Pintura has undoubtedly been a frustrating horse for connections, not due to lacking in ability or attitude but purely because he never gets any luck in the top-level handicaps. The race that he was contesting at Chester wasn't the best for the grade, which was an obvious help given how he had become temptingly handicapped on his best form once again and he duly took advantage by getting his head in-front in what was a thrilling finish. Indeed he had to sit-and-suffer through a stewards' enquiry for interfering with the runner-up, but was allowed to keep the race - which was a bit generous really. The win was thoroughly deserved though and hopefully he'll grab another at some stage. He'll remain of interest for a while yet.

The other selection was One Scoop Or Two, who was weak in the market (an awful sign with that trainers horses) and ran accordingly. Graham Gibbons reported that his mount was never travelling, but the cynic in me thinks that he's talking rubbish. Maybe it's true, but I'd say it just wasn't to be the horses day and he is being kept for another, which is fair enough. Hopefully the handicapper will relent a bit, because this horse will be winning races at some point during this season and I fully intend to punt him when he does.

+16.00pts on the day. Form of last 10 selections; 0-5-9-0-7-1-4-4-1-0 (2 winners & 0 places).

Plenty of racing today but very few handicaps that are playable and as a result it's going to be a boring one for us. I've found one selection, which we backed not long ago, and I'm hopeful of a good run if things can go his way. That's the problem, as it's a big-field handicap in which so much can go against you and any sort of confidence that you have in a selection can be quickly dashed. He's an overpriced 16/1 shot that should be backed and hopefully he'll get involved for us. Have a good day folks and roll on the next one!

3:25 Ascot - Fathsta - 2pts @ 16/1 (General)

Constantly persisting with horses is a very stupid game to play and will usually end up resulting in losses. Keeping an eye on the right type of horse, when you know what their ideal conditions are, is a much better game to play and I think that the adaptable Fathsta remains one to have in your corner. I get a feeling that he's more comfortable on turning tracks, but some of his form in top-class handicaps at the bigger tracks represents brilliant form and if he runs to something like his best, he'll prove to be a tough horse to beat off a mark of 90 - assuming that he gets some breaks of course, as they're badly needed in such races. We punted this fellow when he made his seasonal reappearance at Newmarket and although he finished 13th of the 24 (7th on his side), I was encouraged by the run. His trainer David Simcock has also said that he was "very pleased" by it and the effort needs upgrading imo, because he was held up in a race where it proved to be very tough to come from off the pace. It will have taken the edge off him as well and although this race only comes six days later, the horse seems to enjoy quick turnarounds. The ground coming up on the testing side is absolutely ideal and although a stiff 7f on it may be a bit taxing on his stamina, it may be worth our while taking a chance on him anyway. Martin Dwyer is booked again having been on board last time out and he's a rare booking for the owner. He does at least seem to ride this track quite well and knows the horse, which is a plus as he can be tricky on occasions. The fact that connections were willing to pull him out of a race at Chester yesterday speaks volumes (owner loves having runners there) and they've got a potentially lively candidate. He ran well in this race last year off 10lbs higher and should be in the mix if his draw in stall 14 doesn't inconvenience. It's an awful punting race, so the usual stakes apply.

Result - 19th @ 12/1; Never had a chance from his draw. Terrible stuff.