2m2f (Row) Together For Racing International Cesarewitch Handicap (Heritage Handicap) (Class 2) (3yo+)
Willie Mullins has his sights set on a magical fourth Cesarewitch in a row and with him throwing six darts at the race, he’s probably a short price to do it again.
M C Muldoon currently heads the market and has been heavily supported with Ryan Moore booked, signaling that he’s the yard’s first string. But M C Muldoon is not exactly well-treated and has come up short on a couple of his starts this season. There are also at least two of Willie’s other entries that could have more to offer off their current marks at better prices.
BURNING VICTORY and FOVEROS look to be the pick of those runners and I want them both on side.
Burning Victory is a former Triumph Hurdle winner and has been lightly-raced during her career thus far. Having originally come from France, she warmed up for this with two facile successes in flat handicap company over there sandwiched either side of some average national hunt runs and although she will need to step up a good deal on those performances to win this, you’d really fancy her to do so. Buring Victory has shown that she has a massive engine by winning without jumping well earlier in her career and she could have that bit of class to help her win this.
Burning Victory has a flat mark of 98, and a hurdles mark of 143, suggesting that she should still be a few pounds well-in and with William Buick picking up this mount she looks likely to go close. Burning Victory also carries a nice racing weight of 9st 1lbs and the ground should be fine.
I’m also going to get stuck into Foveros, who sneaks in at the bottom-of-the-weights and carries a measly 8st 4lbs. Foveros appears to have been aimed at this race and he put in an incredible display back in May to get his flat racing career firmly on-track off a mark of 66. Foveros then turned up in a handicap at the Galway festival where he just failed to deny a 17lbs hike in his ratings going down in the final strides to Coltor.
Foveros has been kept fresh since that last run and although he has gone up another 4lbs, this is a gelding that the Mullins yard have always felt would be good enough in graded-level jump races and he should be much better than a flat mark of 87. Foveros looks just as good if not better over flat as he does over hurdles and he can make his featherweight count in this big field.
The others of particular interest are Calling The Wind and Platform Nineteen, who I wouldn’t put anyone off taking a price on as they should both see out this contest well.
1pt win Burning Victory @17/2, 15:35 Newmarket, Saturday
1pt win Foveros @11/1, 15:35 Newmarket, Saturday