ITV Racing Tips: Two Selections From Doncaster & Newbury

The eyes of the racing world are edging closer and closer with every passing day to Prestbury Park with the 2026 Cheltenham Festival almost upon us, but we have two weekends to digest before that and this week it's Doncaster, Newbury and Kelso in the ITV Racing spotlight. Billy Grimshaw has a couple of best bets and makes the case below... 

14:30 Doncaster - Grimthorpe Chase

I will know my fate early here, one suspects, as I am once again putting faith into the rogue that is SOME SCOPE to score up at Doncaster. This horse's best form has predominantly come at the Yorkshire venue, but that is not the full story; he has also chucked in some stinkers here. Last time out he disappointed when quietly fancied to excel in the Cross Country sphere but I am always happy to put a line through a horse trying that altogether different test returning to more standard obstacles, and his penultimate run was of course a win here over a trip just shy of today's test.

Charlie Maggs is a cool customer and is well worth his 3lbs claim on the horse, so providing he gets into a fair rhythm and doesn't remember his jumping errors in the aforementioned cross country, I am expecting him to be there or thereabouts off what looks an eminently workable mark. He has also had wind surgery since Cheltenham, which is a positive for this yard. Dartmoore Pirate is the one I fear most in here for Anthony Honeyball, with his run on heavy last time out looking a decent show of form considering the horse is known to act on better ground.

Should the rain really pour at Donny - it's not forecast to - I would become more lukewarm on Some Scope and maybe think King Turgeon is the one to be on, but hopefully the good people of Doncaster get a sunny Saturday to enjoy and Some Scope can win again around a course he knows very well indeed.

15:15 Newbury

I love these veterans races and, for all the crabbing the powers that be get in racing, credit where it's due; this has been a brilliant innovation that has breathed new life into so many older horses' latter stage careers. This looks yet another devilishly tricky puzzle to solve, with 5/1 the field available if you shop around, but Eldorado Allen heading the market surprises me a touch. The gallant grey has become borderline prolific in these contests, but not over this extended three miles and I do not think his stamina will hold out in a test like this, particularly if some rain gets into the ground at Newbury. He is 12 now and has a lot of weight to carry, so I put a line through him.

Brave Kingdom is next in the market and is one of the youngsters in the field at ten, but despite being one of the fresher horses in here he seems to be closer to losing his tether than plenty of his seniors. I could not trust his jumping even if his latest effort at Taunton was his best for some time. Harry Cobden will no doubt attempt to make all, but the fences as always will be the thing that stands in his way and at 6/1, he's another easy swerve. Copperhead is a horse I've backed to absolutely no success twice this term and I've finally learned my lesson now, so congratulations in advance to backers on his 12 length romp.

Mister Coffey is one for the placepot, in fact he is probably the most "one for the placepot" horse to ever set foot on a racetrack, but cannot be trusted ever to get his head in front and so the horse I'm siding with is eleven year old OUR POWER for Sam Thomas. To say he ran poorly last time out at Wincanton would be an understatement, but I am willing to ignore that run given it was on heavy ground and he's never seemed to relish that surface. Perhaps in his advancing years he is just more sure of his mind, because it was obvious from a long way out he wanted no part of that test.

Back on a sounder surface here and maybe in a touch calmer waters, I expect his jumping to improve markedly and that'll also be aided by a first time visor. He is definitely on the downgrade but last season he was running to a much better level than the majority of these and stamina is obviously not an issue if they go a decent clip given his Scottish National third. He is on a decent looking mark, is versatile tactically and I think rates a strong each-way play with the best chance of victory of anything in this field.