April 23 / 16.00 Warwick

16.00

Good

Vanessa Littler’s 60th Birthday Handicap Chase

  • Prize money: £3828.72
  • 2m 0f 54y
  • Class 5
  • 8 runners
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Vanessa Littler’s 60th Birthday Handicap Chase

Runners: 8 runners

Type: Chase Turf

Surface: Turf

Weather: Sunny

11/2 (Won)

  • Win: £3.20
  • Place: £1.70

Form: 5/3325 BF

Last run: 77 days

W: 11st 6lb

7 yo Gelding

OR: 92

Form & Verdict
Switched to fences this season and produced three good runs in defeat (2m-2m4f) before flopping in first-time cheekpieces when made favourite at Huntingdon in early February; could be given another chance with that headgear swiftly removed.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

1st

3

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Zoeman

11st 6lb

J: Jonathan Burke

T: Tom George

Switched to fences this season and produced three good runs in defeat (2m-2m4f) before flopping in first-time cheekpieces when made favourite at Huntingdon in early February; could be given another chance with that headgear swiftly removed.

11/2

5th

4

5th Feb 2026

Soft

2m 3f 189y

Class 5

13:25 Huntingdon

Zoeman

11st 10lb

J: Jonathan Burke

T: Tom George

Low-mileage 7yo who has encouraging form switched to fences this season, good second at Ludlow (upped to 2m4f, good to soft) most recently; possibilities if taking well to first-time headgear.

15/8

2nd

8

15th Jan 2026

Good To Soft

2m 4f 11y

Class 5

14:17 Ludlow

Zoeman

11st 3lb

J: Jonathan Burke

T: Tom George

Low-mileage 7yo who kept on for third in his first two chases, the latter at Huntingdon (2m, good to soft) last month; could quite plausibly have untapped potential over 2m4f and features prominently in calculations.

4/1

16/1

  • Place: £7.10

Form: P253U4

Last run: 18 days

W: 10st 2lb

8 yo Gelding

OR: 74

Form & Verdict
A stumble after four out was no help at Market Rasen but did finish well held and he's now 0-9 over fences and 0-19 overall.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

1st

7

8th May 2026

Good

2m 5f 89y

Class 5

15:15 Market Rasen

Lone Soldier

10st 2lb

J: Sean Bowen

T: Charles & Adam Pogson

0-20 and mixed signals all season over what his present optimum trip might be; staying on but no chance with winner when second at Warwick latest (2m, good), and this contest looks a shade stronger.

6/1

2nd

9

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Lone Soldier

10st 2lb

J: Lee Edwards

T: Charles & Adam Pogson

A stumble after four out was no help at Market Rasen but did finish well held and he's now 0-9 over fences and 0-19 overall.

16/1

4th

7

5th Apr 2026

Good

2m 1f 43y

Class 5

15:58 Market Rasen

Lone Soldier

10st 4lb

J: Lee Edwards

T: Charles & Adam Pogson

0-8 over fences and 0-18 overall; clear second to an improver over C&D (soft) in January and now only 1lb above that mark but hasn't quite been in the same form since; cheekpieces removed after one use.

11/2

Form: 4P5434

Last run: 29 days

W: 10st 10lb

7 yo Gelding

OR: 82

Form & Verdict
13-race maiden; late mistake cost him dear at Taunton two runs back (2m, good) but Hereford was disappointing when behind Ballywood; others preferred.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

3rd

6

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Blackijo Dagrostis

10st 10lb

J: Stan Sheppard

T: Matt Sheppard

13-race maiden; late mistake cost him dear at Taunton two runs back (2m, good) but Hereford was disappointing when behind Ballywood; others preferred.

12/1

4th

2

25th Mar 2026

Good

2m 0f 8y

Class 5

15:00 Hereford

Blackijo Dagrostis

11st 1lb

J: Stan Sheppard

T: Matt Sheppard

0-12 under rules but recent efforts over fences have been respectable, latest when a 3.25l third of six at Taunton (2m, good); back up 5lb which will likely make him vulnerable for the win, but he shouldn't be far away.

3/1

3rd

6

9th Mar 2026

Good

2m 0f 12y

Class 5

16:40 Taunton

Blackijo Dagrostis

10st 9lb

J: Richard Patrick

T: Matt Sheppard

Modest maiden chaser who comes here below par, a never-dangerous fourth of eight in 2m Ludlow handicap 19 days ago; needs to take a step forward despite a falling mark.

9/2

Form: 024321 D

Last run: 40 days

W: 11st 7lb

7 yo Mare

OR: 93

Form & Verdict
Point winner who had her consistency rewarded with a 2.25l win at Newcastle (2m, good to soft) and the runner-up has since won at Haydock; a 7lb rise looks manageable.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

4th

2

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Forcetoreckonwith

11st 7lb

J: Charlie Todd

T: Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero

Point winner who had her consistency rewarded with a 2.25l win at Newcastle (2m, good to soft) and the runner-up has since won at Haydock; a 7lb rise looks manageable.

9/4

1st

6

14th Mar 2026

Good To Soft

2m 0f 75y

Class 4

14:15 Newcastle

Forcetoreckonwith

10st 6lb

J: Craig Nichol

T: Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero

Point winner; still seeking the breakthrough under rules (0-9), her latest Catterick effort (2m; runner-up, 8-1, with Zumbi a well-beaten fourth) as good as what she offered at Sedgefield in November; place claims yet again.

3/1

2nd

7

24th Feb 2026

Good To Soft

1m 7f 145y

Class 5

15:00 Catterick

Forcetoreckonwith

11st 3lb

J: Craig Nichol

T: Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero

Point winner who is 0-8 under rules but has run some reasonable races over fences and is edging down the weights; each-way possible.

5/1

Form: 67/776 D

Last run: 11 days

W: 11st 3lb

8 yo Filly

OR: 89

Form & Verdict
Bumper winner; cut little ice over hurdles but there were positives to take from chase debut at Ffos Las (2m3f, good to soft) where she made up some ground from off the pace; still needs more and Lunar Ocean was ahead of her last time.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

5th

5

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Golden Millie

11st 3lb

J: Brendan Powell

T: Dan Horsford

Bumper winner; cut little ice over hurdles but there were positives to take from chase debut at Ffos Las (2m3f, good to soft) where she made up some ground from off the pace; still needs more and Lunar Ocean was ahead of her last time.

12/1

6th

4

12th Apr 2026

Good

2m 3f 83y

Class 5

16:20 Ffos Las

Golden Millie

11st 4lb

J: Charlie Deutsch

T: Dan Horsford

Lightly raced 8yo who may improve for this combination of switch to chasing and return to Ffos Las; sole course start resulted in bumper win in 2022 (peak form).

14/1

7th

4

17th Mar 2026

Good To Soft

2m 0f 0y

Class 5

15:12 Wetherby

Golden Millie

11st 7lb

J: Jonathan Burke

T: Dan Horsford

Bumper winner who returned from a very long absence to make her handicap and stable debut at Chepstow (2m3f, soft) last month and ran well for a long way before fading into seventh of 12; could take a step forward now back down in trip and she's one to be interested in.

7/1

OUR TIP

Form: 0/3/PP

Last run: 45 days

W: 12st 0lb

8 yo Gelding

OR: 100

Form & Verdict
Confined to five races since winning a French bumper in 2021; encouraging third in a maiden hurdle on stable debut but pulled up in another next time and suffered same fate on chasing/handicap debut; now has much to prove, but he's down in grade with cheekpieces added and in a good yard.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

3rd

2

16th May 2026

Good

2m 4f 189y

Class 5

17:20 Uttoxeter

Ironica De Thaix

12st 0lb

J: Ned Fox

T: Venetia Williams

Lightly raced 8yo who has been pulled up on his last three outings, cheekpieces tried in 2m Warwick handicap chase 23 days ago; hard to warm to.

25/1

1

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Ironica De Thaix

12st 0lb

J: Charlie Deutsch

T: Venetia Williams

Confined to five races since winning a French bumper in 2021; encouraging third in a maiden hurdle on stable debut but pulled up in another next time and suffered same fate on chasing/handicap debut; now has much to prove, but he's down in grade with cheekpieces added and in a good yard.

25/1

8

9th Mar 2026

Soft

2m 0f 213y

Class 4

14:50 Stratford

Ironica De Thaix

10st 13lb

J: Charlie Deutsch

T: Venetia Williams

Won a French bumper in 2021 but has been rarely seen since and best effort in Britain came when making a promising start for this stable, finishing an 11.5l third of eight at Ffos Las (2m4f, heavy) in February 2024 after an absence; pulled up following another lengthy break at Ludlow in January and makes chasing/handicap debut; seemingly not easy to train but a market watch is advised.

10/1

Form: F45141 D

Last run: 18 days

W: 11st 3lb

6 yo Gelding

OR: 89

Form & Verdict
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

6th

2

25th Feb 2024

Heavy

2m 0f 53y

Class 4

17:10 Hereford

Kally Des Bruyeres

10st 4lb

J: Tom Bellamy

T: David Dennis

£26,000 3yo; second foal; dam multiple AQPS Flat/hurdle/chase winner; stable is 0-26 in bumpers during the last five seasons, so it's probably wise to wait for some encouraging signals from the betting.

16/1

Form: 262524

Last run: 11 days

W: 10st 6lb

7 yo Gelding

OR: 78

Form & Verdict
Held up and was never that threatening when beaten just over 7l into fourth at Ffos Las (2m3f, good to soft); that's two pleasing enough runs since the visor went on and this 17-race maiden has each-way claims.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

3rd

4

24th May 2026

Good To Soft

2m 3f 104y

Class 5

16:55 Fontwell

Lunar Ocean

10st 9lb

J: Gavin Sheehan

T: Billy Aprahamian

Made all to open account over C&D (good) in first-time blinkers ten days ago, his 11th start over fences; drew nicely clear of the others with the runner-up that day and was only raised 3lb; could be hard to catch.

9/4

1st

7

14th May 2026

Good

2m 3f 104y

Class 5

18:40 Fontwell

Lunar Ocean

10st 7lb

J: Gavin Sheehan

T: Billy Aprahamian

Can make mistakes but mainly consistent over fences for this yard; pulled up at Warwick after an error last time but 2m and ground that was likely faster than good were probably not ideal; that brought his record to 0-18 but he's not ruled out in first-time blinkers back up in trip.

7/1

8

23rd Apr 2026

Good

2m 0f 54y

Class 5

16:00 Warwick

Lunar Ocean

10st 6lb

J: Gavin Sheehan

T: Billy Aprahamian

Held up and was never that threatening when beaten just over 7l into fourth at Ffos Las (2m3f, good to soft); that's two pleasing enough runs since the visor went on and this 17-race maiden has each-way claims.

7/1

Non-runners

Kally Des Bruyeres, Ballywood

+o+e Accumulators

Payout
Exacta £36.70
Straight Forecast £27.54
Tricast £188.48
Trifecta £132.40

Selections

The Times:

Kally Des Bruyeres

SPOTLIGHT:

Zoeman

RP RATINGS:

Blackijo Dagrostis

Daily Record:

Forcetoreckonwith

POSTDATA:

Lunar Ocean

Daily Mail:

Ironica De Thaix

TOPSPEED:

Ballywood

The Guardian:

Kally Des Bruyeres

D Express:

Kally Des Bruyeres

Daily Mirror:

Kally Des Bruyeres

The Star:

Kally Des Bruyeres

Telegraph:

Zoeman