. His record on soft ground reads played three won three, with those successes coming by an aggregate of 12 lengths.
He remains one to keep on side granted soft ground this autumn. His stablemate Triple Time, likely to reappear at Deauville on Sunday, did us a huge favour when landing the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot at 33/1. Royal Rhyme is currently the same price for the Champion Stakes with Ladbrokes and Coral at Newmarket in October. Granted soft ground, he certainly won’t be that price if he faces the starter.
About Charlie McCann
Seven years as talkSPORT racing correspondent/tipster who recently spent over a decade as Director Of PR/Communications for a couple of leading igaming operators.
Failed cricketer - I regularly bore people, myself included, with the story about how I caught Imran Khan when 12th Man for Lancashire v Sussex as a youth - former National League Basketball player - once scored 72 points in a game - and lifelong and long-suffering Everton supporter.
Many of my old friends - and I mean old - would tell you I was a better footballer than a cricketer - but cricket was my first love.
Horse racing has long been my passion - ironic as I’ll never pass the vet again as my sports injuries have come back to bite - with my specialism handicap chases over jumps and 1m+ handicaps on the level.
I have met many of the great and good in the game and consider myself to have been very fortunate. Please always bet within your means and never chase your losses.
Be Lucky.
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