Cheltenham Saturday

THERE were no graded or listed races at Cheltenham on Saturday, but the Showcase meeting has a habit of throwing up good winners in minor company, and it’s unlikely that this year’s fixture will be any different.

Irish stables were well presented on both Friday and Saturday, and as on the opening day, it was the home team which started best.

Shearer (Paul Nicholls/Adrian Heskin) landed the 888Sport Novices’ Hurdle, beating Ben Pauling’s Twig.

John McConnell saddled favourite Rexem, but that gelding stopped as if something was amiss and trailed home last.

Feature of the afternoon was the Masterson Holdings Hurdle, a race confined to four-year-olds, in which Pied Piper (Gordon Elliott/Jack Kennedy) confirmed Triumph Hurdle form with Knight Salute, winning by two and three-quarter lengths and helping to ease the pain of being controversially demoted after dead heating with that rival in the Grade 1 Anniversary 4-y-o Hurdle at Aintree April.

British trainers had all but one of the runners in the 888Sport Is Made To Play Handicap Chase, and ended up with the tricast, as Lord Accord (Neil Mulholland/Richie McLernon) scored in the increasingly visible colours of Lynne & Angus Maclennan, jumping best to come home ahead of The Wolf and Captain Cattistock.

The former was on the back foot after a first-fence error and did well to get so close, but he often makes one bad mistake per race, and has been frustrating to follow as a result. He’s handicapped to win if he can put in a clean round.

Greenwash

From that point on, the afternoon was a greenwash, with the last five races going to Irish-trained runners.

Dad’s Lad (Willie Mullins/Brian Hayes) was an impressive winner of the 888Sport Handicap Chase, showing all the right gears as he quickened in the straight to beat Cian Collins’s Welsh Champion Hurdle heroine Effernock Fizz by three-parts of a length.

Editeur De Gite was a dozen lengths back in third, but very much caught the eye under rather negative tactics (usually leads) and is one to look out for in the sponsored two-mile handicap chase here next month. Not that he was missed by many.

Charles Byrnes is not a man to bet against when the money is down, as he showed in the Cesarewitch recently, and he again saddled a well-backed winner in the shape of Shoot First, who was always travelling best in the Pertemps Hurdle qualifier, passing the post with two lengths to spare over Gary Moore’s Botox Has. The winner has a pedigree replete with stamina, but this was just his second start over three miles, and he progressed again to score with something to spare. It would be no surprise if his next run over hurdles came in the final of this series in March.

Procession

Chemical Energy (Gordon Elliott/Davy Russell) turned the Jim Wilson Memorial Novices’ Chase into a procession, winning by an official 61 lengths and heavily eased some way from home despite starting the outsider of three in a race with no British-trained runners.

This is dubious form with the beaten pair below par for one reason or another, but the winner relished the trip on his first attempt and looks an obvious National Hunt Chase prospect even at this early stage.

The card closed with a bumper which was won in the style of a smart prospect by Encanto Bruno, making up for a couple of earlier disappointments on the day for John McConnell. Tom Scudamore did the steering as the pair beat the highly regarded Strong Leader.

The four-year-old won a point on his debut for Colin Motherway and has won both his bumpers for new connections. McConnell said he would stick to bumpers this season and is likely to be given a break with an eye on returning in March.

“We don’t talk about Bruno” was the regular refrain in the film Encanto, but there will be plenty of talk about this Bruno at preview evenings in the spring.

Aintree Sunday

THE feature race on Aintree’s Sunday card was the Grade 2 Jewson St Helens Old Roan Limited Handicap Chase, which saw a return to form for the fragile Riders Onthe Storm (Richard Hobson) under a wonderfully sympathetic ride from champion jockey Brian Hughes.

Riders Onthe Storm was a Grade 1 winner in the mud at Ascot in February 2020, but that race on testing ground left a mark on all who ran in it, most notably Cyrname, and the winner had to go through the pain barrier to triumph that day.

Ability

His form has been in-and-out since, but he ran his best race for Hobson when runner-up over this course and distance last season, and he again showed his ability to go well fresh by breaking a losing sequence stretching back to his Ascot Chase win by getting the better of a battle with Hitman (Paul Nicholls/Harry Cobden) up the straight, the 16/1 chance holding on gamely to win by a head despite hanging left from the final fence.

“We were in the doldrums with him all last season,” said the winning trainer. “His first run back was good, but he got injured at Cheltenham, and then the horses got sick in the yard, and they remained sick all the way into April.

“He’s plummeted down the handicap a little bit and he was given a fantastic ride. Hitman is a very good horse and with the weight turnaround on the day, we’ve kept our head in front.

“Brian said keep him fresh and that’s the key to him, so we won’t overlook the calendar too much and probably run him a few times over the season.”

ROOKIE trainer Cian Collins fine start to his career continued when he again tamed up with Sam Ewing to win the three-mile £250K Placepot Guaranteed Every Saturday Handicap Chase at Bangor on Tuesday with 100/30 shot Diegos Way.