Our handicappers section will hopefully find horses beneath their potential handicap rating that will pick up plenty of races throughout the season. These are unlikely to reach Group1 heights but they are horses to keep on side within the handicap ranks.
Brown Delivers (3yoc - Mark Botti)
First up is 3yo colt Brown Delivers for Mark Botti.
This son of Mshawish is bred to appreciate the AW so it will be interesting to see where he is campaigned but he certainly looks to be well handicapped with a rating of 81.
He started life at Newcastle where he caught the eye following a slow break subsequently finishing a never-nearer fifth. He then backed that up with a massive effort in a red hot event at Chelmsford at a price tag of 50/1.
The possible depth to that race is what makes his opening mark potentially lenient with all six runners likely to pay their way this season.
The third horse is the only one to come out of the race so far and he has hit a mark of 92 finishing behind Secret Protector at Meydan.
Following this, Brown Delivers went to Kempton seeking to shed his maiden tag and he was well supported to do so however things didn’t go to plan with one of his rivals hanging into him on the turn costing him any chance in the race.
He eventually made eye-catching headway down the outside for a never-nearer third and you wouldn’t be backing against him next time out.
Act Naturally (3yof - S&E Crisford)
Our second handicapper to note is a regally-bred daughter of Frankel who will hopefully be looking to capitalise on her opening mark of 71.
This 3-y-o has been brought along patiently and she caught the eye with a smooth-travelling second at Newcastle at the start of March.
The well backed winner of that race looks quite useful and Act Naturally was the last off the bridle despite giving her rider a hard time throughout the race.
She will hopefully learn to settle better with experience and her yard, who weren’t firing at the time, have now started to pick up winners.
Carpentier (3yog - Sir Mark Prescott)
This trainer is a master in getting one to progress through the handicap ranks so it is worth noting this son of Intello is yet to play his hand in four career starts.
He has a stamina-laden pedigree by Intello out of a NH bumper horse however he has been held up in 7f-1m events thus far with handicaps being the obvious aim.
Once this gelding steps up in distance in handicap company we should begin to see the best of him.
Bakersboy (3yoc - Tom Dascombe)
One to keep onside over the shorter distances in the handicap ranks this season is Bakersboy for Tom Dascombe.
This son of Oasis Dream is a half-brother to the late Kachy and he looks capable of picking up races for the same connections.
He started out with two fairly average efforts in Wolverhampton maidens but he took a major leap forward when thrown into a strong conditions stakes race on his third start.
Finding no luck in-running, Bakersboy finished a close fifth behind the likes of Mighty Gurkha, Yazaman and Zamaani running mostly off level weights.
He was rated around 20lb inferior to some of them at the time so connections are probably regretting not cashing in on his handicap rating as the assessor has subsequently pushed him up 12lb.
On the strength of that race he does still look well handicapped though and with it being just his third outing there should be plenty more to come.
Run To Freedom (3yoc - Henry Candy)
Another colt that looks to have a big season ahead is Run To Freedom for Henry Candy.
This 3-y-o son of Muhaarar was an impressive winner of a Kempton novice event in December and the form of that has been enhanced on numerous occasions.
The second (Highland Avenue) is unbeaten in two starts subsequently hitting a rating of 95 and the third and fifth also went on to win races.
Run To Freedom remains off a mark of 88 and there is surely room in that rating based off that form alone.
King Of Clubs (3yoc - Hughie Morrison)
Hughie Morrison is another trainer that has plenty of previous in getting a horse well handicapped and this son of Intello looks capable of striking in 10f+ handicaps.
He has a useful pedigree with plenty of stamina from both sides and he has seemingly been brought along with handicapping in mind.
His debut at Kempton really caught the eye as he finished with a rattle over 1m and he was then tentatively handled when fifth of seven at Lingfield next time out.
This colt is yet to be handed a rating but given the connections that is likely to be the plan so keep an eye out on his entries.
Beloved - (3yof - Ed Walker)
This smartly bred daughter of Frankel cost a whopping 350,000gns as a yearling however she failed to live up to that price tag in two starts for Ed Walker last season.
She is unlikely to reach the expected heights this term but she will have matured during the winter which may help her settle better than she was doing.
Horses from this source often improve with time, especially venturing into handicaps, therefore it will be interesting see how much improvement she can make.
There is no OR currently available but based on her bare form we aren’t expecting a big mark.
