ITV Racing Tips: Picks For Chester Cup Day

Chester's May Meeting comes to its thrilling conclusion on Friday, with the highlight of course being the Chester Cup. Billy Grimshaw has a preview of that big handicap on his to-do list, but first he has a couple of plays worth consideration on the supporting card, live on ITV Racing...

13:30 Chester

I think favourite backers will get off to a dream start on Chester Cup day as Ryan Moore is on board DIVINE LIBRA for Charlie Hills, and this is a horse who has proven to love the unique test Chester provides in the past. He also has the benefit of a reappearance run under his belt - at Haydock a few weeks back - which is something not every rival in the field can say and I wouldn't be surprised if this favourite was backed from 4/1 down to closer to 2/1 SP come the off considering his profile.

He's won two of five visits here, with a less than a length beating in second also on the CV, and he looks well weighted to go well once more here. The high draw of course isn't ideal but there's no better man than Moore to negate that and this extended seven furlongs gives room to manoeuvre more than five or six here, where horses may as well not turn up if drawn high and wide. He is also versatile tactically and, perhaps crucially, most of the pacey types are drawn around him.

Two Tempting is second favourite but I'd be more afraid of 8/1 chance (at the time of writing) Gorak, who is a dangerous horse off the front end and finished four places in front of Divine Libra at Haydock last time out. This extended trip will suit the favourite a lot more and hopefully he won't be as luckless in running as he was at Haydock, as well as being fitter, so I am firmly in his camp however I don't want anything getting a few lengths on the field round here and Gorak is the biggest danger in that regard.

14:35 Chester

The Group 2 Huxley Stakes is the highest class race on the day, for all the Chester Cup as a premier handicap is the one that hogs the headlines. The Foxes undoubtedly sets the standard, with stall one the plum draw and his frontrunning style ideally suited for Chester, but in a trappy race like this I can leave him be at 11/8 or shorter. It'll be fascinating to see which way Deepone goes in the market for Paddy Twomey, coming here as a Group 1 winner over a mile as a two year old off a two year break. Seeing his odds contract would be a tip in itself but for a clearly fragile horse I suspect this first outing in a while could be a cobweb blower.

At the prices I think SPACE LEGEND is worth backing given he has been gelded since a decent three year old campaign - with two second places in races of this level - and William Haggas is lethal with these four year olds of this sort of profile. There will be some who put a line through him due to today's trip, with the suspicion the son of Sea The Stars will need further especially now he's four, but I can see this being run at a real good clip which should dispel any pace concerns.

Bolster likes to get on with things for the in form Karl Burke and Certain Lad is no stranger to racing prominently, so with the favourite The Foxes expected to be sent forward as well from box one by Oisin Murphy I'm hoping Tom Marquand can get a lovely toe into the race before racing clear to bag a deserved success at this level. He shouldn't be this big a price given his level of form at three and his trainer's prowess so he is the second of my bets.