March 08 / 14.50 Leicester

14.50

Heavy

William Hercock Limited Royal Lancers Association Handicap Chase

  • Prize money: £3696.7
  • 1m 7f 201y
  • Class 5
  • 4 runners
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William Hercock Limited Royal Lancers Association Handicap Chase

Runners: 4 runners

Type: Chase Turf

Surface: Turf

Weather: Partly cloudy

OUR TIP

5/2 (Won)

  • Win: £2.88

Form: 512152 C

Last run: 19 days

W: 11st 10lb

6 yo Gelding

OR: 101

Form & Verdict
Displayed a willing attitude when scoring over 2m4f here (soft; from a 4lb lower mark) in January, and seemingly undone by the extra yardage back here next time; chased home Noche Negra at Southwell last time (beaten 2.75l), so would have a chance of reversing those placings on 5lb better terms.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

1st

1

5th Mar 2026

Good To Soft

2m 4f 35y

Class 4

16:15 Wincanton

Royal Mer

12st 0lb

J: Rian Corcoran

T: David Pipe

Six chase wins, the latest here (1m7f, heavy) under Rian Corcoran 19 days ago; still on workable mark after recent 5lb rise and will be fine over today's longer trip but the faster ground is probably not in his favour.

9/2

1st

1

14th Feb 2026

Heavy

1m 7f 149y

Class 4

14:50 Wincanton

Royal Mer

12st 2lb

J: Rian Corcoran

T: David Pipe

Five-time chase winner who relishes testing ground; runner-up in his first two starts this season including a close call at Exeter (2m1f, good to soft), but his form cooled at Hereford last time; needs to step up again after that but he remains well treated on his old form.

7/2

3rd

1

26th Jan 2026

Soft

2m 0f 8y

Class 4

15:00 Hereford

Royal Mer

11st 13lb

J: Rian Corcoran

T: David Pipe

Five-time chase winner who relishes testing ground; runner-up on both starts this term and looks sure to go close.

13/8

Form: 049663

Last run: 16 days

W: 10st 2lb

9 yo Mare

OR: 73

Form & Verdict
Still seeking her first win (0-18), but there have been some positive signs over fences; went well for a long way on return from a 77-day break at Ludlow (2m) last time, finishing a 7l third at 33-1; faces a similar task here from 6lb out of the handicap.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

6th

3

19th Dec 2024

Good To Soft

1m 7f 182y

Class 4

13:32 Ffos Las

Dancing Dani

11st 4lb

J: Ellis Collier

T: Nikki Evans

Has a modicum of ability but was pulled up off her lowly mark in a handicap chase two weeks ago and is now 0-23 under rules; swaps usual cheekpieces for first-time blinkers.

50/1

11/10

Form: 0-7311

Last run: 19 days

W: 12st 0lb

7 yo Gelding

OR: 105

Form & Verdict
Switches to a right-handed track and drops back in trip seeking the hat-trick following wins at Catterick (2m3f, soft) and Southwell (2m4f, heavy; beat Royal Mer by 2.75l); raised 5lb for that latest win but, as a brother to the classy 2m chaser Nube Negra, could have more to offer; strong claims.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

2

1st Apr 2026

Good

3m 0f 60y

Class 4

14:30 Southwell

Noche Negra

11st 10lb

J: Toby McCain-Mitchell

T: Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies

Jumped well when scoring on his stable debut at Warwick (2m4f, soft) in late 2024 but he hasn't recaptured that form in three runs following a year's absence, pulling up on his last two starts.

11/1

6

9th Mar 2026

Soft

2m 6f 125y

Class 4

16:20 Stratford

Noche Negra

11st 9lb

J: Sam Twiston-Davies

T: Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies

Jumped well when scoring on his stable debut at Warwick (2m4f, soft) in late 2024 but he hasn't recaptured that form in two runs following a year's absence, latterly when found to have an irregular heartbeat back at Warwick in January; cheekpieces back on but risky at present.

12/1

Form: -P3242 D

Last run: 29 days

W: 12st 0lb

6 yo Mare

OR: 105

Form & Verdict
Mixed fortunes over fences (0-14), but did run well from this reduced mark at Huntingdon (2m4f, soft; runner-up) four weeks ago; her earlier French form for David Cottin suggests that she'll cope with dropping back to 2m on testing ground.
Place /
No / Draw
Date / Going /
Distance / Class
Time + Course Horse + Weight
Jockey / Trainer
Verdict Starting price

5

9th Feb 2026

Soft

2m 0f 219y

Class 4

15:15 Plumpton

Its Easy

11st 2lb

J: Conor Ring

T: Evan Williams

Twice well beaten since winning by a huge margin at Bangor in November (2m4f, heavy; four ran); she's another who loves the mud (good to soft the last twice) so should give her running if nothing else.

8/1

7th

3

18th Jan 2026

Good To Soft

2m 5f 44y

Class 2

14:40 Fakenham

Its Easy

11st 0lb

J: Ned Fox

T: Evan Williams

Doubled chasing tally with huge-margin success in four-runner contest at Bangor (2m4f, heavy) in November and made audacious bid from the front before weakening into eighth in big field at Cheltenham (2m4f, good to soft) last month; didn't run particularly well on her previous visit to Fakenham but could take some catching if she gets into a good rhythm.

5/1

5th

5

17th Apr 2025

Good

2m 0f 62y

Class 3

16:30 Cheltenham

Its Easy

10st 13lb

J: Adam Wedge

T: Evan Williams

Took a good while to win over fences and that was in a four-runner race at Leicester (2m4f, soft; 2lb lower); held by Lime Drop on their clash in January and could have run better last time.

10/1

+o+e Accumulators

Payout
Exacta £17.20
Straight Forecast £16.95
Trifecta £32.10

Selections

SPOTLIGHT:

Noche Negra

The Times:

Royal Mer

RP RATINGS:

It's Easy

D Express:

Royal Mer

Daily Record:

Royal Mer

Telegraph:

Noche Negra

The Guardian:

Noche Negra

Daily Mail:

Noche Negra

The Sun:

Noche Negra

The Star:

Noche Negra

POSTDATA:

It's Easy

Daily Mirror:

It's Easy