Whittle to grab first maximum
It’s week three in Strictly tomorrow night and we’d recommend taking the 2-1 with Ladbrokes that the highest score is 35 or more. Looking at the training footage, Ricky Whittle is going to put in an exceptional paso, and Jade Johnson, Ali Bastian and Laila Rouass should all produce high class quicksteps. That’s at least four chances of a routine attaining a minimum of three 9s and one 8. And we could even see our first 10.
The paso looks like being Ricky’s forte given the power and aggression it demands, and while there’s a danger the judges may look to be super-critical after his sensational start to the series, we cannot resist the 9-2 offered by Ladbrokes for a 10 to be scored. There has been a 10 awarded in week three before, back in series four, when Louisa Lytton and Vincent Simone received a maximum for their Jive from Bruno. We also suggest taking the 4-5 with Boylesports for Whittle to be top scorer and staking smaller wagers at 12s Rouass and 25s Johnson to guarantee a profit if any of these 3 top the leaderboard. Only Ali Bastian looks capable of wiping out this bet.
On the elimination front, Lynda Bellingham and Jo Wood are the most likely to be propping up the leaderboard, with Joe Calzaghe’s paso looking promising. There’s reason to believe all of these three could climb out of the bottom two following the public vote, and with Craig Kelly looking much improved in training, and Ricky Groves expected to produce an entertaining paso, the two who could be most vulnerable are Rav Wilding and Natalie Cassidy. At 9s and 25s respectively they are the value bets on the elimination market pre-show. But of course, your betting position on this market needs to be adjusted in-running, as always, after studying performances both on and off the dance floor on Saturday, and the standings on the leaderboard.
Rob Furber