CONCENTRATING on Mind Alert (3.45) might well pay handsome dividends in today's Steve Nesbitt Challenge Trophy at Ripon.

The principal reason for backing Mind Alert couldn't be more straightforward because he ran by far and away his best race to date when chasing home Peak To Creek at Redcar exactly one month ago.

Peak To Creek has since franked the form in no uncertain terms by scoring again at Chester and then being placed in listed company. In the meantime Mind Alert has been patiently held back by trainer Tim Easterby, hoping no doubt to take advantage of what looks like a lenient handicap rating.

The "extra" insurance as far as investing one's hard-earned cash on Mind Alert is concerned stems from the fact Easterby has taken the trouble to book Kevin Darley for his charge.

Darley's services are normally only sought for the really well thought of horses in the yard and it is fairly to safe to assume the selection is well up in the two-year-old pecking order at the stable.

The Deverell Claiming Stakes appears to be a straight fight between Yakimov (2.45) and Masterpoint.

Although Masterpoint won a similar event at Beverley on Sunday, it would be utterly foolish to get too carried away with the victory, which was achieved against a bunch of basically sub-standard rivals.

Yakimov certainly doesn't come into that category, having more than held his own in much better company of late, notably when running away with a Class C handicap at Leicester on his penultimate outing.

The £14,000 mile-and-a-quarter Showcase Handicap might easily turn into a procession if the three-year-old Misaayef (3.15) lives up to her quite stunning pedigree. Sir Michael Stoute's filly is not only a daughter of the great Swain, she's also related to a whole host of previous winners from a top American family.

Such top-notch breeding wasn't really required to win an egg-and-spoon maiden contest at Haydock last time out, but the way Misaayef cantered clear of the opposition suggested there was gallons and gallons of fuel left in the tank.

Newmarket handler Michael Jarvis, successful with Attache at Chepstow yesterday, stays much nearer to home this afternoon with Anak Pekan (4.00) at Yarmouth.

Anak Pekan has already knocked on the door twice in recent weeks and surely his turn has finally come in the less-than-competitive Sunday Supplement Maiden Handicap.

Once again pedigree provides a persuasive argument for supporting Anak Pekan on account of being a son Of In The Wings out of a mare by Blakeney, a bloodline stacked to high heaven with the sort of stamina required to get the trip of one-mile-and-and-six-furlongs.

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