The bell tolls for Hemingway
5-2fav Made all, not fluent 5th or 7th, clear before 2 out, easily, won at Warwick 2m 5f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) sft beating Chateau Robin by 35l, 7 ran. 15-8fav Chased leader, joined leader 4 out, led 2 out, kept on strongly from last, won at Kelso 2m 7f hcp hdl 0-110 (4) hvy beating Late Date by 12l, 7 ran. 7-2fav Tracked leaders, not fluent 4th, 2nd 7th, led 14th, hung left and headed flat, held after, stayed on, 2nd of 9, 1/2l behind Shanroe Santos at Warwick 3m hcp chs 0-130 (3) sft in Feb. 6-1 With leader, led 4 out, kept on well before last, won at Kelso 2m 7f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) hvy in Feb beating Landecker by 6l, 7 ran.
4-1 Mid-division, headway on inside 6th, 3rd and ridden after 3 out, no impression on winner next, went 2nd last, closed as winner hung badly right flat, just held, 2nd of 8, nk behind Catching On at Warwick 3m 2f hcp hdl 0-120 (4) hvy in Feb. 16-1 In touch, headway chasing leaders 5th, pushed along and weakened before 3 out, 11th of 14, 37l behind Forthefunofit at Ascot 2m 7f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) sft in Feb.
9-1 Towards rear, headway 3rd to chase leaders, with leader 6th, pushed along 7 out, soon weakened, pulled up before last, in a race won by Killala Quay at Doncaster 3m hcap ch (2) gd in Feb, 8 ran. 25-1 Towards rear, pushed along 5 out, weakened next, 6th of 7, well behind Aengus at Catterick 3m 1f hcp hdl 0-110 (4) sft in Feb. HEMINGWAY can reverse recent form with Wick Powell to land the 32Red Casino Handicap at Newcastle.
Kevin Ryan’s three-yearold has seen only limited action to date but with just four runs under his belt so far, there could be any amount of improvement still to come.
His juvenile campaign last year was a mixed bag, with a narrow Pontefract victory bookended by two defeats at York, although the latter eclipse came in what is one of the most competitive sales events of the year.
Given a break following that defeat, Hemingway returned to action at Gosforth Park earlier this month when beaten three and three-quarter lengths by Wick Powell when in receipt of 5lb. The winner was far too well treated for Hemingway to land a meaningful blow but given that was his first outing in 204 days, it would not be unreasonable to expect him to have come forward since then.
Hemingway will be getting 15lb this time, which puts him in a very attractive position indeed, even allowing for a bit more to come from Wick Powell. Good Run shaped with promise when winning at Newcastle back in November and despite a bit of a break in the interim, he is still the pick for the Betway Stayers’ Handicap.
Twice a winner in 2015, Good Run was beaten out of sight by Imperial Aviator in his only turf start last May and was then off the track until that Newcastle run.
Gelded in the interim, he looked a different animal as he overcame a less-thanperfect passage to win in style.
Artscape should find a starting mark of 75 well within his compass in the 32Red. com Handicap at Kempton.
Quite a keen-going sort, he could be even better if he can learn to settle.
Clan Legend should appreciate the slightly better ground in the Howdens Joinery Chase at Haydock.
The seven-year-old has won two of his four outings over fences this winter, facing heavy conditions on each occasion.
While he has more than held his own, Clan Legend has certainly shaped as though a better surface might bring about some improvement, most notably so when just hanging on for the win at Kelso earlier this month.