Bath 3:50 Result

This is a maximum-field, 5f handicap sprint - notoriously hard to call, so I want a horse with proven top-class recent form and momentum. Dark Sun's form line 414341 shows she's won 3 of her last 6 and is currently in career-best form, winning last time out just 20 days ago - clearly progressive and fit. She carries a competitive OR of 62, near the top of the weights but not extreme, and her recent figures suggest she's still ahead of the assessor. Top jockey book with an in-form yard, and she's already qualified for this Series Final meaning she's proven at this level/track type all season. Draw 10 is workable in a 17-runner sprint - not an outside trap that gets left, and not so low she'll be swamped for early position. Key market rivals like Mortubo (68 OR, big weight, 85 days off) and Neptune Legend (form dips after a 1-1-5-1-6-0 sequence, blinkers) look to have questions - Mortubo returns from a break carrying the second-highest weight, unproven that freshness translates immediately, while Neptune Legend's finishing form has gone backward. Dark Sun by contrast is fresh from a straightforward win, working forward not backward, and matches up well on pure recent form/class trajectory. In a cavalry-charge sprint like this, backing the horse in the form of its life who's already shown it handles this level (won last time) with a workmanlike draw is the percentage play. I don't see standout square value elsewhere big enough to nominate separately - the second tier (Geemann, Legendsoftheland, Rinky Tinky Tinky) all won last time too but do so from lower class/weight bands, making Dark Sun the one weighing up best on figures plus fitness plus barrier.