Racing Tips: Auxerre to land the Lincoln at Doncaster?

Saturday racing odds, tips and preview

We’re just a week away from the Grand National, but the flat season begins in earnest first.

The ITV cameras are in position at Doncaster and Kempton this Saturday. The headline event comes from Yorkshire with the Lincoln Handicap at 3.35.

Rampant Lion – 2:25 Doncaster

This is a massively wide-open contest, but William Jarvis’ Rampant Lion stands out for us.

Four-time champion jockey Silvestre de Sousa is onboard the four-year-old in this Spring Mile Handicap, and he’ll be out for a bright start as he bids to defend his title.

Rampant Lion has looked excellent since joining Jarvis’ yard, racking up a pair of wins and a second in four runs.

Has won his last two over 1m, and has all the claims to make it a hat-trick.

Count Calabash – 3:15 Kempton

Forbidden Planet heads the betting for this 1m 3f run, but we’ve got an eye on Count Calabash.

Eve Johnson Houghton’s five-year-old has looked at home on Kempton’s all-weather over the winter.

Victory in December came over the distance, while a run to fifth over 2m in January suggested shorter is the better fit.

Count Calabash backed up that theory last month, when hacking up over 1m 4f, again on Kempton’s all-weather.

And with Forbidden Planet beaten last time out at Chelmsford, there’s definitely a window of opportunity here for Houghton’s talented runner.