TWELVE months ago Delta Work denied Tiger Roll a perfect end to his career in the Glenfarclas Chase, the cross-country race at the Festival. The 10-year-old son of Network (Monsun) and the placed Robbe (Video Rock) repeated his win in the marathon, his third Festival win as he was also successful in the Grade 3 Pertemps Final.

Bred by Charles and Jean-François Magnien, Delta Work is a five-time Grade 1 winner, so he certainly possesses all the class necessary to land this cross-country marathon. We are hugely familiar with the big race winners sired by the German-bred, Group 2 winner Network, and he is best known for Sprinter Sacre.

Delta Work is one of six winners for Robbe, the others including the Grade A Leinster National winner Cap York (Ballingarry), Tuesday’s Cheltenham Grade 3 winning hurdler Jazzy Matty (Doctor Dino), the Grade 2-placed Elwood (Martaline) and the Grade 3-placed hurdler Inneston (Doctor Dino).

This is a family that produces a good winner in every generation. A couple that have done well outside France include the 2020 Grade 2 winning chaser Ga Law (Sinndar), also successful in the Grade 3 Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham, Grade 2 bumper winner Grangee (Great Pretender), Irish Grade 3 winning hurdler and chaser Toner D’Oudairies (Polish Summer) and Grade 2 winning novice chaser Bigmartre (Montmartre).

Cheltenham form

According to connections of Langer Dan, winner of the £100,000 Coral Cup, a love of Cheltenham was the main reason for the seven-year-old gelding’s improvement in form. Bred by Hugh O’Connor, and sold at Tattersalls Ireland as a foal for €12,000 to Ballinaroon Stud, this was Langer Dan’s fifth hurdle win, and four have been in blacktype races.

These wins have been in the Grade 3 Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle at Sandown, this week’s Grade 3 Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle, the Grade 3 Aintree Handicap Hurdle, and the Listed Weatherbys Wensleydale Juvenile Hurdle at Wetherby.

In fact, Langer Dan, a son of Ocovango (Monsun), gave his sire the perfect send-off to his career as a National Hunt stallion when the Dan Skelton-trained gelding won at Wetherby, while abut the same time Langer Dan’s ‘uncle’ Time Flies By (Getaway) made a winning bumper debut for JP McManus and Nicky Henderson, and has gone on to win a few times over hurdles and be Grade 2-placed. Time Flies By was also bred by Hugh O’Connor.

Time Flies By is a half-brother to the Grade 1 Punchestown Festival winner Klept (Great Palm) and the listed hurdle winner Welsh Shadow (Robin Des Champs). Their dam What A Mewsment (Persian Mews) is a full-sister to Grade 2 Betfair Bowl winner Celestial Gold, and a half-sister to the dual Grade 1 winning hurdler Fiveforthree (Arzanni).

Maskada

When she won a Grade B chase at Limerick over Christmas, the French-bred Maskada started to repay some of the investment of £80,000 made in her by Coolmara Stud when she sold at an online sale staged by ThoroughBid. She was already a listed winner over fences when trained in England, and she won three times over hurdles.

Well, she has now added the Grade 3 Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase to her list of wins, earning almost £54,000. Bred by Herve and Jean-Louis Lair, Maskada featured in the bargain of the week column on these pages after she had been purchased as a two-year-old by bloodstock agent J.D. Moore for just €4,000. The daughter of Group 1 St Leger winner Masked Marvel (Montjeu) is out of a winning Saint Des Saints (Cadoudal) mare.