With a week to go that is looking like a fantastic bet. Bet cash out is more than the odds that the double would now pay
Coral Cup [Wednesday] Guard Your Dreams Each Way [Five places] @ 33-1 [Paddy Power] NRNB Class horse if going back to handicaps on a course he runs well at
Tuesday Supreme Novices' Hurdle. For sentimental reasons, Mystical Power EW at 5/1 Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices' Chase. Facile Vega EW at 8/1 Ultima Handicap Chase. Corach Rambler EW at 14/1 Juvenile Handicap Hurdle. Liari EW at 12/1
May return, on the Flat, around late Summer time. The owner/trainer even mentioning the Irish St Leger as a possible target.
Iberico Lord supplemented for the Champion Hurdle. JP found some loose change down the back of the sofa
When the Supreme Novices kicks off the meeting on Tuesday, spare a thought for Vincent O’Brien. Before merging into the Supreme, it was run as separate divisions of the Gloucester Hurdle. Vincent won eleven of them before turning his attention to Flat Racing. Beat that, Mullins et alia!
Do you have the number of years Vincent had runners in the Gloucester hurdle? I was wondering if that was comparable to the 6 wins Mullins has had in the Supreme since 2007?
Nicky Henderson yard: Constitution Hill affair aside, last fourteen days: PU,PU,PU,3/7,PU,PU,PU,5/7,5/11,5/9,PU,2/12,PU,1/6,PU concerned about Shanagh Bob.
Not great form is it?!? However, there were positive signs on Saturday with the mare winning at Newbury and Jango Baie going very close, whilst carrying a penalty, in the Grade 2 at Kelso. Lieutenant Henderson set to have his first runners for a week at Sandown Park on Saturday. Will how they get on offer further encouragement??? Time will tell...
Although he's only actually declared 1 runner (Crazierthandaisy in Sandown's Listed Bumper) so you can't exactly say Saturday will be that conclusive re stable form!!! Lieutenant Henderson taken his runner out of the EBF Final (6 out of the top 11 in the handicap taken out of that this morning, incidentally, people).
No, Nass. I don’t really have further info on how many runners or even how many years Vincent trained N. Hunt horses. I just remember the eleven Gloucester Hurdle winners.
By Stuart Jones — published 7th March 2024 Timeform analyst Stuart Jones reveals which favourites he's keen to oppose at the Cheltenham Festival. Embassy Gardens (National Hunt Novices' Chase) There’s little doubt that Embassy Gardens is potentially tailor-made for the extreme test the National Hunt Chase offers, most impressive when winning both his starts over fences so far, but quite whether he’s done enough to justify being as short as 2/1 for the final race of day one is very much debatable. Embassy Gardens is better than he could show over hurdles, but the fact remains that his form in that discipline was still some way inferior to several of those behind him in the betting for this, whilst it remains concerning that he essentially bombed out on each of his two previous starts the top level. With the likes of Corbetts Cross and Salvador Ziggy very likely opponents, Embassy Gardens looks one to oppose at current odds. Minella Indo (Cross Country Chase) It’s not hard to see why Minella Indo heads the market for this year’s Cross Country Chase, a former Gold Cup winner having just his second start in this discipline, but prices around the 15/8 mark look cramped given the potential opposition. Henry de Bromhead’s veteran took well to the unique test when fourth to Latenightpass back in December, but, with a couple of runs under his belt, it was a touch disappointing he couldn’t see things out as well as a big move on the home turn promised. He’s obviously entitled to improve for that experience, though it’s not like consistency has been a forte of his in recent seasons and he still needs to prove he retains enough ability to trouble the Gordon Elliott-trained trio of Galvin, Delta Works and Coko Beach. Essentially, he looks a very opposable favourite. Galopin des Champs (Cheltenham Gold Cup) Perhaps the trickiest of the quartet to justify opposing as last year’s winner bounced back from an underwhelming reappearance with back-to-back Grade 1 successes at Leopardstown, comfortably reversing Punchestown form with Fastorslow when the pair met last time. That said, his jumping wasn’t nearly so polished as it had been at the Christmas meeting and, when taking into account his errors at Punchestown and the early scares he had in last year’s Gold Cup, that area is something of a concern when faced with taking the short prices available. Granted it’s hardly a vintage renewal, but Fastorslow still provides viable opposition having already beaten him twice in the past, whilst Shishkin would more than likely have won the King George had he stood up and, on his best form/behaviour, would have a serious shout of upsetting the favourite. Dinoblue (Mares' Chase) Unsurprisingly, it’s a pair of Willie Mullins-trained runners that head the market for a race he’s won two of the three previous renewals, with last year’s Grand Annual runner-up Dinoblue a shade of odds-on with several firms. However, there are reasons to think she’s worth opposing at such prohibitive odds. Firstly, her form is not all that superior to that of her stable Allegorie De Vassy and at that rival has proved on several occasions that she stays this far. Contrastingly, Dinoblue has had just the one previous start at the trip and, though a never-nearer fourth in a Grade 1 at Fairyhouse, there are still some reservations about her truly relishing the stiff test at the trip this is likely to represent. Throw in a couple of thriving sorts who are relative unknown quantities at the highest level in the shape of Limerick Lace and Brides Hill, and this begins to look quite a bit more competitive than the current betting suggests.
I see Skelton has managed to get Langer Dan back into the Coral of 141, same as last year. He really is a proper fiddler. I can think of a few trainers past and present where there would be major questions asked if this horse was in their care but not cuddly choirboy Dan it would seem.
