Published 8:23- all selections online

For my first bet on Thursday, I have gone to the Corinthian Amateur Jockeys' Handicap (5.00) at Sandown. Warning Sign won this race last season and has a very solid record at Sandown. He was a winner at Goodwood in June when he was last seen in a race where he was over half a second faster than any of his seven rivals over the final quarter of a mile. That field is 0-8 since and he has been given a 6 lbs rise for winning what looked to be an average contest, but he can’t be entirely ignored given his record, although carrying 11-3 is a difficult task. 

Henry Callan’s 50% strike rate in 2026 will obviously make the unexposed Impierious of interest on his handicap debut for Tom Clover. He finished third at Ffos Las when last seen but having raced prominently in a race where the winner recorded a finishing speed of 108%, he might have perhaps been expected to finish closer and given that both horses to finish ahead of him were soundly beaten at Goodwood last week, there would be a small concern, especially with the visor going on for the first time. 

I have no such concerns about my selection, DRUMSTICK. He was a winner at Windsor in early May and had two subsequent winners in behind. It was only a Class 6 contest, and we haven’t seen him since, but he made every yard of the running under Gina Mangan that day and clocked the fastest time for both the first and last furlongs as he pulled clear to win by 4 lengths. An overall time of 2:07.38 was over a second faster than the TPD expected time. 

He’s up 7 lbs in a better race, but remains quite lightly raced over this trip and given the way he hit the line at Windsor, I think the stiff Sandown finish should help. He has run well following an absence in the past and there would look to be an easy lead on offer to Brodie Hampson, if she chooses to take it.

It’s a small field to end Thursday’s card at Chepstow in the Chepstow Plant International Supports Chepstow Centenary Handicap (8.15), but now that HALLANDALE BEACH has broken his maiden tag (at the sixth time of asking I might add) I fully expect him to follow up. 

He travelled very powerfully through the race when winning here at the end of June and quickened to record closing splits of 11.02 and 12.10s as he beat Pimentel by over 3 lengths. Sat behind the pace, he lengthened to a peak average stride length of 24.9 ft and put the race to bed with relative ease. Eightthreeone should give him a lead to track and once pulled out for a run by David Egan, I don’t think the 8 lb rise from the handicapper will be enough to stop him.

You can find sectional times, stride data, speed statistics and jumping performance metrics on the RESULTS page of attheraces.com.

The global database of sectional times, stride data and performance metrics is available through Total Performance Data.