Lucky 15 Tips: Superb Friday fare at Sandown

Good-looking seven-race Sandown card on Friday afternoon, reminding us that it's one of their big days of the year on Saturday with the G1 Eclipse Stakes to savour.

In the meantime we've got some fabulous ammunition from which to select our Lucky 15 tips, and a who's-who of the game's top jocks in attendance - Moore, Loughnane, Ryan, Lee, Doyle, Crouch - and there's plenty more! It'll be fun - our gateway to the weekend.

Horse Racing Odds

13:50 Sandown - Westport @ 2/1

Warm-looking Class 2 handicap for three-year-olds, over the flying 5f.

Small but select field, and very hard to rule anything out. Our selection didn't find Royal Ascot to his liking a couple of weeks ago but I'm hoping he'll rediscover the kind of form he was in beforehand.

Westport represents the 2000 Guineas/St James's Palace-winning team of trainer George Boughey, jockey Billy Loughnane plus owner the executors of the late Sheikh Mohammed Obaid (Bow Echo).

He rocked up to the royal jamboree unbeaten in three novices, two of which were at 6f, but could never land a blow in the 5f Palace Of Holyroodhouse in his first handicap, off a mark of 95.

He's been dropped a pound for this which is neither here nor there for me, and it might be that the 27-runner cavalry charge, with all the attendant pageantry, wasn't his cup of tea in Berkshire.

The gelded son of multiple G1-winner Blue Point can resume his winning ways in this small field and his ability to get further is seen as a definite plus. He's still in a big Newmarket sprint handicap over 6f next Thursday and I'm sure connections think a great deal of him despite that disappointment at Ascot, where at 10/1 he was still among the more fancied horses.

14:25 Sandown - Ronson @ 3/1

Another 5f dash, Listed category this time, for two-year-olds.

This really does have a wide-open look to it, but I'm hoping we'll get a terrific tune out of Ronson, whose sire Ubettabelieveit won the Listed National Stakes over this course and distance at two, as well as the G2 Flying Childers at Donny.

Ronson is trained by Nigel Tinkler at Langton in North Yorkshire and will be ridden by Rowan Scott. Three nicely progressive starts for the colt so far, all at Beverley.

First up a slowly-away, never-nearer 12l reverse; then an easy novice win by 5l; culminating in a real eye-opener last time 34 days ago when beaten in the Beverley Two-Year-Old Trophy, narrowly giving best (short-head), at 50/1.

The third that day has since won a little Pontefract novice by 5l, and the fact that the vastly-experienced Tinkler sends his charge all the way to Sandown speaks volumes for his confidence in my book.

I'd like to bet we see him at York in Ebor week too, but for now he's got an excellent chance of taking this handsome £25k first prize en route.

15:35 Sandown - Persica @ 6/1

I'm not quite to the stage yet of following this one over the cliff, but I can't help thinking he's absolutely going to win one of these before too long.

Ricard Hannon's Persica, a five-year-old gelding by French Derby winner New Bay, is for me knocking loudly on the door right now and could easily have prevailed in either of his last two starts instead of being arguably a tad unfortunate.

At Epsom in the G3 Betfred Diomed last month he was mugged on the line, beaten a nose; then last time at Ascot 17 days ago in a Listed race like this, over the same 10f trip, he got no run late in the piece and was 2.75l adrift at the jam-stick.

Ryan Moore takes over in the saddle, and actually won on the horse in the previous year's Diomed - the last time Persica visited the winners' enclosure. He's good value, and his turn looks close at hand.

16:42 Sandown - Marnier @ 5/2

A staying handicap now over 1m 6f, Class 4, for three-year-olds and above.

The familiar Normandie Stud colours of Sweet William and others are worn here by Marnier, a four-year-old Saxon Warrior gelding trained at HQ by Team Gosden.

One win in ten so far, a Lingfield maiden, but consistent efforts over middle distances so far and a fine effort over course-and-trip last time 20 days ago when just 2l off the winner in the grade, meeting with interference late in the piece, too.

With continued progression (it was a first stab at 14f) it's not hard to see Marnier doing the business here under regular pilot Rab Havlin, who's been on board for all 10 runs. He's even been dropped a pound for that last spin, which while hardly sensational is welcome nevertheless.

If all four of our selections won, today's notional 50p win Lucky 15, at the prices indicated (they can of course fluctuate), would return around £359 for a £7.50 total stake. If you can improve upon our selections (of course you can) - then go for it!

NAPS Table with Betfred Insights.