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Captain's Blog - Saturday 8th September

A busy day for me today. I will be presenting Mark Your Card at 12.30 and then I will head into an afternoon of action upsides Chris Dixon in the studio.

The big race of the day is the Betfred Sprint Cup and it looks to be a very good renewal. In essence there are lots of positive remarks that one could make about several horses.

For example, both Bated breath and Strong Suit have the ground that will bring the best out of them. Ortensia is a class act who comes into the race on the back of a win in the Nunthorpe. Gordon Lord Byron ran a big speed figure when winning at York. To my eye those are the main contenders and the most likely winner is Bated Breath.

If ever a sprint was tailor-made for this classy horse this is it. Six furlongs on fast ground at a track where he is already proven is ideal and whilst he is no bargain at the price he is trading he should win. Gordon Lord Byron would be my each-way bet, but there are some concerns that the ground will be too quick for him and he may be better at seven furlongs.

I am not making Bated Breath my selection today as I do believe there is a better bet on the card in the shape of Aazif in the 5.05 at Haydock. This horse has been running well whilst the John Dunlop yard have been in the dumps and now that they are in better form and Aazif is stepped up in trip he looks certain to go close. He should be backed with some confidence this afternoon.

It was a good night last night in the McNae household with St Helen's beating their arch rivals Wigan in the final regular game of the season. We had a few beers as we watched the game which was nice, but when my daughter came calling at 6.00am today I was kind of wishing I had not had quite so many, not to worry I am up and running now and raring to go on what should be an excellent day’s action on .

Make sure you tune in at 12.30.

See you on Monday.

Today's Selection

5.05 Haydock - Aazif