Consecrated backed to resume winning ways at Newbury on competitive eight-race card on Thursday
The Flat season at Newbury Racecourse continues on Thursday afternoon with a competitive eight-race meeting at the track, which kicks off at 1.30pm and comes to a close at 5.33pm.
The racing experts at Betano, who offer the best horse racing betting, have run the rule over the Newbury card and here is how they think it could pan out.
The opening race on the day sees a field of 11 take on the class five handicap for amateur jockeys at 1.30.
Obsidian Knight looks the way to go here, despite all of his career wins coming on the all-weather surface but a promising fifth on the turf at Yarmouth last time out puts him firmly in the mix this time around.
The two-year-olds take centre stage for the second race on the card at 2.05 as ten runners take on the six furlong novice stakes.
Cape Operator shaped well when sixth on debut at this track last month and should have learned plenty from that for trainer Ralph Beckett, so is taken to go a few spots better as he returns to the same track for his second racecourse start.
A division two novice stakes is up next at 2.40 for the two-year-old’s and preference heads the way of Time To Turn for the powerful Godolphin team of Charlie Appleby and jockey William Buick, who wasn't knocked about on debut when second three weeks ago at Haydock.
Boubyan was a very good third on his seasonal reappearance for trainer Andrew Balding at Windsor and that run suggests there could be more to unlock as he lines up alongside a big field of 16 rivals in the mile handicap at 3.15, while Consecrated, a Frankel filly owned by the powerful Cheveley Park team, is taken to get back to winning ways for William Haggas in the fifth race on the card, having won at Newbury on debut and following it up with a fourth in a York Listed contest last time out.
Hickory has made a fine start to life with trainer Jamie Osborne and should get back to winning ways off the back of a good third at Sandown in the seven furlong handicap at 4.25 and could see his odds shorten from the current 50/1 with Betano for the Royal Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot next week should he get the job done here.
However, he will face a stern test of his credentials at Newbury from Surrey Shadow, who is open to progress and was a winner at Southwell in a February novice contest.
A big field of 20 runners will head to the stalls for the penultimate race on the Newbury card at 5.00 over the six furlong trip in class four and local trainer Ed Walker holds a good hand with Arnaz, third at Yarmouth a fortnight ago without getting the rub of the green in-running and has the eye-catching booking of jockey Tom Marquand to boot here but will have to fend off the hat-trick seeking Mesaafi.
Finally, the longest race of the day brings the card to a close at 5.33 as 12 runners tackle the mile and a half furlong handicap in class four, with the Roger Varian-trained Sudu getting the nod on his first start since being gelded and remains with potential having not been beaten by much in a Southell maiden in February.
