Timeform Radio Tips: Star to get lucky on polytrack

It's a rare outing for jumpers on polytrack today

David Cleary provides a couple of bets from Kempton this afternoon.

It's fingers crossed that Cheltenham's optimism will prove well founded for a cracking card there tomorrow, but for today it's all-weather all the way with Lingfield and a 'jumpers' bumpers' additional card at Kempton. As Lingfield looks a mix of short-priced favourites and trappy affairs, we'll take a deep breath and venture to Kempton.

The feature race on the card, at 16:55, features some well-known names from jumping, though plenty of them were useful at one time on the Flat proper and indeed Woolfall Treasure has won twice on polytrack this winter. This should be run at a better pace than a lot of this type of race, given the make-up of the field, and it could well enable the perennially held up Starluck to show to good advantage. His form over jumps last season puts him in with every chance and he showed he was very much on the way back here over hurdles last time, for a stable emerging from a long spell in the doldrums. Starluck has a good record on the Flat on polytrack and although two miles might stretch him it's worth chancing that he'll last home (a back-to-lay strategy makes appeal).

The 15:55 is more like a conventional bumper, the conditions excluding horses that have run on the Flat proper. Easily the best of these in bumpers was Destroyer Deployed, second in the 2011 Champion Bumper. However, he's an out-and-out stayer, his best form over hurdles at three miles in the mud, and this speed test surely won't play to his strengths. The pick of the rest are closely matched, with a case to be made for Suerte Al Salto, A Bridge Too Far and Karinga Dancer. At the likely prices, it may be worth giving Karinga Dancer the nod, particularly as he might be the quickest of the trio. His bumper form is very solid and was shown under conditions that favoured speed more than stamina. He made a very promising start over hurdles last winter, splitting the useful pair Fox Appeal and Ambion Wood at Taunton. There is a slight question about his well-being, given how quickly he stopped on his return here in the autumn, but if on song he can go close this afternoon.  

Recommendations:

Back Starluck in the 16:55
Back Karinga Dancer in the 15:55