Daily Bargain regain the initiative after dramatic late twist

2017-11-30

For much of November, the race for the 2017 Besttipping challenge between Daily Bargain and Mark Your Card was a close-run affair. Then, during the last five days of the month, the contest took a dramatic, and possibly decisive turn. Daily Bargain who, up to that point where fractionally down for the month, posted back-to-back winners at 10/1 and 11/1, ensuring a healthy monthly yield.

Mark Your Card responded with a plethora of winners including a 25/1 strike. This helped to reduce the deficit somewhat, but as we enter the last month of 2017, Daily Bargain hold a 36-point lead over their rivals. What this means is that Mark Your Card must, at the very least, post a 5-point December profit, and hope that Daily Bargain fail to find a single winner to stand any chance of winning their fourth challenge in a row.

Thanks to those two late winners, Daily Bargain posted a monthly profit of 21 points. Isiris finished second on 11.4-points with Steve Jones’ second service, Probets, claiming third with 9.7 points. Personal Info finished fourth with 3.1 points ahead of Personal Info’s Saturday Service with Mark Your Card finishing sixth with a 1.3-point gain.

After a disappointing October, Daily Bargain began November with a much-reduced advantage over the rejuvenated Mark Your Card. A 116-point October posting by Mark Your Card had seen Daily Bargain’s lead slashed from 130 to 16 points, and a December repeat would still be enough to see Mark Your Card home.

But Daily Bargain always seem to find winners at crucial moments as the twin successes of Mala Beach (10/1, Navan, 26 November) and Muthabir (11/1, Kempton, 27 November) show. The month began with a twelve-day winnerless spell, but the victories of 13/2 Crievehill (Lingfield, 14 November), 17/2 Sword Exceed (Lingfield, 17 November) and 8/1 Rapid Ranger (Wolverhampton, 20 November) calmed frayed nerves.

Mark Your Card also found winners hard to come by until a brace at north eastern tracks on 10 November lifted their spirits -  the victory of 13/2 On A Promise (Hexham) was followed by a floodlit evening success for 12/1 Tilly Trotter at Newcastle. Thereafter, a regular sequence of winners included 11/1 Steel Train (Chelmsford City, 23 November), 11/1 Star Foot (Huntingdon, 25 November), 8/1 Sam Spinner (Lingfield, 25 November), 9/1 Muthabir (Kempton, 27 November), 25/1 Cougar Kid (Hereford, 29 November) and 12/1 Triple Chief (Taunton, 30 November). 

Isiris followed Daily Bargain home in November with an 11.4-point profit, which followed October’s impressive 69-point haul. Winners included 8/1 Kilbricken Storm (Wincanton, 11 November) and 9/2 Station Master (Warwick, 10 November). In all 21 out of 32 selections finished in the first three.

Probets also showed an impressive level of consistency in November with 23 out of 30 selections finishing in the first three. This included 12 winners (40% strike-rate) including two 100/30 chances, Lord of the Glen (Newcastle, 15 November) and British Art (Newcastle, 23 November). Probets remain in third place of the 2017 challenge ahead of two inactive services, Middleton Racing Services and Those2oppose.

Personal Info made it seven profitable months out of 11 in 2017 with a 3.1-point yield. The month began spectacularly with the first 11 selections all making the frame (seven winners, three seconds and a third). Winners included 4/1 Know The Truth (Southwell, 13 November). An overall strike-rate of 44% was achieved.

Subscribers to Personal Info’s second service, Saturday-Only, enjoyed a 50% November strike rate – three winners (11/8, 6/4 and 6/4) from just six selections. This was a fourth month of profit out of five since July for this ultra-consistent operation.

November was another testing month for First Favourite, with few candidates passing the rigorous demands this service imposes. As it was, a miniscule loss was recorded.

And so, we enter the home straight. Whilst Daily Bargain hold a favourite’s chance, the brilliance of Mark Your Card could still win the day. Follow us on Twitter to see how the race unfolds over the next few weeks.

Finally, a happy and peaceful Christmas and New Year to all followers of Besttipping.