THE latest race of the evening at Pontefract can bring enlightenment if Royal Brave does what is expected of him.

Rebecca Bastiman's five-year-old is one of 11 declared runners for the five-furlong Featherstone Rovers Handicap and he should go very well indeed.

The gelded son of Acclamation is a fast-ground specialist, having done all of his winning to the loud beat of his hooves.

His last success, for instance, was achieved at Sandown this time last year when he pocketed a five-furlong handicap by a neck when in the care of William Muir.

Royal Brave had slipped into the wilderness a little bit since then, but the switch from Berkshire to North Yorkshire looks to have finally stoked the fires.

The sprinter had produced next to nothing on his first two starts for Bastiman, but he suddenly spurted into life in a handicap at Catterick last month.

Royal Brave was only beaten a length and a quarter into third place, but context is required as he suffered a good deal of jostling for position inside the final furlong.

Had he enjoyed a smoother dash to the line, Bastiman's inmate would surely have got much closer to the winner that day, Landing Night.

With conditions very much in his favour and still rated 3lb lower than when he won at Sandown last year, optimism is pretty high in what is a weaker race than at Catterick.

Gold Flash is worth a look in the totetrifecta Pick The 1, 2, 3 Handicap at Ayr.

The Keith Dalgleish-trained four-year-old is long overdue another victory after having gone ten races since he struck on debut at Kempton, when trained by Ralph Beckett.

Gold Flash has, by and large, been in good form this term and was a proverbial eye catcher over this course and distance on May 28.

The gelded son of Kyllachy was going nowhere quickly for a long way in a seven-furlong handicap before he decided to start enjoying himself far too late in the piece.

Nothing finishing with quite as much as alacrity than Gold Flash, who ended up taking fourth place - three and a half lengths behind Plucky Dip in what felt a good race.

Back slightly down in grade, yet 1lb lower in the handicap, Dalgleish can be trusted to get this one on his game from the outset.

It is also worth throwing a few bob the way of Hitman, who runs in the Track Your Football Acca With Ladbrokes Classified Stakes at Windsor.

The Canford Cliffs colt brought a decent level of - admittedly winless - form to the table in his juvenile year and should be far sharper than on his seasonal bow at Salisbury.

Heads You Win enjoyed winning on a brisk surface at Brighton last month and is only a few pounds higher back at the seaside track for the Envitia Horsham Supports DVLCC Fillies' Handicap.

SELECTIONS:

AYR: 2.00 Masham Star, 2.30 Glengarry, 3.00 Indian Giver, 3.30 Millefiori, 4.00 Gold Flash, 4.30 Intisaab, 5.00 Question Of Faith.

BRIGHTON: 2.15 Bayston Hill, 2.45 Soaring Spirits, 3.15 Shimba Hills, 3.45 Echo Brava, 4.15 Tyrannical, 4.45 Heads You Win, 5.15 Wild Flower.

PONTEFRACT: 6.45 Teofonic, 7.15 Almost Gemini, 7.45 Aleef, 8.15 Sabre Squadron, 8.45 Bad Girl Caoimhe, 9.15 ROYAL BRAVE (NAP).

WINDSOR: 6.00 Bin Battuta, 6.30 My Lord, 7.00 Oasis Spear, 7.30 Sparring, 8.00 Dark Shot, 8.30 Hitman, 9.00 Silken Skies.

DOUBLE: Royal Brave and Gold Flash.