The very first race on the new surface and with the track likely to take 2-3 weeks to settle in, it will probably favour horses who see out the trip well. Shamardal has a 17% strike rate on Tapeta as a Sire and so this opening race could suit TOROMONA. It’s unusual to see Godolphin persisting with a horse rated just 75, but he has made the frame on all 4 career starts and wasn’t beaten far in a hot novice at Newcastle last time out. The 2nd from that race has won a Chelmsford handicap since and despite the wide draw, Toromona could prove better than this level on his Handicap debut.
A difficult race on the sprint track, but on the previous surface if paid to favour those drawn higher down the chute and so NIGHT ON EARTH could be well drawn in 11 as he tries to land the hat-trick. He has form figures of 2,1,1 on the Tapeta at Wolverhampton and Newcastle and looks to be improving nicely, so the penalty for last week’s win may not be enough to stop him.
Not a great deal of recent form to rely on here and at this level, it can often pay to focus on the top of the handicap and that should bring BEAT THE BREEZE into the reckoning. He finished 4th at Kempton last month despite almost unseating at the start and as he drops into Class 6 for the first time since April, he could build on his solid all-weather record.
A competitive feature race where a case can be made for all 7 fillies. ALBA ROSE has only won 1 of her 8 starts so far, but she has run consistently well, including when 2nd to Sky Power at Lingfield 10-days ago. She is the likely pace angle in the race under Joe Fanning and could be hard to peg back if she gets an easy time of things in front.
Lots of potential improvers in this 0-60 Nursery handicap, but VAXHOLM has won his last 2 starts and that experience of getting his head in front could prove very valuable in this contest. Laura Coughlan is good value for her 5lb claim and has been onboard for both his wins at Lingfield and Kempton. He still looks fairly handicapped at this level and could well make a bold bid for the hat-trick.
Those runners with experience of the track have achieved very little and so this is likely to go to a newcomer. LOVE MYSTERY looks the part on paper, a Frankel Colt out of the talented mare Mix and Mingle and his connections look to have found him a winnable opportunity to make his debut.
This looks to be the deeper contest of the 2 divisions of this maiden, but YANTARNI sets a good standard from his 2 starts so far and may well prove to be a decent horse to follow over the winter. He reared in the stalls at Wolverhampton last time out and would probably have won the race if he had broken cleanly. He is well drawn in stall 4 and with James Doyle booked to ride, he could break his maiden tag at the 3rd time of asking.
Plenty of experienced campaigners in the finale. The 3-year-old KODI GOLD is far less exposed than most of his 13-rivals and he looked to win with a lot in hand at Kempton at the end of November. The 4th placed horse from that contest won at Chelmsford on Thursday to boost the form and he could be capable of further improvement.
Once famous for it's Fibresand, Southwell now embarks on a new life with a Tapeta track and looks to become home to a new set of course specialists. The likes of La Estrella, Stand Guard and General Tufto have all racked up the wins at the Nottinghamshire track over the years.
In addition to the left-handed all-weather track, Southwell also boasts a jumps course which is a real test of jumping throughout the summer months in it’s chases, but allows the odd mistake over it’s fixed brush hurdles.
