The Grand National may still be fresh in the memory – but the Flat season is just about to get into full swing.

Here, paddock expert Ken Pitterson offers up 12 horses it should pay to follow this year:

ROSALLION (Richard Hannon)

He’s going to start in the Lockinge and I think he’s got more scope to improve at four than Notable Speech. When he ran in the Guineas he was just short but he made amends in the Irish Guineas. It was the way he won at Ascot which really impressed me. He travelled really well and I loved the turn of foot he showed. I think there’s more improvement in him and what I really liked about him was that every time I saw him, he physically improved. He got injured which cut his season short, but looking at the one-mile division, he looks the one who can dominate.

JARRAAF (Owen Burrows)

Lightly-raced, he started off at seven furlongs last season and he was running well but always looked to me to have a sprinter’s physique. He went to Ascot in July and won well, I liked the way he did it that day, beating Fresh, a decent handicapper. He improved again to win at the Shergar Cup. He’s got loads of speed and likes Ascot, so that’s a good thing. On his final start, he ran well again to be beaten a length in a Group Three, but I know Saffie Osborne felt if she knew the horse better, she would have sent him earlier. I think he’s being aimed at the Jubilee at Royal Ascot and that should suit him. He’s only going to be better as a four-year-old.

HAND OF GOD (Harry Charlton)

He’s only had two runs for Harry Charlton. He won the Esher Cup at Sandown under a great ride from Ryan Moore and then he won the Copper Horse at Royal Ascot. He won that quite well but looking at him, off a mark of 102, he can start in handicaps before moving into Pattern races. He’s open to any amount of improvement, he’s been gelded and will at the very least be up to winning a Listed race. The problem which kept him off was not too serious.

ELITE STATUS (Karl Burke)

I first came across him when he won the National Stakes at Sandown. He looked a proper sprinter there but since that run Karl has never had a really clear run with him, he’s always had niggly problems. He’s had four goes in Group One company and been beaten in them all, but I do think he’s a Group One sprinter if everything falls right. He needs fast ground, five or six furlongs, it doesn’t matter, but he just needs a clean run. He’s good fresh.

DREAMY (Aidan O’Brien)

I thought it was interesting that her first race was at Goodwood in the same race Aidan ran Rhododendron in. She’s big, she’s unfurnished and is always going to improve. She won at the Curragh after Goodwood and then came to Newmarket for the Fillies’ Mile but she wasn’t at her best there. You can see her developing into an Oaks filly. She’s from an old Niarchos family that has Miesque in it, so the quality is there.

RED LETTER (Ger Lyons)

I was at the Curragh when she won, showing a blistering turn of foot. She’s got plenty of speed but I think she’ll stay a mile. I feel if she doesn’t get a mile she can easily go back sprinting. When she ran against Lake Victoria she had a nightmare run, seeing no daylight, but when she got out she flew at the end. I think she’ll either be a top-class miler, and if that doesn’t work out, she’ll be a good sprinter. She’s going straight to the 1000 Guineas.

PINHOLE (Ralph Beckett)

Ex-Sir Michael Stoute, he made his debut at Newmarket and was as green as apples, he didn’t have a clue. When you see him in the flesh he takes your eye. He’s from the same family as Quadrilateral and has a lot of class about him. I can’t see him being a Derby horse, he’s too big and long-striding, but he’s a horse for the second half of the season, maybe an Irish Derby type. He’s a horse with a lot of potential.

CHANTILLY LACE (Ralph Beckett)

Ralph had a great end to last season with his two-year-olds and this filly was one of the nicest I saw. She’s a lovely filly with plenty of quality, but she’s big. I can’t see her being an Oaks filly, maybe the Ribblesdale, but she’ll definitely show her quality later in the season. The maiden she won was the same Ralph won with Remarquee. She’s by Lope De Vega who Ralph has a great record with.

BOWMARK (John and Thady Gosden)

There were two maidens run at Kempton in December one night and I like both winners. He’s a lovely horse and when he walked in he just knocked your eye out. He comes from a good Lordship Stud family and the Gosdens have trained them all. He’s related to Serpentine. I’m not saying he’s going to go and win the Derby or anything, but I think he’ll be a good mile-and-a-half handicapper.

FIRST PRINCIPLE (William Haggas)

The way he won really impressed me. He was stuck in behind horses with nowhere to go, but once he got a gap he shot through and won under hands and heels. I think he’s a handicapper, 10 furlongs will suit and we all know how good William Haggas is at handling horses like this.

FALAKEYAH (Owen Burrows)

She made her debut at Wolverhampton which was never going to be her track as she’s quite a big, long-striding type. She’s from a decent Shadwell family and was backed as if defeat was out of the question, they knew what they had that day. I think she’ll be a better filly on turf, especially over 10 furlongs. She has the potential to go further, I think she’s really nice.

WARRIOR MODE (Sir Mark Prescott)

He won last month. He’s an impressive looking type and again, Wolverhampton was never going to be his track, he looked unbalanced at a certain stage. Physically, he’s got a really nice physique about him and I can only see him improving. He could maybe be a Britannia horse, that could be the sort of race. I just think he’s the type to improve with racing.