Ollivander to Land Hat Trick at Catterick

Up at Catterick on Monday afternoon, all eyes will be on Ollivander. He heads to the North Yorkshire venue on the back of two wins, one of those coming last time out over course and distance and he looks to land the hat trick here. This horse may not be the best in terms of quality, but there is no doubt that he is running out of his skin at the moment, he is at the top of his game and I don’t think there is another horse in this field that can stop him from winning his third in a row.

He won a Beverley handicap in the middle of last month off a mark of 70 by one length and I think in the context of this race that reads really well. His win at this venue last time out was only in a claimer, but while it is a lower grade, he did prove to us that he is capable of running up to his current mark. He is now on a mark of 75 which is higher than his last handicap win, but on both occasions he won well and was in full control towards the end of the race, making me think there is more in the tank to give if he needs to.

Of the five horses in opposition, they are all exposed which is a little unusual for a three year old handicap, but something that leads me to believe that Ollivander can come out on top again. The one that may cause us the most danger is certainly Ramesses, a horse who won at Ayr two starts ago. He ran in a decent race at York last time out which was a little too strong for him and should be at home back in this kind of grade.

However, having said that I don’t believe he is as well handicapped as Ollivander, and I am taking him to win this race.

He has won his last two races, including one over course and distance which is a big positive as Catterick is quite a unique course and some horses struggle to handle it. He did it well when he won here, and also did it nice enough at Beverley, which makes me think there could be a little more to come from him. Let’s hope we see that here as Ollivander bids to land the hat trick.