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20:00

Pontefract

Great Britain

Tony Bethell Memorial Handicap

Monday, 8 June 2026

2m1f·Flat·Class 6·Good·12 runners·£3,402
Result

Race report

AI top pick wonat SP 7/4F·2.75
  1. 1st
    Laravie (IRE)AI top pick · 54.7
    Luke Morris·James Owen
    7/4F·2.75
    SP
  2. 2nd
    Lady Phoebe (IRE)
    Cam Hardie·Adam Nicol·beaten 4.75 lengths
    15/2·8.50
    SP
  3. 3rd
    Merrijig (GB)
    Gina Mangan·John Berry·beaten 2.25 lengths
    11/1·12.00
    SP
Race time
3m 45.49s+2.19s vs std

Slightly slow — minor pace variance, nothing to read into.

In-running (Laravie (IRE))

“Dwelt start - pushed along soon after start - midfield - pushed along from over 4f out - headway and went second over 2f out - ridden and led over 1f out - kept on well and went clear final 110yds”

Settled · 1pt level stake = 1.75 pt return on the winnerTipping P&L →

Furlong's verdict

Reading the form…

AI-written, grounded in our data on this race. May be wrong. Verify before staking. Opinion, not advice.

Selections by model

Head-to-head dashboard →
v1.054.7/100 rating
Laravie
3.30Betfair Exchange· informational only

Top-rated, but filter rejects this race

v1.1
No pick

Race outside the segment-edge filter

Each-way47.6/100 rating
Rupert The Prince
5.90Betfair Exchange

Top-half AI rating in the EW price sweet spot. Each-way splits stake: half on the win, half on the place portion.

Racing Alpha pick

Laravie

Luke Morris · James Owen · 7yo

54.7/100
+4.3 vs next best (50.4)

The Racing Alpha rating combines four signals. Below is the breakdown — components driving this pick first.

  • Freshness10% weight
    100very strong
    28d since last run (race-fit window)
  • Form20% weight
    64average
    Last 6: 7-4-9-5-1-1
  • Trainer20% weight
    50average
    James Owen: 10/50 winners last 14d (20%)
  • Ratings50% weight
    44below average
    OR 65 · RPR 76 · TS 56
MarketBest price 3.30 (Betfair Exchange) — market favourite. AI agrees with the market.

v1.3 rating · weights and method explained on /about. Tips are opinions, not advice.

Runners

Pos#DrHorseJockey / TrainerFormWtORRPRTSAISP
311
Merrijig
8yo · G · bb
John Berry
44716
9-0965716738.1
11/1·12.00
SP
122
Laravie
7yo · M · bv
James Owen
749511
9-0965765654.7
7/4F·2.75
SP
634
Zimmerman
7yo · G · chtb
Tim Easterby
38623
9-0763745946.3
5/1·6.00
SP
1045
Simiyann
6yo · G · bp
Ian Williams
33460
9-0763767941.5
22/1·23.00
SP
8510
Charlie Darling
6yo · G · ch
Alan Brown
573116
9-0662776244.3
20/1·21.00
SP
1263
Rupert The Prince
4yo · G · bv
Rebecca Menzies
12134
9-0561785947.6
3/1·4.00
SP
2711
Lady Phoebe
5yo · M · gr
Adam Nicol
32014
8-1254753546.4
15/2·8.50
SP
1188
Someone's Wish
6yo · G · bp
Patrick Morris
03369
8-105276—38.3
80/1·81.00
SP
496
Angelardo
4yo · G · gr
Liam Bailey
218482
8-085075—50.4
40/1·41.00
SP
5107
Cold Henry
7yo · G · bp
Sara Ender
5448
8-054778—35.2
16/1·17.00
SP
7119
Golden Samba
4yo · F · b
Ed de Giles
63843
8-0446726739.2
11/1·12.00
SP
91212
Arcimboldo
4yo · G · bp
Mike Sowersby
23544
8-0446726135.6
100/1·101.00
SP

Frequently asked questions

Who won the 20:00 Pontefract on 8 June 2026?

Laravie (IRE) won the 20:00 Pontefract at SP 2.75. Ridden by Luke Morris. Trained by James Owen.

Did the Racing Alpha AI tip win the 20:00 Pontefract?

Yes — the AI top-rated horse, Laravie, won the race (AI score 54.7).

What were the placings in the 20:00 Pontefract?

Top finishers: 1. Laravie (IRE) (2.75), 2. Lady Phoebe (IRE) (8.50), 3. Merrijig (GB) (12.00).

What was the winning time for the 20:00 Pontefract?

The winning time was 3m 45.49s, 2.19s slower than standard.

Racing Post verdict

Third-party

Although raised 6lb for beating Zimmerman at Catterick, LARAVIE could still be on a good mark given her hurdling ability.

Racing Post pick: Laravie

Editorial verdict from Racing Post via the Racing API — not generated by Racing Alpha.

Betting forecast

Formbook

7/4 Laravie, 11/2 Zimmerman, 7/1 Rupert The Prince, 8/1 Merrijig, Lady Phoebe, 12/1 Angelardo, Golden Samba, 14/1 Simiyann, Charlie Darling, 25/1 Someone's Wish, Cold Henry, Arcimboldo

Formbook's pre-race odds estimate — not market prices.

Best price shown is the highest decimal price across bookmakers we track. Odds update every few minutes; settle at SP if unavailable. 18+ only · Bet responsibly · BeGambleAware.org