Hello, crew. Hope everyone well.
Who was the darned fool who came on here speculating about whether or not GREAT BEAR’s next race after his Haydock novice heat would be in The Derby on 1 June?!? I see instead the race in question is an 11.5 furlong novice Stakes at Bath. Given his breeding (dam won the Irish Oaks and she is also a sister to Nathaniel) I think it’s safe to say that Great Bear is the best bred individual to set foot on the Bath turf since I squired the Honourable Lavinia through the turnstiles their back in the summer of ’07. A Bath £8,550 event (6.55) is a long way from our premier classic but I would expect Great Bear to get his career back on track with a win of the morrow. After that??? The stable won the ’17 ‘King George V Handicap’ at the Royal meeting so possibly he could be steered towards that heat. Although such a scenario would, of course, be dependent on the opening perch he receives from the handicapper following tomorrow’s run.
And I’ll also nominate one at God’s own racecourse, Newton Abbot. PRESS GANG (4.25) has got a very uninspiring formline over timber of -7798 but as a result gets into this handicap on a perch of just 96, I say 96. Given that he ran on the Flat, last month off 68 (has been as high as 72) you would imagine this NH figure would give old boy Harry Fry something to exploit and you would have to imagine he could, perhaps, be the sort to run up a sequence from such a low base figure. Goes, in this event, a quarter of a mile further than he has gone before and it would be hoped that this would help bring about improvement.
Good luck all.