Josey Can Gun Down His Rivals At Ayr

Seeyouatmidnight put in a superb round of jumping at Cheltenham yesterday and I was delighted to see him win. The only worry as regards his festival chances is the fact that he is so ground dependent and he is unlikely to get his preferred soft/heavy conditions in the Spring. He doesn't really appeal as an ante post bet and I'll be waiting until a lot closer to the start of the festival and seeing how the weather looks before backing him.

Only Gorgeous went out like a light on the ground and seemed to hate conditions at Exeter yesterday. He was eventually pulled up and though his pedigree said he might handle the ground he obviously didn't. In other words I got it badly wrong!! At least he will be dropped a pound or two for that effort and he is one to look out for when he gets better ground.

There is no racing in Ireland today and Sandown and Ayr host the the jumps meetings in the UK. The horse I like caught my eye when he ran on his debut at Musselburgh last month and Outlaw Josey Wales looks overpriced for his second start today. This 5yo son of Jeremy was sent off at 40/1 at Musselburgh and considering how well he ran it is a surprise to see him priced up at 20/1 today.

His trainer, R Mike Smith, is not known for training bumper winners but this well bred gelding could run a big race for him today. His Invincible Spirit dam won on soft ground and she is related to a couple of black type performers on the level and to a couple of jumps winners too. Jeremy's progeny usually go on easy ground so the soft conditions at Ayr should be no problem (it was good to soft for his debut run).

Brian Harding rode him last time but he will be riding for his boss Nicky Richards here on the well fancied Reivers Lad. Callum Bewley, who has ridden 6 winners for the yard (+£15 to a £1 stake) takes off a handy 5lb and he is great value for his claim. He is a more than capable jockey,

The selection was held up in rear at Musselburgh and made rapid headway pushed along under hands and heels about 2f out to chase the leader. Harding administered a crack of the whip and as soon as he asked for a maximum effort the horse wandered and looked very green. He was swamped in the closing stages and dropped to 6th, but he was beaten less than 6l and he should be a lot wiser today with that experience under his belt.

Now there are a number of debutants in the race that could be anything, and Sandy Thomson's Spirit Of Kayf  ran a lovely race on debut. There are a couple of point to point winners too so there are obviously quite a few dangers. However, there was a lot to like about the selection's run at Musselburgh and at 20/1 is he worthy of a small each way bet? I reckon so...

STEVOS' SELECTION: 3.45 AYR-OUTLAW JOSEY WALES E/W 20/1