DOUVAN is the best chaser on both sides of the Irish Sea according to the British and Irish handicappers, who came together on Wednesday at the annual Anglo-Irish Jump Classifications press conference to announce their evaluation of last season’s leading National Hunt horses.

Willie Mullins’s seven-year-old failed to fire in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham but a team led by Senior British Handicapper Phil Smith and his Irish equivalent Noel O’Brien concentrated on the merits of his win over subsequent Gold Cup winner Sizing John over two miles at Leopardstown last Christmas, to give the chaser a mark of 174.

Altior was the next best chaser in the two-mile category, reaching a mark of 170, meaning he is the best ever novice since the commencement of the classifications, having bettered marks of 169 achieved by both Douvan and Sprinter Sacre for their novice campaigns.

Irish National hunt handicapper Andrew Shaw says that Douvan could achieve a higher mark with the help of Altior next season: “Hopefully we will see Douvan and Altior take each other on next year. It was unfortunate that Douvan didn’t show his best at Cheltenham. He could be a lot better than 174 and we could see that when he faces Altior next season.”

Making the case for Altior, Phil Smith said: “Altior is gunning for Douvan and at 170 he has broken the mould for novices. He tested himself outside novice company against the best, meaning his novice form has more substance than Douvan’s.”

LEGACY

The legacy of Many Clouds was enhanced further as he was named the best three-mile chaser. The handicappers used his performance in beating Thistlecrack in the Cotswold Chase, after which he tragically collapsed and died, as the evidence to allot a mark of 171.

King George winner Thistlecrack was rated just 1lb inferior while it may have been a surprise to a few that triple Grade 1 winner Sizing John was only given a mark of 169. His stablemate Our Duke is just 1lb behind him on 168, after his emphatic win in the Irish Grand National which Shaw rated as the best performance by a chaser this year.

Also rated on 169 was Colin Tizzard’s Fox Norton, who earned that mark for his excellent performance in the Melling Chase at Aintree. That was enough for Fox Norton to lead the ‘middle-distance’ chase division, with a 1lb higher mark than Ryanair Chase winner Un De Sceaux and Cue Card. It was further 2lbs back to Djakadam, who shares the same rating as Gordon Elliott’s Lexus Chase winner Outlander and Cheltenham Gold Cup placed horses Minella Rocco and Native River.

BRILLIANT BUVEUR

Over hurdles it was all about Buveur D’Air as Nicky Henderson’s horse led both distance divisions after top-class performances at Cheltenham and Aintree. The six-year-old earned a figure of 167 for his win over stablemate My Tent Or Yours in the Champion Hurdle and was then able to go 2lbs higher, to 169, when posting a more authoritative win over the same horse in the two-mile-four-furlong Aintree Hurdle.

The highest-rated Irish hurdler is Nichols Canyon on 166, rated 1lb below rival Unowhatimeanharry in the 2m3f+ division. Willie Mullins also trains the best of the Irish in the shorter distance division with Wicklow Brave on 164, which came courtesy of his Punchestown Champion Hurdle win.

Apple’s Jade is rated the best mare over hurdles in training on a mark of 155, while her stablemate, the enigmatic Labaik, was allotted a rating of 161, presumably on account of his solid effort out of novice company when running fourth to Wicklow Brave at Punchestown. Melon, who finished second to Labaik in the Supreme Novice Hurdle, is on 152.

Patrick Kelly’s Presenting Percy is the joint highest staying novice alongside Colin Tizzard’s West Approach on a mark of 157.