Well it looks a cracking night of racing at Romford this evening culminating in a wide-open Champion Stakes final as Reel Trickyone looks to complete a remarkable treble of Category One tournaments over the course and distance. He still looks opposable, however, and I will bark about that in greater deal later! The supporting card has a real punters look to it as the Essex track is shown live to us each Friday night and so the form is there for us all to see on the card and on the screens. As ever, I have found some value for the Lolly Faithful and tonight is not for the faint-hearted, as we have plenty of doggie treats to place on the racing! Here are my thoughts:

19:34 – Stayers

Effectively the consolation race to the main event this evening, it looks to me as a race of whoever makes the 2nd bend in front will take a lot of catching. Taking one-race form too literally is often a quick way to the paw house and with that in mind, it is worth chancing Pharisee Flyer to not miss the break horrendously (as he did in the Semi-Finals of the Champion Stakes last week) and return to his impressive front-running displays that have seen him go close to the track record at Romford. His draw is very workable with the admirable but ageing Hather George on his inside missing the break a lot more these days and even if he does come out, he tends to go up pretty straight. That is the total opposite of what Buoy Johnny does in trap 5 as he attempts to have a meal in the restaurant on his way round. Therefore, Flyer can ping out and resume his all-conquering ways and looks a nice price to do so. Blackstone Marco is consistent but has the dreaded trap 1 box to contend with over this C&D and is a type who always seems to prefer to lead, despite plugging on gamely if he does not. Steves Dream is a local hero for his pinging antics but he tends to start thinking about other things rather than the bunny when he leads and waits for his mates.

19:49 – Bitches

I love watching a good bitches contest and here we see the belle of Romford in the form of Borna Karma. Equally as devastating out of 5 as 6, this wide bitch can clock sub-24 seconds around the Essex circuit and that is at least 2 lengths better than these can muster at their best. Call Me Millie can produce good efforts over 2 and 4 bends but she is no match for the selection in a normal clash.

20:04 – Puppy

The young tykes have a go here and if Lenson Tiggy could ever learn to ping like me he could turn into a serious Category One prospect. He simply does not come out though and until he does, he is best just watched as his early gears and desire to drive the first and second bends are a joy to behold. If he is not on his toes today then Corner Hero could give him a serious target to aim at if he pings like he did in the heats. It is hard to see the others getting involved although Kakantu appears well-drawn.

20:19 – Stayers

Baliff Turbo could not have been more impressive on his first effort over the stayers distance at Romford last week and provided he can produce a half-decent break from the aforementioned woeful trap 1 box, he can make-all here. Bubbly Beauty has sadly been regressive since her win in the Puppy Derby at the back end of last year but if she can get out in front, it would be interesting to see if she stays this trip as the 480m at Wimbledon appeared to be her maximum, even when she was in flying form. Millwards Joker went the fastest of these last week but the assessment has to be that there is more to come from Turbo over this sort of trip, especially considering that despite it being out of his grasp (presumably because he has paws and can’t grip) his connections felt him worthy enough to compete in the Irish Derby.

20:34 – Hurdles

The jumpers are on display here although that is a loose description of what Cornamaddy Jumbo actually does when faced with an obstacle. He simply ploughs his way through most of the fences and the softer hurdles at Romford definitely help him out more than the more rigid ones at tracks like Wimbledon. In barking that, he still has numerous top class wins over proper hurdles and that is simply because he has ludicrous pace. He showed that last year in Ireland on the flat before he came to these shores and is so difficult to overtake once he hits the front, which he normally does. Irish Grand National champion Jetstream Reason is respected but is a dog who wants the rails at all costs and will not be happy drawn off the fence (impressive last week from trap one) so it is Jumbo’s to lose here. It’s not pretty, but he could do 24 seconds over hurdles given a clear run which is faster than some of the standard races will be won in tonight: a frightening prospect.

20:49 – Standard

The two market leaders here both have to lead and with that in mind, it looks a very winnable race for Cape Impact in his favourite trap 1 box. More renowned for his sprinting, he got caught in the heats last week over this 400m but if he can slip clear again, a similar performance could win tonight. He has won over 416m at his local track of Monmore and whilst he clearly does not stay strongly, he could out-rail this field and slip clear. Of course, if Putdownyourfoot (bought for 10,000 doggie treats) or Bishops Wood (highly progressive young tyke) get a run to the bend and lead the selection it is all over but I suspect Impact can lead these up and he is a game, albeit short-runner that might just not be passed.

21:04 – Marathon

The favourite, Old Refrain, is a bitch I like to take on at short prices as whilst she is impressive over marathon trips some days, she seems to take an age to pass dogs on others (for whatever reason). Therefore, Flawless Floyd is huge value to skip clear of this field and if he can get close to his personal best sort of time, not even Refrain should be able to catch him. He missed the break last week but that can be forgiven and the fact he came back to win on the line shows that his heart is in the game and he has a desire to get to that bunny first. He is 6 wins from 9 starts over the course and distance and he looks way too big against the quirky favourite.

21:19 – Champion Stakes Final

With 5 seeded dogs in the field that all seemingly have to lead to be seen at their best, the bark in this race is surely the railer who whilst he wins less than he should do, is too big at 8/1 to go one better than he did last week when runner-up to Reel Trickyone in a game effort. Longrange Denis is not a natural railer (like Cape Impact earlier for instance) but he stays close enough to the rails to turn 3rd or 4th here and gradually pick them off as the dogs ahead of him are vying to get to the front. Reel Trickyone is an unknown out of trap 2 and he simply has to lead, which is not guaranteed from such an inside draw. Fivestar Clipper wins this if he beats Soviet Kenny out of the boxes but the way that Puppy Classic finalist came out last week and went straight right (even out of trap 6) suggests his draw in 5 is a huge hazard for Clipper. Sinbad did well to win last week but that was probably down to Soviet Kenny (first time at the trip) did not stay rather than his exploits being particularly admirable. Denis to outstay them in a messy race for me.

Here are the recommendations:

21:19 – Longrange Denis – 1 breast of chicken @ 8/1

So there are my thoughts on the proceedings! As ever, please tweet me if you have any comments and I promise to bark back at you with all the vigour I will be showing at the TV when Baliff Turbo leads tonight! It should be a fascinating night’s racing and the Lolly Faithful are firing a lot of doggie treats at the bookies tonight: let’s hope we get more back!

Enjoy the racing,

Jimmy