4.00 Sandown
Henry King 14/1 NAP
Despite having to overcome an absence of 722 days, if fully wound up for this run and maintaining his ability then I think Victor Dartnall's 9 year old has a tremendous chance of landing this handicap off a mark of 120. Back in November 2008, Henry King was an extremely impressive winner of a Bumper at Newbury when running out a very easy winner by 5L from some very useful sorts. Such was his immense promise, he was sent off a 20/1 shot for the Champion Bumper in 2009 and despite finishing eased he had shaped very promisingly as he sweeped around a lot of horses despite pulling hard for much of the race (which would turn out to be a major issue for a lot of his early career). On the back of a 7 month absence, Henry King made an extremely promising debut over hurdles over 2m at Wincanton in October 2009 when going down by 1.5L to Pepe Simo - a horse he had comfortably beaten into 2nd place when winning his debut bumper. Refusing to settle under Timmy Murphy, Henry King made stylish progress through the well strung out field to be delivered excellently by his very talented jockey and both he and the winner were level going over the last. Henry King still looked a bit green as he ran around a bit and when level the pair bumped which looked to have cost Dartnall's representative some momentum but he lost very little in defeat. The form of that race has worked out extremely well with the winner Pepe Simo winning his next two starts over timber and who is now a 140 rated hurdler whilst the 3rd The Rainbow Hunter has turned out to be a very talented chaser. Given that the winner is a 2m specialist and Henry King is clearly a better horse over further, I think it made his narrow defeat even more impressive and, at the time, it was clear Victor Dartnall had a horse with immense ability on his hand.
Henry King's 2nd start came in a Maiden Hurdle at Newbury in November 2009 where he fell when still going well and upsides at the 2nd last. Once again, Henry King refused to settle and actually pulled himself through the field to sit just off the pace and it wasn't until 4f out when Murphy was making his move and relinquished some reins that he stopped pulling. If he hadn't fallen, I definitely feel Henry King would have been in the first 3 home and it was another very hot race he was running in. The impressive winner Belvano impressed in his brief hurdling career before turning into an excellent chaser who won last years Grand Annual whilst the 3rd Tocca Ferro won two Listed Handicaps over hurdles on his final two starts when last seen in 2010 and, given that I am sure he would have finished amongst the places, it again emphasises the talent of Henry King. Off for a few months after that very heavy fall, Henry King was disappointing when sent off favourite in February 2010 but you can put a line through that effort as he didn't handle the heavy ground. After this race, Henry King made his handicap debut off a mark of 116 at Newbury in March of that year when he again fell at 2 out (was beaten this time) but he had pulled his chances away.Henry King took the summer off again when he made his chasing debut in a handicap off a mark of 114 when pulled up but the soft ground and pulling were to blame.
At the 8th time of asking in a first time tongue tie, Henry King belatedly shed his Maiden tag in a handicap off a mark of 114 when connections finally resolved the massive issue of his inability to settle as they sent him from the front over 17f at Taunton in January 2011. From pillar to post, Henry King's tendency to pull was eradicated and he showed great battling quality to score ny 0.5L when strongly pressed up the run. Having searched back through the archives, I found a very interesting quote from Dartnall after this win which was "the only reason he won at a tight track like Taunton was because he was so well handicapped" and that can only be viewed in a positive light. 3 weeks later Henry King was a little disappointing over the same C+D when employing the same tactics when upped 9lb to a mark of 123 but his final start in March 2011 was by far his most impressive performance over hurdles to date and he finally looked as if he was fulfilling the immense potential he looked to possess. In a Novice Hurdle at Taunton when the only horse in the race to carry a penalty, the step up to 2m4f - the first time he went further than 17f in his career - improved Henry King massively as he again made all to score by 9L in very impressive fashion. Travelling well throughout the contest, Denis O'Regan gently asked his mount to quicken up and Henry King did so in style to finish a very easy winner. The form of that race looks strong, with the runner up (who received 7lb from the winner) Merehead landing a competitive handicap at Ascot off a mark of 115 on what has turned out to be his only subsequent start in a race where the 3rd Battonier went on to score in a Grade 2 a couple of months later. Based on Dartnall's earlier comments about Taunton not suiting, I think you can upgrade that performance and its a shame that he has been sidelined since that victory (you can only presume it was an injury).
With regards tomorrows contest, Henry King races off a mark of 120 and based on his last success and early form over hurdles I feel he is clearly a very well handicapped horse if retaining his ability. He races over 2m4f tomorrow which transformed his performance when stepping up to this distance on his last start and he is clearly a much, much better horse over further than 2m. Sandown's galloping track and uphill finish should suit him ideally as well and I've no issue about him shouldering top weight as his two victories were when carrying 11-9 and 11-11 so he is clearly a horse that carries weight well. Its a shame he's had such an interrupted career but at 9 years of age he should still hold most (if not all) of his ability and it would be fantastic for connections if he can show the same form of old. Jack Doyle, who has a good record for Dartnall, takes the ride on what is his sole engagement and the trainer has a very good 5-27 record at the track. The main issue has to be his fitness after pretty much 2 years off the track but given that he won on his debut and ran very well on the back of a 7 month absence on hurdling debut he has certainly demonstrated he can go well fresh in the past. In addition, after looking back through Dartnall's horses he seems pretty adept at readying horses on the back of breaks which is a huge positive when looking at Henry King's readiness. Another small concern I have is Sandown's current going of Soft (Good; good to soft in places in the back straight) as Dartnall has stated before that he wouldn't want any worse than Good to Soft and I'd say there is a very strong chance that Henry King has been ready to run for quite a while and his trainer has been waiting all season for better ground. I'm sure connections haven't persevered with him for 2 years to run him on unsuitable ground and I'm sure he'll be pulled if the ground is deemed unsuitable. However, I'm hoping the ground dries out a bit tomorrow and given that the chase course is currently Good to soft; Good in places I think there is a fair chance of that happening. Another concern is that in August last year Dartnall said Henry King would go Novice Chasing this year but I'm hoping its too late now in the season for that or else connections are looking to exploit what looks a lenient handicap mark over timber. Victor Dartnall has his horses in pretty good order at the moment and there is no doubt in my mind that, if fit, he will win this race tomorrow but of course that is a huge 'if'. Completely unexposed at this sort of trip which he will relish, my gut is telling me that Henry King will be fit to do himself justice tomorrow and hopefully this 9 year old grey rewards his very patient connections with what would be a very well deserved win at a nice price.
