Saturday 18th January 2020

We had a great afternoon at Wolverhampton on Wednesday, Nikolayeva won on debut for us under an outstanding ride from Luke Morris. We claimed Eva 30 days ago for just £5000. She’s a very well-bred mare that’s all stamina as per her pedigree.

The step up in trip to 1m2f did the trick, although this distance would be the minimum for her. With the win under her belt, she’s more than trebled her value already. We have the option to stay on the flat until the spring then maybe go juvenile hurdling through the summer.

For some reason Nikolayeva drifted to 16-1 after been priced at 9-2 in the morning. Her price drift was bizarre. It’s fair to say many of her owners walked away from Wolverhampton with stuffed pockets.

Good racing today but on awful heavy ground. Winners could be had to find, and proven stamina is a must. Defi Du Seuil running against Un De Sceaux will be an interesting matchup at Ascot.

I’ve had one bet on Windsor Avenue who runs in the 1:30 at Haydock. Trained by Brian Ellison, on ratings Windsor Avenue is 5lb clear whilst the trip and ground will be no problem.

Windsor Avenue last run can be forgiven as he scoped dirty after the race. The selection does come up against three smart rivals, any of the four runners could win this. I think it’s the most interesting race of the day.

Knight In Dubai looks the obvious danger, he’s been very impressive over a fence so far and could be anything.

Windsor Avenue’s odds have drifted to 5-2, that’s a bit worrying but he’s the proven horse of the race and his price makes him worth a few quid.