Golden Spear, Southern France and Vis A Vis feature among potential punts for Horsnetting.com experts in the big betting race at Newmarket on Saturday, the 2m 2f Cesarewitch Handicap. Southern France is a Group performer who looks potentially thrown-in at the weights, so features as the main selection. Vis A Vis is unbeaten in two starts since joining Neil Mulholland and looks sure to make a bold bid to land the hat-trick. Golden Spear, meanwhile, hails from the shrewd Irish yard of Tony Martin and looks weighted to outrun his huge odds. Read our in-depth 2018 Cesarewitch Handicap betting tips preview for more details on these horses’ chances of lifting this valuable staying prize.Southern France cracking each-way value in CesarewitchThe big betting race at Newmarket on Saturday is the Cesarewitch Handicap (15:40) and Irish raider Southern France looks terrific each-way value in a typically fierce and wide-open renewal of the 2m 2f contest. The Aidan O’Brien trained colt has some top class group form to his name and looks potentially thrown-in at the weights.
This three-year-old son of Galileo is a consistent stayer who, after shaping with stacks of promise when runner-up on debut, easily landed a 12-runner maiden at Leopardstown before showing a good attitude to follow-up in a 1m 5f Listed contest at Navan by half-a-length.
Southern France then ran a cracker when staying on strongly to be nearest at the finish and a 4 1/2 lengths second of 12 to stable companion Kew Gardens in the Group 2 Queen’s Vase over 1m 6f at Royal Ascot when given far too much to do. He was then given a break before shaping nicely when a tenderly handled never nearer 2 1/4 lengths fourth to subsequent Irish St Leger winner Flag Of Honour in a Group 3 at The Curragh.
That looked an ideal prep run for the St Leger, and Southern France performed with huge credit in the Classic contest at Doncaster when a staying on to finish a 6 3/4 lengths third to the aforementioned Kew Gardens. He had some top class sorts in-behind, so the form reads very well in relation to this.
As Southern France is also officially the top rated in the field off a mark of 107 – 2lb higher than top weight Scotland – yet gets a whopping 8lb from that rival as a result of being a three-year-old, it gives him 12lb and upwards in hand on his rivals, so he looks a handicap blot.
The big question is whether he will get the stamina sapping 2m 2f trip of this, as he is yet to race beyond 1m 6f. However, his run style suggest it should be in his compass and it looks significant that connections have decided to run him in this rather than a group contest on British Champions Day at Ascot next week.
If Southern France does stay, then it’s very hard to see him at least not making the frame. So, with many bookmakers offering enhanced place terms as a result of a maximum field of 34 set to go to post, he had to feature as the main each-way punt on our 2018 Cesarewitch Handicap betting tips.In-form Vis A Vis another with leading claimsFrench import Vis A Vis has won both his starts since joining dual purpose handler Neil Mulholland and looks as if he could still be potentially ahead of his mark. That makes him another well worth considering as an each-way play in a fiendishly hard puzzle to solve.
In the first of those successes over 1m 6f at Sandown, the four-year-old colt came from off the pace and showed a tenacious attitude to get up close home and beat Dark Pearl by a head off a rating of 80. Vis A Vis then followed-up in good style over 2m at Kempton off 2lb higher when beating Just In Time by 2 3/4 lengths.
Different tactics were employed at the Sunbury-on-Thames venue as the son of Dansili was driven to the front by jockey Shane Kelly, who had also been in the plate at Sandown, to make virtually all. When ridden to put the race to bed at the furlong marker, Vis A Vis responded generously and drew clear to win going away.
It was a most taking display and one which suggested there were plenty more races to be won with him. The handicapper has had his say, however, and hit Vis A Vis with a further 8lb rise in the weights. However, a revised rating of 90 may still underestimate his ability given his progressive profile.
The way in which Vis A Vis hit the line hard at Kempton also suggested the extra two furlongs in this would hold no fears. With Kelly once again in the saddle, a bold bid to land the hat-trick looks assured, so that’s why he also gets a mention in these 2018 Cesarewitch Handicap betting tips.Golden Spear a lively outsider at huge oddsOff those at much bigger odds, Golden Spear looks a lively outsider capable of going well. This seven-year-old is a useful dual-purpose performer who hails from the shrewd Irish yard of Tony Martin and has a similar profile to Leg Spinner, who landed the spoils for him in this back in 2007.
The gelding was last successful on the level at Leopardstown back in October 2016 when landing the valuable 23-runner November Handicap. He stayed on strongly to beat subsequent 2017 Ebor Handicap hero Nakeeta by half-a-length off a mark of 87 – showing a willing attitude in the process as he got struck over the head by that rival rider’s whip inside the final furlong.
Golden Spear has since run well on numerous occasions in decent hurdle contests, and was also far from disgraced three starts back when a keeping on 3 1/2 lengths sixth of 13 to St Stephen’s Green in a 2m handicap on the flat at The Curragh off a mark of 90. He is able to race in this off 4lb lower and his revised rating of 86 means that he is now below his last winning mark.
It gives him every chance from a handicapping perspective and, although beaten 10 lengths when runner-up to Stars Over The Sea in the trial for this over course and distance three weeks ago, that does not tell the whole story. The winner was enterprisingly ridden and soon 20 lengths clear, whilst Golden Spear was held-up miles off the pace.
The whole field simply allowed Stars Over The Sea too much rope and never had any chance of making up the leeway. So, given that Golden Spear was not given a hard time, but stuck to the task nicely to finish second, he shaped better than the bare result suggests. Thus he had to feature as another potential each-way punt in our 2018 Cesarewitch Handicap bettings tips.Your Next Bet
