Horses To Follow » Hanoverian Baron

Hanoverian Baron

Hanoverian Baron is worth another chance, despite finishing only ninth when a well-supported favourite for the Old Newton Cup at Haydock last Saturday. The Tony Newcombe-trained gelding stumbled early on in the race, clipping heals with another runner when he was lucky not to come down. He travelled all right from there but he ran into trouble again when he was trying to improve early in the straight, when his run was blocked off, he pricked his ears and started to look around him and his rider David Probert was not too hard on him thereafter.

The son of Green Desert is still a potentially high class horse, only a few horses got into this race from off the pace, three out of the first four raced prominently throughout and he had with no luck in running at all. It is reasonable to put a line through this performance. He is still progressive and potentially well ahead of the handicapper, he was only raised 5lb for his impressive win in a good handicap at York, and the form of the race in which he finished second to Alainmaar prior to that has worked out well, with Cill Rialaig and Tartan Gunna both coming out to win and to run well in competitive handicaps at the big meetings. Hanoverian Baron is still lightly raced and there should be a lot more to come from him. He could be well under-rated next time out because of this run, a run that is very easy to forgive.

3rd July 2010