Monday, 11th May 2026
In ATC today….
Last week was a bit of a bummer….
…. I saw a future winner at Ascot recently….
…. and it’s goodbye to an old friend….
Oh…. and we’re at York this week – Day 1 selections tomorrow….
Read on….
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Bah!
Last week was a bloody washout….
…. and I ended up handing a few points back to the layers….
Worse – it was one of those weeks where I picked out a series of horses that ran like bums….
City House on the opening day at Chester….
…. and Bulletin at Ascot on Saturday were brighter spots….
…. but their respective frame finishes weren’t enough on their own to change the general tenor of the week….
…. and merely served to stem a bit of the bleeding….
I was pretty grumpy by Saturday teatime….
…. and not much company across the weekend….
I spent a few hours in the garden yesterday….
…. it empties the head – which can get pretty noisy….
…. and that’s no bad thing….
There’s not much respite in this game – not across the summer at any rate….
…. it’s important not to hump too much baggage around from meeting to meeting….
…. and on some level you have to learn to let go of results – for you or against you – and to move on both deftly and lightly….
…. at least that’s my experience across the years….
York’s Dante meeting gets underway on Wednesday….
…. and I’ll be going out with my picks tomorrow….
But before we get to the Knavesmire….
…. I want to take the opportunity this blank day presents to highlight a handicapper that caught my eye recently – and which I’m adding to my Watch List….
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El Bufalo ran a big race at a big price in a C4 handicap at Ascot back on May 1st….
Seventeen went to post for the contest which was run over the 5f trip….
…. and Thomas Faulkner’s charge finished sixth – beaten 2.25 lengths….
The handicapper’s left him unchanged on a mark of 77 – and that’s a positive outcome for connections given there are reasons to upgrade the performance….
First, El Bufalo ran out of stall 2 – with the horses that beat him home running out of 13, 10, 14, 11 and 8….
Straight form the stalls jockey Rab Havlin got him across a few yards towards the middle before settling at the back of the far side group….
…. but Havlin was patient and made his big move sideways when the three groups converged just before the quarter mile pole….
…. and the 5yo ended up finishing closer to the nearside rail than anything else….
In other words, he ran in anything but a straight line – and to finish as close as he did from where he started was a good effort….
Especially when you consider he was always to the rear in the race….
…. making his effort from much further back than each of the five horses that finished ahead of him….
It was just his third race on turf – and easily his best yet….
…. he ran the final furlong – on rising ground – faster than anything else in the race….
…. and for me – whilst he’s got loads of AW form over 5f – he’s got to be worth a go at the 6f trip on grass….
…. a combination of circumstances that he’s yet to try and which could well improve him and move him on from his current and unchanged mark….
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Finally today, I can’t let it go unremarked that Auroras Encore has died at the age of 24….
Long-term readers will no doubt recall that Sue Smith’s chaser provided this column with perhaps its greatest moment to date….
…. when winning the 2013 edition of the Grand National….
…. having been advised the day before the big race at a whopper of a price….
“My dark horse pick would be Sue Smith’s AURORAS ENCORE – available at 80s. He was 2nd in a Scottish National just a year or so ago off a higher mark. His preparation isn’t ideal, but the better ground will suit and he will stay. If he takes to the fences he can go well and I’ll be backing him each-way….”
He ran like a dream under Ryan Mania….
…. finishing 9l clear of the field at the post – in blue silks with the big yellow diamond that I can still see today….
…. and landing four-figure payouts for dozens of ATC readers….
>>>> enjoy the ‘shock’ win again here….
It was one of those afternoons that live long in the memory….
…. for some it was perhaps the best afternoon of punting they’ll ever experience….
…. and it was the old horse who did all the great work – an absolute star in my book….
Farewell, Auroras Encore – you won’t be forgotten in these parts….
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That’s all for today….
Back tomorrow with selections for Day 1 at York’s Dante meeting….
Meantime – contact me at – nick.pullen@spapublishinggroup.co.uk
Stay tuned….
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