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A 9/1 winner of the Irish Grand National on Easter Monday, two winners on the opening day of the Aintree Festival, I backed a 66/1 place (SP 50s but not given as a recommendation) in the Foxhunters, the 1-2 in the Topham (both recommended at 9/1) which paid an exacta of £100.30, Saturday’s Nap of the Day won half the track at 11/4, a short list of six including the 1-2 in the National.
Yet week ending Sunday, 12 April, produced a loss of -£5.35 to a £1 level stake.
It was our first losing week since the week ending 11 January, so you could argue we were due, but it was hard to stomach, and can anyone tell me how Dryburgh (7/1 at Nottingham) and/or Tupero (5/1 at Catterick) got beaten on Wednesday!
An enjoyable but frustrating week, and our winning run had to finish sometime…but not National week!
Latest Profit & Loss for the week ending Sunday, 12 April 2026
- Cumulative profit since August 1, 2022: +£1,552.57
- Week ending Sunday, 5 April: -£5.35
- April 2026 to date: +£6.05
- Year 2026 to date: +£162.36
- 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 - Sunday, 19 April
2:17pm Plumpton - Delgany Deadline (Nap)
Line Of Descent is well handicapped on his best form, but hasn't yet found his best form since returning from a 600-day absence back in February. He may have needed his first start at Southwell; the ground went against him at Doncaster – soft, not good – and he ran his best race yet at Hereford last time.
He made a couple of significant mistakes last time, and he can throw the odd howler in, but he is fitted with cheekpieces for the first time by Warren Greatrex and is 9lbs below his last winning mark. He will love the ground – faster the better – but I hope to see DELGANY DEADLINE (Nap) return to winning ways for Dan Skelton.
If you take Tristran Durrell's 3lbs claim into account, the selection receives 11lbs from Line Of Descent and 13lbs from Begin The Luck, and I feel he can cope with the drop back in distance, having looked a non-stayer – travelled best – over 3m1f+ here earlier in the month from a 1lb lower mark.
The rail movements add over one hundred yards to the advertised distance, which can only be a positive for the six-year-old who is not one of the stable stars but has played his part – winner at Leicester back in February – in the record-breaking year for the yard.
One of Skelton's owners paid a new auction record of £435,000 at Cheltenham's April sale, and that is symbolic of where the balance of power sits in British racing. The champion trainer elect – will be crowned at Sandown next weekend - wants to break Martin Pipe's record of 243 winners next term and really is the new superpower in British racing.
Recommendation: Delgany Deadline (Nap) - 7/4 with bet365
4:37pm Plumpton - Market House
Sean Bowen takes over on MARKET HOUSE for the first time since June. The pair combined to score at Fontwell over 2m3f earlier in the month from a 4lbs lower mark, and the hope is that the drop back to the minimum distance does not find out the James Owen-trained six-year-old, who is visored for the first time.
This trip, just shy of 2m, is a slight concern for a horse who has finished 3-2-3-2 in his last four starts – the first three on the flat – but this strong traveller looked worth a try at this distance when runner up here last time, when he looked all over the winner going to two out.
If the visor can eke out a bit of improvement, then he must have every chance, although there is little guaranteed pace in the race, which is a concern. Dissident made all to score at Doncaster for the Moores' in December but has been held up in recent starts.
I wonder whether Bowen will make his own running if there is no pace in the race, with his stamina guaranteed – his three flat wins have all been over a mile-and-a-half.
Recommendation: Market House - 3/1 with bet365
5:25pm Stratford - Largy Pearl
Killer Clown was rated almost 150 in his pomp when trained by Emma Lavelle and showed he was no back number when scoring at Ludlow last month, but LARGY PEARL is four years younger at eight, and this multiple winner between the flags receives 4lbs, and that may prove decisive.
The selection has only raced once under rules and was flattered to get within 5l of champion Hunter Chaser Barton Snow over course and distance back in May, but he has won all three points this year and meets nothing of the class of the winner this afternoon.
I wonder if this extended 2m6f trip stretches the stamina of Killer Clown, and I have long considered him a better horse going right-handed.
Recommendation: Largy Pearl - 6/5 with bet365
*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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