Jim Crowley weekend rides blog: 'Two Big Handicaps, Two Big Rides'

TWO BIG HANDICAPS, TWO BIG RIDES

I was originally heading to Ripon on Saturday, but the Shadwell runner wasn’t declared so I’ve rerouted to Newmarket for a lovely looking spare ride in the Cambridgeshire.  Norwalk Havoc had a first time tongue tie and cheekpieces on when finishing a close up second at Galway on his last run, since when he’s presumably been kept fresh for this race.

He’s got winning form on heavy ground, which it could well be here, and we’re drawn high in 26, which is another plus, as we have plenty of fancied horses around us. It’s a big field, valuable handicap, so is never going to be easy to win, but it’s great to be riding for trainer Jessica Harrington in these famous Niarchos family silks, and I think he has a decent chance. I actually won this race on Credit Swap 14 years ago, so another win is long overdue!

I travel to Ireland on Sunday, for another big ride in a handicap, this time on Naqeeb in the Irish Cesarewitch. His run in the Ebor last time was a non-event, he was slowly away and the got badly hampered by Crystal Delight, so I’m happy to put a line through that.

Much more promising was his run prior to York, where he finished second at Newbury, it is on that form that I'd judge him going into this race. He's versatile in terms of going, and for a race with a huge prize pot, it is obviously competitive looking, but I don't think it has the overall class of the Ebor, for example. This has been the target for him and I think he will run a very big race. 

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