Dark Horses

LERMOOS LEGEND was pulled up at Chepstow last month but that run, his first for 163 days, would have been badly needed and he failed to handle the heavy going. They’re calling it good (good to soft in places) at Southwell today and that will be perfect for the Peter Bowen-trained nine-year-old, who tends to peak at this time of year. When running in handicap chase company in late spring/early summer (April to July) his record on good to soft or faster going, when returned to the track within eight weeks of his previous outing stands at 211111222231P (6-13) for a profit of £7.50 to a £1 level stake at SP. His most recent win came off 109 and he’s back down to the same mark this afternoon.

Simon & Ed Crisford’s gelding ACES HIGH lines up in this Class 6 handicap with form figures of 808 (0-3), having beaten only one rival in those three starts. However, the son of Showcasing looks a likely improver for the switch to handicap company and his yard has a good record with handicap debutants, scoring with 69 of the 276 qualifiers (25% strike-rate) for a profit of £12.68 to a £1 level stake at SP. The geldings were 28 from 98 for a profit of £29.18 and he’s forecast to start at 12-1.