Ginger Joe - A Lucky 15 for Newcastle on Good Friday

An excellent day of Flat racing at Newcastle

There’s no Jumps racing on Friday, but there is a fantastic Flat card at Newcastle. Rather than putting up four short-priced single betting tips, I‘ve put them all into a Lucky 15 for you to take a look at. These four horses are all in with a good chance, so with a bit of luck, we’ll have some profit lined up ready for the Easter action.

On that note, I have already started putting together some for Saturday, and I’ll also have a bonus selection for the Irish Grand National, which takes place on Monday. I’ll keep it short and sweet for today, but with loads of action over the long weekend, make sure you come back tomorrow for my Easter betting tips.

Free bets for Easter anyone?

With so much racing action happening this weekend, why not take advantage of this superb offer from BetVictor. Sign up, bet £5, and you’ll get £30 in free bets. It’s better than an Easter egg!

13:53 - The Marathon Handicap 2m - Palace Boy

This 2m Handicap is a belter of a race and there are a few very classy types in here. Max Vega definitely sets the standard, and he is a very good horse on his day, but off top weight this is going to be a big ask for him. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him win here, but there are quite a few in here that are better Handicapped for this task.

The one I am drawn to is Palace Boy, for Ralph Smith, and he has a very interesting profile indeed. He was a winner on the Flat in Germany and then made a winning start in Bumpers for Fergal O’Brien. That was followed up by three attempts over Hurdles where he was unable to notch up a win due to his poor jumping. However, since switching back to the Flat he won twice, then finished second to Spartan Army last time out, so he gets a 7lb pull with that one here. Palace Boy remains a fascinating runner and I think the form could easily be reversed this time around.

15:00 - The Fillies and Mares Handicap 7f - Shades Of Summer

We’re looking at a strong lineup in the fillies and mares Handicap, but I think the market has this fairly spot on and I think the race will end up being between the two at the top. The current favourite is Nine Tenths for Willie Haggas. She already has three wins clocked up on the all-weather and is going to be tough to beat here, but she will need everything to drop right for her.

Shades Of Summer is second favourite here, but she beat Nine Tenths when they met in January at Newcastle and I actually think she will beat her again, despite there being a 7lb swing in the weights. Nine Tenths has gone on to win since, but for me, Shades Of Summer has improved more, based on what we saw of her last time out at Lingfield. She travelled very well that day, looking wide open to more improvement, so I’m siding with Shades Of Summer over the favourite here.

16:10 - The Middle Distance Handicap 1m 2f - Oh So Grand

This 15-runner middle distance Handicap is set up to be a brilliant race between some highly progressive sorts. Penzance is a very interesting contender for Michael Appleby. He showed next to no form when trained by Simon Crisford, but since joining his new stable, he has won four out of his last five starts and doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon. He is up 6lb for his latest win, which will make things more difficult for him, but he breaks very well and generally has a good position from the get go.

However, this race is his toughest task to date and he could be vulnerable to one or two here with the increased weight. Ironically, I think the one to side with here is Simon Crisford’s Oh So Grand, who is a smashing filly who has a wicked turn of foot when she gets going. Simon Crisford may have had no success with Penzance, but his filly has just as good a chance of winning this race, if not more. In my opinion Oh So Grand has the much stronger finish and despite this being a very deep race, I think she’ll take some beating.

16:40 - The Championship Mile Handicap 1m - Symbol Of Light

My fourth Lucky 15 pick comes in the final race at Newcastle, where I think that Symbol Of Light is the one holding all of the aces. He was beaten by the favourite for this race, Dear My Friend, when the pair met here back in January, but this time around, Symbol Of Light is much better off at the weights. In fact, he is absolutely thriving at the moment, having finished a close second on each of his last two starts. The level of improvement he has exhibited means that he’s sure to be in the mix again here, especially off his current mark.

My Lucky 15 Selections

13:53 - Palace Boy
15:00 - Shades Of Summer
16:10 - Oh So Grand
16:40 - Symbol Of Light

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