".... not quite right enough...."

Last Updated: 06.05.2025

Tuesday, 6th May 2025

“…. not quite right enough….”

This week I’m targeting….

In ATC today….

Top-level sport – and top-level betting – boils down to fine margins….

…. and the things I got right last weekend….

…. we’re not quite right enough….

Oh…. and we’ve got a busy fortnight ahead of us on the betting front….

Read on….

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Top-level sport – and top-level betting – boils down to fine margins….

It was a losing weekend at Newmarket for me….

…. no doubt that….

…. and I was particularly disappointed with how my selections ran on Saturday….

…. down the field and never looking anything like challenging for honors….

Perhaps Yah Mo Be There had a legitimate excuse in the 2000 Guineas – in that he was hampered at the start and got left in arrears….

…. but the others just out-and-out failed to show up….

It could have been so much different on Sunday, however….

Blindedbythelights was only beaten a short head (there’s that fine margin I’m talking about)….

…. sent off at 15/2 having been put up at 10s….

If he’d gone in I’d have been a small way in front….

Then Elwateen ran a cracker at a big price to finish fourth in the 1000 Guineas….

…. unfortunately – one place outside the frame….

I’m never going to get everything right….

…. not the way I play….

Instead I hope to get enough right to break even – and then to get in front….

Last weekend – the things I got right….

…. were not quite right enough….

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That said….

…. there’s always a silver lining….

…. if not for you….

…. then for someone else….

Reader LL has been in touch to tell me this….

“…. I backed Blindedbythelights with Corals on Saturday @12/1 and when I logged into the website Sunday afternoon, they had paid me out as a winner, as he was pipped at the post….”

On qualified races – those nominated by Coral….

…. the bookmaker pays out second place finishers as winners if they are beaten less than a head….

…. Blindedbythelights ticked all the relevant boxes….

…. and he was a winner for punters backing him with Coral….

I must confess that I was unaware of that Pipped at the Post concession….

…. but perhaps I should have been….

After all, it’s important to fully understand all your market options – and to always be seeking to get the best bang for your buck on every bet you place….

Being in the right place at the right time – like LL was on Sunday – can add useful dollars to your annual bottom line….

If there’s a concession of some sort that you make use of with a specific bookmaker – be it continually or time-to-time….

…. give me a shout at nick.pullen@oxonpress.co.uk....

…. and let me know about it….

If there’s enough material – I’ll put an issue together outlining all the potential options that some of us might otherwise be missing out on or not considering….

If it leads to one or two extra payouts across the season – the exercise is very much worthwhile….

We all know Sky Bet are the #1 firm when it comes to offering extra places….

…. but what are the best concessions out there – and which bookies are operating them….

That’s what I want to know now….

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This is a contrarian racing service…..

…. where I make a point of going against the crowd….

…. but you can’t please all the people all of the time….

…. and there are some you can’t please any of the time….

GD wrote in last week after I’d suggested that bat swingers might like to think about Elwateen at a big price for the 1000 Guineas….

His verdict was this….

“…. a bet that’s a total waste of money….”

Fair enough – as it turned out GD was right….

…. the bet went down….

…. but not by so very far….

…. and I stand by that bet as a half-decent pick that wasn’t quite close enough to the mark….

I’ll certainly be having more bets like that going forward….

…. because those kinds of bets are the very epitome of what this service is always trying to do….

…. which is to dig out ‘live’ contenders up at a tasty price – because the rest of the market is underestimating or overlooking their true chances….

I won’t always get it right….

…. but the fact that Elwateen finished as close as she did is sufficient justification for the pick – at least that’s how I see it….

Reader DB put it better than me when he emailed to say….

“Elwateen ran a good race, just ran out of steam last 200 yards it was a good sporting pick. Look forward to the next round of picks, keep on keeping on.”

A ‘sporting’ pick – that’s exactly what it was….

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We’ve got a pretty hectic fortnight in front of us….

We’ve got Chester’s 3-day May meeting this week – it looks like I’ll be playing in races on Thursday & Friday…..

We’ve got races at Haydock & Ascot on Saturday….

The next week it’s the Dante meeting at York – Wednesday, Thursday & Friday….

…. with action at Newbury on the Saturday…..

Get the full running order here….

In other words it’s going to be full-on with selections over the period….

…. with not much time to draw breath for pre-race or post-race analysis….

…. but that’s the way of it over the busy summer period….

It’s a good time to make a few quid….