Monday racing tips: Five horses to follow at Worcester and Brighton all live on Sky Sports Racing

Grand Roi, Hatcher and Rock House all horses to watch over the jumps at Worcester on Monday, live on Sky Sports Racing; The Princes Poet and Perfect Gentleman handed good chances to score at Brighton

Sky Sports Racing’s Elliot David returns with five horses to keep a close eye on at Worcester and Brighton on Monday.

The Princes Poet

1.55 Brighton

All looks aligned for the five-year-old to return to form here now he is back down into Class 6 company, with trainer Eve Johnson Houghton operating at 38 per cent (5-13) at the south coast venue this season.

This 0-65 contest is a step down from the recent course Class 5, in which he ran respectably and represents the same conditions where he won easily back in May over the course and distance.

Having received a little bit of help from the handicapper, dropped 2lb for the most recent defeat, he’s only 2lb higher than for that May victory with ground conditions set to suit. There’s a lot to like here.

Grand Roi

2.05 Worcester

You must respect the current form and heart of the hat-trick-seeking Fringill Dike in this potentially tactical four-runner Novices’ Handicap Chase. However, the most interesting runner is surely the former Nicky Henderson and Gordon Elliott inmate who makes his first start for James Owen.

Owen has been impressive since his re-emergence in the National Hunt training ranks early this year, including a record of 3-12 with horses inherited from other yards.

A revised mark of 125 represents a career high for Jedd O’Keeffe’s six-year-old and although undoubtedly progressive, he’ll now face a horse once rated up to 149 in Grand Roi. Having won a Grade Two over hurdles for Gordon Elliott, he contested some high-class races in four starts over fences and this looks somewhat easier.

Having jumped poorly in blinkers on August 28, the cheekpieces that he had worn previously are re-applied by Owen and having shown up best when dominating in smaller fields from the front, this could set up perfectly for the seven-year-old if the stable switch has worked the oracle for him and he can cut out those jumping errors.

Hatcher

2.40 Worcester

We’re set for a brilliant renewal of the feature Handicap Chase as a talented field of seven line up, led by Emma Lavelle’s in-form top weight Hang In There. The nine-year-old arrives in fine fettle after victory at Stratford hot on the tail of an excellent third in Market Rasen’s Summer Plate. With nine of his 10 career victories coming on good ground, conditions look set to be right up his street.

I do, however, feel he could struggle to concede weight all round here, most notably to Peter Bowen’s Francky Du Berlais and Dan Skelton’s Hatcher. All eyes will be on the return of the long-absent James Bowen who takes the ride on his father’s useful chaser, who has surely been teed up for this, but my preference would be for the well-weighted Skelton animal.

Following a successful start to his chasing career in 2019-2021, which saw him go 7-15 over fences, his struggles with wind issues and soundness have seen starts limited to just 10 since. As a result of the poor run of form, he’s slid from a mark of 150 to his current 126, but there were definite signs of life at Fakenham on June 4.

A drop in trip at Uttoxeter on July 2 looked to see him outpaced and with Harry Skelton taking over on this return to two-and-a-half miles, he can take advantage of the useful weight concession he gets from the principal rivals here.

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Perfect Gentleman

4.15 Brighton

Clearly this Class 6, 0-65 contest is a modest event and having been won by a three-year-old on each of the last two occasions, there looks to be a clear contender here in George Scott’s Perfect Gentleman, who boasts form in better races this year.

Having won two of his four all-weather races in the first half of the year, he bumped into David Simcock’s well-handicapped Panning For Gold, now rated 25lb higher, when conceding a stone to that rival at Yarmouth on June 8.

A slow start cost him all chance at Salisbury on June 28 before steadily run races have seen him poorly positioned the last twice. A four-length sixth in Class 5 company on August 16 was respectable and now dropped in class he could get back to winning ways.

I should also give mention to Andrew Balding’s Deep In My Heart, who is bred to be better than a mark of 63, but has seemingly struggled to see out her races on the all-weather so far. This switch to turf needs to bring about some improvement given the step up in trip doesn’t look guaranteed to suit on what she’s shown thus far.

Rock House

4.25 Worcester

Having impressed for Francesca Poste in a Chaddesley Corbett point-to-point in April 2022, Dan Skelton took his time introducing the son of Westerner to racing under rules, with two starts in bumpers in April and May of this year seeing him show plenty of promise.

Following a debut victory full of potential, he looked to sandwich two potentially useful Nicky Henderson-trained youngsters at Warwick and is surely a fine prospect for novice hurdling this season.

With this early debut, I wonder if Skelton is considering a tilt at Chepstow’s Jumps Season Opener, with something like the Persian War being a possible destination, if he underlines his talents here.

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