Newbury Tips: Lieutenant can post commanding performance

One of six meetings taking place across Britain and Ireland on Thursday, Newbury stages an eight-race card on the Flat that runs from 13:30 until 17:33.

I've studied the offering and come up with three Newbury tips for consideration.

13:30 - Warning Sign @ 9/2

First up is an amateur jockeys' handicap over 1m2f that has attracted a field of 11 runners and there is reason to believe WARNING SIGN can take the opener in Berkshire.

Although the chestnut gelding's sole win came back in 2021 at Toulouse in France, there were plenty of positives from his outings in 2024 with no less than four runner-up efforts.

One of those came at Newbury in July over this distance, where the six-year-old briefly went ahead of Flatley in the final stages before the latter battled back to win by a head.

Warning Sign was in need of the run after five months off when 11th of 21 in a Doncaster handicap over a mile in March, and connections will be hopeful more improvement can be exacted back up in trip here.

15:15 - American State @ 10/1

There looks to be plenty of runners with chances of success in race four on the card - a 17-runner handicap over a mile - but preference here is for AMERICAN STATE for owners Daniel MacAuliffe and Anoj Don.

All four starts for the three-year-old have come in maiden/novices and the form has been fair, with two fifth-placed efforts at Southwell followed up with a third at Chelmsford and a third at Kempton.

Having raced only on the all-weather, the Patrick Owen-trained gelding is now switched to grass for the first time and there is the potential of improvement entering handicap company.

Stiff competition is expected from the likes of Boubyan, who caught the eye when third at Windsor last month, and Orchard, but American State may have too much for those two.

17:33 - Lieutenant Lily @ 11/1

Rounding off the meeting is a 12-runner handicap over 1m4f, and this could go the way of LIEUTENANT LILY, the daughter of Cracksman who produced a solid effort when finishing third in a novice over 1m2f at Goodwood last month.

That came after a second at Kempton in April, and the three-year-old looks capable of shedding her maiden tag off a very workable mark on her handicap debut.

It is also worth noting that Tom Ward's filly benefited hugely when fitted with a tongue-tie in the recent Goodwood third and that application has been retained for this trip to Newbury, suggesting more progress is forthcoming.

Big efforts are expected to come from Dangerman and Desert Shadow, while Sudu is another who will be fancied in this wide-open finale, but Lieutenant Lily gets the nod to cross the line first.

Click the links for all the latest Horse Racing Odds and Fast Racing Results

Find more Horse Racing Tips here at Betfred Insights