3.30 Wincanton
Paul Nicholls has won this race 11 times and his Threeunderthrufive, second in the race two years ago and virtually always gives his running when fresh, appeals as the most obvious winner.
However, the only thing that stopped me from backing Soul Icon ante-post was his entry in Friday’s Haldon Gold Cup, and now he’s got the go-ahead for a first crack at 3m1f, I think he’s the one to be on.
The trip is an unknown for a horse who beat Edwardstone in the Grade 2 Desert Orchid Chase over Kempton’s sharp 2m last season, but it was stamina that won him the day. They went off at a searing pace and he was the only one keeping on well at the end.
Soul Icon stayed 2m5½f well enough when just touched off in last year’s Summer Plate at Market Rasen, and his hurdles-winning dam is a half-sister to a 3m4f winner, so there is every chance he will get the trip. He might even improve for it.
He’s one of those rare chasers who can’t have the ground quick enough, so the conditions are not a worry, and trainer Keiran Burke could not have booked a hotter 5lb claimer than Toby McCain-Mitchell, who has an impressive 21 per cent strike-rate.
He is clearly well worth his allowance, and this race has been won by a claiming jockey in four of the last eight years.
Jky: Toby McCain-Mitchell (5lb)Tnr: Keiran Burke
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Published on 7 November 2025inPlay of the day
Last updated 18:00, 7 November 2025
