MW Civils & Groundworks Handicap Hurdle Race

19:15 Sedgefield Fri 28 Aug 2026 2m3f188y Class 5 Good 10 runners

Mr Fox’s call

William Yeats

SPECULATIVE Advised 5/2 SP 5/4F Est. 32%

🏆 WON

Mr Fox says

William Yeats (SR:99, 5/2) is the standout ability figure in this field by a clear margin — 9 SR points clear of second-best Makinbecon and 15+ clear of every other runner. Carrying 11-11 versus top-weight Aimeric's 12-0 means he holds a 3lb weight advantage over the heaviest in the race while being far more able on the SR. The market has backed him in 16% from opening, the trainer/jockey combination (Sam England 14%, Jonathan England 18%) is competent, and a tongue-tie is a positive first-time headgear move often applied when connections want a sharper performance. The recent form shows a '1' second from last run and a course place (W0P1 at Sedgefield), confirming he handles this track. Each-way alternative: Makinbecon. Main danger: Makinbecon — Makinbecon (SR:90, 11/2) has confirmed good-going form (GoingFit:+), is market-backed (in11%), and carries only 11-3 — 8lb less than William Yeats — which partially offsets the SR gap in a Class 5 handicap hurdle.

Verify· #14768

Full result

Winner: William Yeats (GB) at SP 5/4F. Mr Fox’s picks highlighted in gold.

1 William Yeats Fox #1 Sam England · Jonathan England 7/4
2 Aimeric Fox #3 Jennie Candlish · Sean Quinlan 5/1
3 Lillistar Fox #4 Micky Hammond · Brian Hughes 4/1
4 Top Flight Century David Thompson · Joshua Thompson(5) 14/1
5 American Empire Donald McCain · Theo Gillard 20/1
6 Makinbecon Fox #2 Barry John Murphy · Callum Pritchard 13/2
7 Lipstick Traces Justin Landy · Callum Bewley 18/1
8 Indian Sunbird Sara Ender · James Best 18/1
— Socks Off Kevin & Lauren Frost · Lee Edwards 14/1
— Pepite De Saphir Rebecca Menzies · Nathan Moscrop 28/1

Top 4 — how each finished

1 William Yeats 5/2 SP 5/4F 🏆 WON
2 Makinbecon 11/2 6TH
3 Aimeric 9/2 🥈 2ND
4 Lillistar 5/1 🥉 3RD