Key Points
- Today’s betting tip was a huge eye catcher at the Ebor Festival
- His best effort to date came in the Chester Cup over a very similar trip
- He ran well in the Irish equivalent considering he had excuses that day
We head into another new week, and I’m kicking it off with an antepost selection for the Cesarewitch Handicap in October. This horse caught my eye at the Ebor Festival and I’m keen to get him on board at the first possible opportunity, which is now.
If you’re new to these articles, I’m the resident horse racing tipster at Betting.co.uk and I typically produce four articles each week. Most often they are daily betting tips, but I also produce other types of content such as antepost tips like these, guides and big race trends.
If you are looking for more antepost bets, I already have selections live on this website for the
St Leger next month, and the King George VI Chase on Boxing Day. If you want to look even further ahead, you’ll also find some antepost picks for the 2026 Cheltenham Festival and the 2026 Aintree Grand National. Be sure to check them out and get on at the early prices to secure the best value.
Betting advice
- Saturday 11 October - Newmarket - 2025 Cesarewitch Handicap -
Zanndabad
@ 14/1 -
0.5pt Win
Back Zanndabad with Betfred
At the time of writing, 14/1 is widely available for Zanndabad, so we can’t use the price to determine which bookie to use. We are backing him to win here, so the place terms are irrelevant. As a result, I have used the best sign up offer as the deciding factor, and Betfred is the clear standout. If you
bet £10, you’ll get £50 of free bets. Make sure to take advantage if you don’t already have a Betfred account.
Zanndabad should relish the Cesarewitch test!
I really think Zanndabad will excel in the Cesarewitch Handicap, and in this article I’ll explain why. Make sure you read on to understand my full logic for this antepost bet.
Zanndabad was a huge eyecatcher over an inadequate trip at the Ebor Festival
On Friday, I tipped Asgard’s Captain to my Discord members in the Sky Bet Handicap and he obliged at a fantastic SP of 16/1. That was amazing, but while enjoying the replay of his win, I noticed an eye-catching runner tucked in behind.
When I initially saw Zanndabad declared for the race, I was rather baffled, as I didn’t think he would have a chance over 1m 4f. Imagine my surprise to see him travelling extremely well turning in on the rail. He looked like he was about to play a big part in the finish, but became short of room, and there was nothing that William Buick could do except take a big pull.
Once clear daylight appeared in front of Zannabad, he rallied extremely impressively considering the momentum he’d lost. He had seven horses in front of him as William Buick asked for another effort, and by the time he reached the line there were only three, and the winner was less than two lengths ahead of him. For me, that was an extremely eye-catching performance, and he looked like a horse ready to win a big race.
Zanndabad’s best effort to date came in the Chester Cup over a very similar trip
Zanndabad’s best Flat effort in the UK and Ireland came in the Chester Cup last year. He was racing towards the rear of the field, but ended up short of room and was forced to switch right to make his challenge. He made some excellent late headway, but was still denied a clear run. Judging by the way he covered the final furlong, he may well have won with a clearer passage.
What makes that run particularly interesting is that it was over a trip of 2m 2f, and you could easily argue that given another half a furlong, he would have got up to win. Well in the Cesarewitch Handicap, he’ll have exactly that - 2m 2.5f to be precise. That’s why I think he’ll absolutely relish the test that the Cesarewitch Handicap presents, especially as the wide galloping track at Newmarket should play to his strengths.
I originally thought that Zanndabad could be an Ascot Stakes horse, but we found out last year that he doesn’t stay 2m 4f, meaning this race looks like the perfect target for him. I think Tony Martin knows that he is well treated with his current mark of 92, so his run over Hurdles at the Galway Festival, then the inadequate trip at York, were subtle ways of protecting that mark for his big day at Newmarket in October.
Zanndabad ran well in the Irish equivalent considering he had excuses that day
Zanndabad has contested a Cesarewitch before, but it was the Irish equivalent back in September last year, which was held at the Curragh over 2m 1f. He raced towards the rear of the field that day, and was making headway when he had to wait for room just over 2f out. Following that he kept on well inside the final furlong, but was never on terms.
He evidently wasn’t suited by the start-stop gallop that day, he had a troubled run throughout the race, and we know he stays further than that from his Chester Cup run. Therefore, all things considered, I think he ran a massive race to finish sixth, beaten just seven and a half lengths.
The extra furlong in the Cesarewitch Handicap should suit him perfectly, and like I said, I think he will really enjoy Newmarket as well. There’s £175,000 up for grabs, with £90,195 going to the winner, so it’s definitely worth making this race a long term target for your horse, and Tony Martin is just the man to pull it off too.
Zanndabad deserves a big Handicap win, can he land this one?
After running big races in defeat in the Chester Cup, the Irish Cesarewitch, and most recently, the Sky Bet Handicap at the Ebor Festival, I think Zanndabad deserves a big Flat Handicap win. Particularly so as he has arguably been unlucky not to win one to date, due to encountering issues in-running. I think he’ll love the Cesarewitch track and trip. I also believe that off a mark of 92 (which may well be lower by October), he is handicapped to win a big race like the Cesarewitch. The wide galloping track at Newmarket should be right up his street, and will hopefully give his jockey plenty of options when trying to navigate through the field.
Of course, I’m just speculating on this being Zanndabad’s target and there are no guarantees he’ll run in the race. For that reason I’m just going to play half stakes and win only for now. However, I think that 14/1 is a lovely price, and if he does turn up, his price will shorten for the race. As an example, we backed him for the Northumberland Plate at 20/1, where he was well-supported, and sent off 13/2. If the race is confirmed as the plan in due course, we can always top up with a further bet. Likewise, if he is declared and he remains at a backable price, we can always have a stronger each way bet nearer the time. For now, I just want to ensure we have him on our side at 14/1.
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They enjoyed a very profitable start to August with a treble landing on the very first day of the month at prices of
9/1 (12/1), 7/1 and 5/1!
Since then they have enjoyed further August winners at
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and are currently sitting on
+46.554pts
for August to date!
This follows on nicely from July, which ended with a profit of
+29.239pts!
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