Thursday Doncaster racing tips: Best bets, previews and odds

Racing correspondent Jonathan Doidge brings us his horse racing tips for Doncaster’s Thursday card

Moon Target is fancied in the Betfred May Hill Stakes (PA)

Thursday Doncaster Tips

• Half Sovereign (Doncaster, 13.15) – 1pt win @ 10/3 Betfred
• Moon Target (Doncaster, 14.25) – 1pt win @ 2/1 bet365
• Consent (Doncaster, 15.00) – 0.5pts each-way @ 9/2 bet365
• Castle Stuart (Doncaster, 15.35) – 0.5pts each-way @ 6/1 Ladbrokes
• Muhaajim (Doncaster, 17.15) – 0.5pts each-way @ 6/1 Ladbrokes

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The four-day St Leger Festival gets underway at Doncaster on Thursday and racing correspondent Jonathan Doidge has been trawling betting sites to bring us his Doncaster best bets for day one.

British Stallion Studs 'Carrie Red' EBF Fillies' Nursery Handicap (Doncaster, 13.15)

It’s the start of a superb four days of action on Town Moor, Doncaster and the very first race of the meeting provides us with a betting opportunity in the form of one of the market leaders, HALF SOVEREIGN.

The British Stallion Studs 'Carrie Red' EBF Fillies' Nursery Handicap (13.15) is contested over the unusual trip of 6.5f and that extra 100 yards or so should suit Karl Burke’s runner more than a number of her opponents.

She’s continuing to make steady improvement and her level of form marks her out clearly as a leading contender for this on horse racing betting sites, while her proven ability on slow ground is another big tick in the box. She is taken to complete a four-timer.

Doncaster best bet 1: Half Sovereign (Doncaster, 13.15) – 1pt win @ 10/3 Betfred

Virgin Bet: Money back on losing 13:15 Doncaster bets

To mark the first race of the 2025 St Leger Festival, Virgin Bet are running a free bet offer on the opening race. Place a wager on the 13:15 at Doncaster on Thursday and if your bet fails to generate a return, Virgin Bet will refund your stake in free bets, up to £10. The free bet will be credited to your Virgin Bet account with two hours of the bet being settled and is free to use on any sportsbook market.

Betfred May Hill Stakes (Doncaster, 14.25)

The Group 2 May Hill has again drawn some more than promising juvenile fillies to line up. Karl Burke is the only trainer to have won more than one renewal of the race in the past decade and, therefore, his representatives Aylin (in particular) and Samra Green merit plenty of respect.

Venetian Lace has some very solid form, despite not winning in three starts since her debut but the suggestion is MOON TARGET.

Sir Mark Prescott’s Cracksman filly has been made favourite on all three of her starts, winning her maiden and novice starts with plenty in hand. Although she was turned over in Goodwood’s Prestige Stakes last time, she should relish this step up to a mile and can kick on again.

She’s also shown she can handle slow ground, which is another thing in her favour with further rain forecast.

Doncaster best bet 2: Moon Target (Doncaster, 14.25) – 1pt win @ 2/1 bet365

Betfred Park Hill Fillies' Stakes (Doncaster, 15.00)

Trainer John Gosden, more recently in conjunction with his son Thady, has farmed this Group 2 contest in the past decade, winning it on four occasions and he has the market leader again here in Danielle. She ran a cracker when beating all bar the winner decisively in the Lillie Langtry Stakes at Goodwood last time.

She enjoys getting her toe in and so any further rain would be no hindrance to her already obvious chance.

However, the last five renewals have all gone to a three-year-old on the up and one of the claimants to that tag this time around is the Sir Mark Prescott-trained CONSENT.

The daughter of Lope De Vega took a significant step up in class in France last time, when she was well supported in a Group 3 event, in which she was unlucky not to get a run at the right time and could have finished a fair bit closer than the official margin of two-and-a-half lengths.

We know she acts with some ease in the ground, she raced prominently when stepped up to 1m4f in that race in France and there’s every chance that she’ll be suited by this further increase in distance. She’s theoretically 5lb ‘well in’ with the favourite on official ratings due to her age allowance and she looks the value in the race on horse racing betting apps.

Doncaster best bet 3: Consent (Doncaster, 15.00) – 0.5pts each-way @ 9/2 bet365

Oddschecker Handicap (Doncaster, 15.35)

This looks a strong three-year-old handicap that should be run at a good clip. First Principle, the pre-race favourite on most betting apps, represents a top yard in good form though he isn’t obviously well treated on an official mark of 88. It would be no surprise if there is significant improvement to come but his price is a bit on the skinny side strictly on what he has achieved.

On the other hand, Respond, who sits at the foot of the racecard, looks to have got in on a handy mark based on his maiden success at Haydock (1m2f, good) last time and with any improvement on his handicap debut, he ought to go close.

However, CASTLE STUART is a little more battle hardened and he too looks to have a pound or two in hand on the assessor. He’s progressed well on his last two starts, winning his final outing for Karl Burke in a Musselburgh handicap (1m1f, good) in July and stepping up on that when dead-heating for third in a good York handicap (10.5f, good to firm) last time, when his horse racing odds of 28/1 suggest that perhaps that was also a bit of a surprise to connections at the Richard Fahey yard.

The son of Dubawi has gone up just 1lb for that performance, he’s already proven on soft ground and he is another who can be backed each-way at the prices but may well prove good enough to win.

Doncaster best bet 4: Castle Stuart (Doncaster, 15.35) – 0.5pts each-way @ 6/1 Ladbrokes

Winners Wear Skopes Menswear Handicap (Doncaster, 17.15)

The final race on day one at Doncaster looks an open one, with several interesting contenders, including handicap newcomer Explode, Munsif and the bang-in-form Crowd Quake, who overcame a wide draw to win again last time.

However, in-form trainer William Haggas steps MUHAAJIM up in trip again for this and now also adds cheekpieces into the mix. That could tip the scales in his favour.

A winner over Pontefract’s stiff 1m2f, he certainly showed he gets 1m3f last time out at Kempton, when he was second from a prominent position and stuck at things well once he was passed. He should again be heavily involved. Although he’s only raced on good ground to date, both his sire and dam won in slower conditions and there’s every chance he’ll not be inconvenienced.

Doncaster best bet 5: Muhaajim (Doncaster, 17.15) – 0.5pts each-way @ 6/1 Ladbrokes

St Leger Free Bet Offers

William Hill are giving away a free bet as part of their package of St Leger Festival offers and promotions.

Just opt in to the promotion and bet on any race at Doncaster at minimum odds of evens or greater. Bets placed on price boosts will not count as qualifying wagers.

Once the qualifying wager has been settled, William Hill will credit users with a free bet.

The value of the free bet will vary from customer to customer, so make sure to check the terms and conditions before opting in.

Responsible gambling

Using betting sites can also become addictive, so it's vital bettors take precautions to keep themselves safe on gambling sites.

Every licensed UK betting site should offer safer gambling tools, such as deposit limits, time outs, self-assessment questionnaires and self-exclusion options.

These are free tools to help punters stay in control and they are available on various gambling apps, including online bookmakers, casino sites, slot sites and poker sites.

These operators may offer punters free bets UK or casino bonuses from time to time, but it's important to treat these rewards with caution.

Always remember that horse racing betting is meant to be fun. It should never be viewed as a guaranteed way to make money.

If you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don’t hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.

• Gamblers Anonymous
• NHS
• GamCare

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