Saturday Racing Tips & Best Bets: Doncaster & Cheltenham

Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Membership today.

Join today

Already a member?
Log in

Doncaster & Cheltenham Tips

We’ve got something for every race fan on Saturday as Doncaster stages a classy Flat card while the jumps season is beginning to move up a gear with Cheltenham back on the calendar.

Here are my Saturday racing tips, with two selections from each meeting found on UK betting sites.

William Hill Futurity Trophy Stakes (Group 1) (13.30, Doncaster)

A really interesting juvenile Group 1 to kick off our tipping for Saturday and it’s a race won by Aidan O’Brien in five of the last ten runnings. I think he can do so again with NOBLE EXHIBIT.

The son of Frankel steps up to this level for the first time, having taken giant steps forward with each run so far. He was any price on debut at the Curragh in August and ran third, beaten under 4L, in a 7f maiden.

He bettered that effort by about a stone when trouncing a field of Punchestown maidens (1m, good) next time and immediately received a Group 2 entry in the Beresford Stakes back at the Curragh (1m, yielding), where he had significantly more in hand than his 1¼L winning margin suggests, after Wayne Lordan gave a shake of the reins to find out what was under the bonnet.

As with most of these types of races, it’s hard to be definitive about the worth of the form, but I’d be surprised if anything else has matched that, and then there’s the distinct possibility of further improvement. Furthermore, he is likely to be fine on softer ground if Town Moor is hit by a deluge.

Burning Up looks a potential danger, as does Al Hudaiba, who has plenty of experience, while Gran Dia could come on plenty and currently fits the ‘could be anything’ tag. There’s a fascinating race in prospect.

Doncaster tip: Noble Exhibit – 2pts win @ 11/8 (bet365)

Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle (14.20, Cheltenham)

Several in here have claims, in what is the biggest field on the card and the one I like the look of for each-way purposes is GOWEL ROAD.

The Twiston-Davies team is in good shape, as has so often been the case at this time of year and this admirable ten-year-old has often saved his better efforts for this venue.

He was runner-up in this race in 2024, when 5lb lower and there’s always the possibility at his age that he’s on the downgrade. However, I wouldn’t want to be writing him off just yet, as his second best career effort came as recently as January, in the Grade 2 Cleeve Hurdle (3m, soft), a race he’d won 12 months earlier.

He’s 2-16 here but has run numerous other good races at the track and I think the 12/1 on some horse racing betting sites is too big to overlook, when we have four places to play for.

Cheltenham tip: Gowel Road – 1pt each-way @ 12/1 (William Hill)

William Hill Best Odds Guaranteed Handicap Chase (14.55, Cheltenham)

It’s interesting that Here Comes Georgie has been installed as the ante-post favourite on betting apps for this race on what will be his first start for ‘Team Skelton’. He’s having his first run since wind surgery and sports both a hood and tongue-tie, as well as carrying stable pilot Harry Skelton.

All of his form is over shorter (the longest trip he’s tried is 2m5f) so he’s very much unexposed over this distance and is brother to a 3m winner. Are you adding all of this up? It looks like the layers don’t want to lay him first time after a break with all of that in mind but apart from the trainer’s obvious ability to get horses to improve, I think he’s short enough.

In fact, I’d rather be with stable companion DIAMOND DEALER, who did us a favour or two last season and is proven over this sort of trip. He also acts on good or slower ground, while a mark of 123 looks workable as he moves out of his novice season and into his prime. He’s only seven and I’d be very surprised if there isn’t more to come.

He’s another we can take each-way in this nine-runner field and he may just be good enough to win it.

Cheltenham tip: Diamond Dealer – 1pt each-way @ 7/1 (Betfred)

William Hill Best Odds Guaranteed Handicap (15.55, Doncaster)

An open-looking 0-105 handicap over 1m2f, and it’s interesting that the Gosdens drop Devil’s Peak back in trip, having seen him win here on his penultimate start (1m4f, good to soft) and precede that with a crack at the Melrose at York, over 1m6f.

If Benoit De La Sayette can make use of his confirmed stamina over this trip, then you wouldn’t rule out him bouncing back after finishing last at Newmarket last time (1m4f, good).

Castlemont is an interesting Godolphin-owned handicap newcomer. He won on debut at Windsor (1m2f, good to firm) in July and did so under a penalty and by a wider margin at Southwell (1m4f, AW) last month.

He was far too keen in Listed company at Newmarket last time (1m4f, good) but based on his Southwell effort and with improvement more than likely, he could be well treated off a mark of 98 and is much respected.

His sire, New Bay, won several times on slow ground in France and connections now reach for the hood, as well as dropping him in trip, both of which may help him settle.

However, the suggestion is GALYX, who we know will relish the forecast conditions and, with his best two efforts being on heavy ground, he’ll be more than happy if more rain arrives.

He represents the Jack Channon team that is going pretty well at present and you’d say this is his optimum trip. True, he may not have the scope of Castlemont but if he is able to run close to his best, he remains on a competitive mark and he’s likely to be an each-way price.

Doncaster tip: Galyx – 1pt each-way @ 7/1 (Paddy Power)

Responsible gambling

If you’re having a bet on Saturday’s action, it’s vital to practice responsible gambling.

Betting can be addictive, and it’s important to stay in control of your gambling. Never treat gambling as a way to make money, never bet more than you can afford and when the fun stops, stop.

UK gambling sites offer punters tools, like deposit limits, profit and loss trackers and self-exclusion options, to help you stay in control.

But if you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don’t hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.