Tiggy Wiggy set to blaze trial trail for in-form Hannon

From the fastest young filly on the Flat to some of jumping’s best out-and-out stayers, racing has it all today as Newbury’s important Classic trials vie for attention with the Scottish Grand National.

Though it is disappointing that Tony McCoy will not now have one last ride in the Ayr chase after Benvolio was withdrawn yesterday because of the drying ground, the Scottish Grand National is still a huge favourite with the racing public, one of the biggest betting events in the calendar.

But in a wider context, Newbury’s Fred Darling Stakes and Greenham Stakes are the more fascinating contests, offering significant clues for the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas respectively, held two weekends from now.

Richard Hannon dominated the Newmarket trials earlier this week and he again has the tools for the job this afternoon with Tiggy Wiggy at short odds to win the Fred Darling and Ivawood and Estidhkaar forming a powerful, two-pronged assault on the Greenham.

Hannon is keen to run Tiggy Wiggy in the 1,000 Guineas, but this filly is so blisteringly quick one has to wonder whether she can possibly also possess the stamina to win over a mile at the highest level.

Once trail-blazing tactics were adopted, nothing could catch Tiggy Wiggy (2.15 Newbury) over sprint distances last season, but she will need to settle if she is to go much further, in both senses. She will most likely cope with today’s step up to seven furlongs against what is, with the possible exception of Jellicle Ball, pretty ordinary opposition, but the Guineas will be another matter.

Jockey Richard Hughes said Ivawood had “the wow factor” after three midsummer wins last year, but, like Tiggy Wiggy, he now has stamina to prove and this is a far more competitive trial on paper – four of his rivals have already been successful at Group level – and any flaws will be exposed.

There are no stamina concerns for Estidhkaar (2.50 Newbury) and he looks the better bet. It’s probably wise to forgive his below-par effort behind Belardo in the Dewhurst Stakes last October when he returned home with a hairline fracture and judge him instead on earlier impressive winning efforts.

The 23-runner Spring Cup is much more difficult to solve, but the consistent and in-form Buckstay (3.25 Newbury) has a lot going for him.

At Ayr, in a race as open and as difficult to predict as the Grand National itself, Al Co (14-1) and Drop Out Joe (25-1) make most appeal at the prices in the Scottish version.

Drop Out Joe (3.45 Ayr), one of the bottom weights, has had only four runs over fences and is still prone to the odd blunder, but he has been crying out for a stamina test like this over four miles and it might well be worth taking a chance that his jumping holds up.

Aggressive tactics paid off for Violet Dancer (2.35 Ayr) in the Betfair Hurdle at Newbury in February and he may again be hard to peg back on this fast circuit in the Scottish Champion Hurdle.

Newbury and Ayr are live on Channel 4 Racing on Saturday.