Fontwell Park preview and tips: Electric Mason can provide spark for punters

Racing gets under way at 12.50pm with a class four maiden hurdle before the action comes to a close at 3.45 with a class five handicap hurdle as a field of 14 take on the class five contest at 3.45pm.

Read below to discover the latest tips and a full meeting preview of Fontwell’s card on Friday courtesy of Sporting Life.

The opening contest on the card (12.50) sees a field of 14 runners head to the start for the two mile and one furlong maiden hurdle in class four. Both Electric Mason and Laurens Bay are previous bumper winners and this race should be between those two, with slight preference heading to Chris Gordon’s Electric Mason, a runner up on hurdles debut at Uttoxeter that should benefit from a slight step up in trip here.

Race two on the card is a nine-runner handicap chase in class five over two miles and three furlongs (1.25). Sussex trainer Gary Moore and son Jamie have a strong hand here with Call Off The Dogs, winning three times from his last four starts including a cosy success over course and distance back in September. The Ben Pauling-trained Samazul rates the main danger, a bumper winner that has the build for chasing and duly obliged when landing a win over fences at this track 17 days ago, though a 5lb rise in the weights will need to be overcome.

Craven Bay, trained by Toby Lawes, bids for a hat trick when he takes his place in race three (2.00) as ten runners take on the three mile and one furlong handicap hurdle. The eight-year-old has another 4lb hike in the weights to shoulder but he is taken to defy that and get the win ahead of Cartmel runner Fortuna Ligna.

A five-timer is beckoning for the Neil Mulholland-trained Double Powerful in the handicap hurdle at 2.35, who is on a roll and was a wide-margin winner of a nine-runner handicap at Worcester three weeks ago. The handicapper has battered the five-year-old with a whopping 14lb hike in the weights but after destroying his opposition last time around, is taken to complete the five-timer. Kissman for the Gary and Jamie Moore team can fill the second slot, recently changing hands for €125,000 having left France and headed to British shores.

Eurkash is on a losing run but a good second over course and distance under a positive ride last time out sees him in with a shout in the penultimate race on the Fontwell card (3.10) as seven runners tackle the class five handicap chase and James Owen’s ten-year-old looks ready to strike, while the finale on the card (3.45) can go the way of Officer Of State, who hasn’t shown a great deal over hurdles this far but is of interest now sent handicapping having shown fair ability on the Flat in France for trainer Andre Fabre, now with the Gary Moore team.

Fontwell selections - Friday

12.50 - Electric Mason

1.25 - Call Off The Dogs

2.00 - Craven Bay

2.35 - Double Powerful

3.10 - Eurkash

3.45 - Officer Of State