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Leading National Hunt Names Look to Continue Where They Left Off at Ascot in Northumberland Plate 27/06/13

National Hunt trainers have long had a foray into the flat racing scene and Nicky Henderson and Jonjo O’Neill both managed to stamp their authority on Royal Ascot last week with winners and the jumping duo will send out more staying raiders to pick up prize money on the flat in Saturday's Northumberland Plate, which looks an extremely competitive renewal at Newcastle's Gosforth Park Racecourse.

Lieutenant Miller
© Racehorse Photos

Henderson will unleash Lieutenant Miller, who ran an absolute stormer behind Well Sharp and Tiger Cliff in the Ascot Stakes and the Seven Barrows inmate will aim to land yet more coveted silverware for the champion jumps trainer who is a 10/1 chance in the latest market but it could be O’Neill who has the better chance of the pair as 2011 winner Tominator will look to regain his crown.

Having struggled to produce the goods over timber, the six-year-old returned to the flat arena in the Chester Cup and was a gallant third and could well have finished closer had the gaps emerged at the right time, so a repeat of that will certainly see him in the vicinity and he is around the 8/1 mark with Bet365 for the two-mile event.

Ed Dunlop’s Mubaraza is another who is making a quick return to the track after a positive display at Royal Ascot and he was fourth in the aforementioned Ascot Stakes and having struggled in the final stages of the race is sure to relish a drop back to two miles and with very few miles on the clock could well be open to some improvement if his Berkshire exertions haven’t taken too much out of him.

Montaser was mightily-impressive on his first start for the new campaign as he breezed to victory in a competitive-looking York heat a fortnight ago and David Simcock is sure to bring him on for that run and it was the way he travelled into the race on the Knavesmire that caught the eye and that is why he is the 6/1 favourite to land the spoils.

Ile De Re
© Grossick Racing Photography

Under a vintage Jamie Spencer ride, the four-year-old stalked his rivals into the final couple of furlongs and duly quickened around the outside and stormed clear, but he has form to find with Saeed Bin Suroor’s Handsome Man, who got the better of him over 1m 6f at Yarmouth at the back end of last year and the Godolphin raider will try his luck at two miles for the first time and is another player in a wide open betting heat.

Donald McCain’s Ile De Re won this race with aplomb 12 months ago, but he has failed to show his true talents over the last few races and was well beaten in the Chester Cup and with ground conditions against him should struggle to make it back-to-back victories, but Amanda Perrett’s Arch Villain is a progressive stayer and is bidding for a hat-trick on Saturday and is another intriguing piece to this difficult betting puzzle for punters up in the North East.