AFTER what was a quiet week, I was hopeful that I could rely on Jonbon to provide some revelatory data in the Betfair Ascot Chase. What we got instead was Jonbon doing Jonbon things in defeating Pic D’Orhy, but this performance does beg the question as to why he has never been tried at three miles.

He jumped slightly better than has been the case in the past, recording a Race IQ jump Index of 7.5, with his lifetime score being 7.0. He was briefly outpaced through F18 before staying on well in the final quarter mile to record a Finishing Speed Percentage of 101.45%, suggesting that the race was evenly run and that he saw the trip out strongly to record a 12th Grade 1 success.

This was the first time that he had run over a trip beyond two and a half miles, and it strongly suggests that he would be worth a go at three miles, although if he were to run at Cheltenham, the Ryanair over two and a half would seem to be the most likely target.

AINTREE will surely be the target for Impaire Et Passe who proved that he was as good as ever in the Grade 2 Red Mills Chase at Gowran Park last Saturday. Running for the first time in 10 months, he overcame considerable adversity to beat Sa Fureur, to whom he conceded 9lb.

Throughout the meeting jockeys seemed cognisant of the heavy conditions, with all the races steadily run and all of them producing relatively strong finishes as evidenced by every winner recording an FSP well above 100%.

The fastest finish belonged to Impaire Et Passe who sprinted from last to first, recording a very high FSP of 123.35%.

In doing so, he was the only horse at the meeting who was able to record sub-14.00s furlongs through the final quarter mile.

The speed that he showed propelled him from a poor position at the back of the field for a victory that looked unlikely at the last.

The fact that he was in a poor position when the sprint began was entirely of his own making because his jumping was not as good as it can be.

Rusty jumping

He recorded a Race IQ Jump Index of 7.0 (Lifetime 7.7) which is the lowest number that he has achieved in any race since he was sent chasing. He looked rusty and was particularly slow at the fourth fence where he lost 7.15mph and at the penultimate 12th fence where he lost 7.28mph.

It is surprising that his jumping was not up to scratch given the steady gallop, but we can be confident that with this run under his belt he can and probably will jump better. More importantly, he showed that all the speed that he has shown before is still there.

He was 1.2 seconds (five lengths) faster than Sa Fureur in the final two furlongs and it was this speed that got him out of trouble.

Impaire Et Passe has entries in the Grand National, Cheltenham Gold Cup and Ryanair Chase, but the speed that he showed here will be ideally suited to a return to Aintree where he is unbeaten in two starts. The Grade 1 Melling Chase over two and a half miles would be the obvious target, a race that should suit him ideally.

The Jukebox Kid produced the strongest finish of his career in Saturday's Reynoldstown Novices Chase \ Healy Racing

The Jukebox Kid ticks all the boxes

AT Ascot last Saturday we saw a likely player for the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse in the shape of The Jukebox Kid who looks likely to swerve Cheltenham.

The Jukebox Kid has now won three of his four starts over fences and is unbeaten in three going right-handed. This running of the Reynoldstown Novices Chase was a weak Grade 2, with just three runners going to post but The Jukebox Kid dominated the contest from the front and never looked in danger of defeat.

This was the strongest finish that he has produced in his career over fences

His jumping has been good in all of his four races over fences garnering him a Race IQ Lifetime Jump Index of 7.4. He recorded exactly that score here gaining 2.28 lengths on the runner-up with his jumping and he finished his race off strongly recording an FSP of 108.80%.

This was the strongest finish that he has produced in his career over fences, and he looks to be a strong stayer at three miles who possesses some speed. He quickened through F13 with a split of 14.34s and then was faster through the next furlong recording 13.20s and then a 14.53s in the penultimate furlong.

This speed is something that he has shown throughout career and now aligned with him staying three miles strongly and some sound jumping he looks as if he will be able to compete in stronger races against more experienced rivals suggesting that a run in the Irish Grand National is a realistic proposition.