THE J.P. McManus silks will be to the fore this afternoon at Cheltenham when Chantry House goes on trial for the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup and Champ bids to consolidate his position at the top of the Stayers’ Hurdle market.
The Grade 2 Cotswolds Chase has produced Gold Cup winners with Master Oats back in 1995 and the 2000 winner Looks Like Trouble went on to glory at the Festival that year.
Older fans may remember See More Business was pulled up in the King George before finishing third to Cyfor Malta in this race. He then won the Gold Cup two months later in 1999.
Chantry House also was a non-finisher at Kempton, he never travelled or jumped and was pulled up at the 12th in the King George. His earlier win at Sandown in a two-horse race revealed nothing but his overall level of form should see him win this.
He won four of his five novice chases last season, including the Marsh at Cheltenham and the Grade 1 at Aintree. He does have cheekpieces added which is one concern. He is as short as 12/1 in some lists but best-priced at 20/1, and an impressive win could see those odds shorten considerably.
Harriet Graham’s Aye Right got the reward for consistency in the Rehearsal Chase in November and is officially only rated 1lb behind the Henderson horse. One-time leading Gold Cup hope Santini has his second run for Polly Gundry but didn’t offer too much when fourth under top-weight in a handicap here in December.
Cleeve Hurdle
Jonjo O’Neill Jr picked up his first Grade 1 on Champ in the Long Walk Hurdle in December and is confident he can maintain his unbeaten partnership in the Grade 2 Cleeve Hurdle.
The Nicky Henderson-trained 10-year-old was pulled up in last year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup and holds entries in both the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle and Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup at the Festival.
The jockey said: “He was a little bit gassy at Ascot but he was entitled to be as he had not had a proper run for a while. The horse that came second, Thyme Hill, is probably the one you wanted near you as it makes the form solid. He likes three miles around Cheltenham, albeit that was over fences, but his course form will help.
“He is going to have to be 100% as there are some good horses in there but that last run will have really sharpened him up.”
Dual winner and former Stayers’ Hurdle champ Paisley Park has five and a quarter lengths to make up on Champ from Ascot but this track suits him better, even if he would prefer it softer and a small field might not suit his usual run style.
Paul Nicholls will step McFabulous back up in trip to three miles for the first time in a year. The eight-year-old was a two-and-a-half-length second to Stormy Ireland in the Grade 2 Relkeel last time.
Nicholls believes he could be a good each-way price for the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle.
“He was a bit keen that day [Newbury, third to Thyme Hill in November 2020] and he has had a wind operation since as I think that his wind was troubling him. I’d like to think we have got a nice chance on Saturday. He could be a nice each-way price for the Stayers’ Hurdle but let’s see how he runs.”
The Grade 2 Juvenile Hurdle at 12.45pm will proved a good guideline for Triumph Hurdle with Gordon Elliott supplying the favourite Pied Piper, up against Paul Nicholls’ Iceo, a wide margin Christmas winner at Kempton and the impressive December course winner Interne De Sivola, from the Nick Williams yard.
The Williams horse impressed with his attitude here in December and could put it up to the two ahead of him in the betting. Irish yards provided the first three home in the listed juvenile hurdle at Doncaster yesterday.
The two-and-a-half-mile Grade 2 Ballymore sees a clash of another Nicky Hendeson-trained novice hurdler when dual winner Balco Coastal takes on the giant Hillcrest who beat another Henderson gelding, the odds-on I Am Maximus here last time at the December meeting.
Dan Skelton’s novice chaser Third Time Lucki is the best horse in action at Doncaster but only has two rivals in the Lightning Novices’ Chase (1.35pm) and it’s more a case of watching how he settles after he faded badly when too free in the Henry VIII at Sandown seven weeks ago.
John McConnell has found a good blacktype opportunity when represented by Anna Burina in the Grade 2 mares’ hurdle. (2.10pm).
Closutton v Cullentra
in novice chase duel
ACTION in Ireland is a bit low key this weekend after Gowran Park and ahead of the Dublin Racing Festival. Fairyhouse and Naas host six maiden hurdles between them and both have graded feature races recalling the two stalwarts of the Bowe family in Solerina and Limestone Lad. Willie Mullins has four mares in the Solerina with Paul Townend on course winner Brandy Love.
The Grade 3 novice chase at Naas is the most interesting with three Willie Mullins’ runners against two from the Elliott yard. En Beton, Stattler and Run Wild Fred are all in the mix for the National Hunt Chase. The experienced Run Wild Fred brings the best chase form from his Grade 1 but Stattler looked assured on his debut and En Beton was a 21-length winner of his novice.