Sanctuaire

hes been given a rating of 167, 2 below sprinter sacre who is rated 169.

 

Personally, I think Sanctauire would need to start now to lower the colours of Mr Henderson’s Sprinter Sacre in next terms Champion Chase. I doubt if Santuaire is even the best 2 miler in his yard yet alone the bally continent (don’t forget the great Tataniano will return in a few months)! Providing Sprinter Sacre remains fit and in good heart, plus the Geraghty lad doesn’t steer him onto the X-Country course, then I really can’t see Mr Henderson’s star coming out of first gear as he gallops victoriously up the hill.

Meanwhile, people, don’t pay so much heed of ratings by all the various organisations as to quote old Ruby Walsh ‘ah so what there only one person’s opinion’.

 

Predictable and rather convenient. That was the only possible way he could be kept below Sprinter Sacre.

I'm not convinced.

 

Ah goodness gracious how very predictable and convenient! As expected, the handicapper takes the only possible line of form that can keep him below Sprinter Sacre.

"SANCTUAIRE FLOATS JOHN’S BOAT
With its proximity to the Cheltenham, Aintree and Punchestown festivals, Sandown’s Celebration Chase has tended to suffer from a touch of ‘After the Lord Mayor’s Show’ syndrome. Not this year! Writes John de Moraville.

Saturday’s Grade 2 showdown, inaugurated in 2001 after Cheltenham’s Queen Mother Champion Chase was a victim of the foot-and-mouth crisis, produced a star of its own in Sanctuaire, a six-year-old novice having only his third start over fences.
He was a talented but temperamental 150-rated hurdler whose victories included the Scottish Champion and the Fred Winter.

Sanctuaire, who had pulled hard in the past and given trouble at the start, seemingly relishes his new front-running chase tactics. Unchallenged winner of his two previous outings, he again blasted off in front and, jumping from fence to fence, had his far more experienced rivals on the rack by half-way.

Never in danger of defeat, Sanctuaire hammered Victor Chandler Chase winner Somersby (166) by 17 lengths with Dan Breen (148) finishing a creditable third. While Somersby and the majority of Saturday’s field failed to give their true running, a line through Dan Breen, who had also run to 148 in winning a course and distance novice chase (subsequently disqualified) on similar going last season, gives Sanctuaire a chase rating of 167.

That mark - just 2lb below brilliant Arkle hero Sprinter Sacre - may well flatter him and is sure to provoke a heated debate at next week’s Anglo-Irish Classifications meeting. But one thing is certain, on a front-runner’s track like Sandown, Sanctuaire is an extremely potent force. Unsurprisingly, he is due to return to the Surrey circuit in December for the Tingle Creek."

 

If Dan Breen is the marker on 148 then the rest would have run to:

Somersby (166) - Beat him 2 lengths giving 4lbs which puts him on 154 - 12lbs below form

French Operea (162) - Beaten 4 lengths puts him on 144 - 18lbs below form

Wishfull Thinking (164) - Beaten 9 lengths puts him on 139 - 25lbs below form

West With The Wind (154) - Beaten 12 lengths puts him on 136 - 18lbs below form

Woolcombe Folly (155) - Beaten 17 lengths puts him on 131 - 24lbs below form



Distances to the nearest length when required.

 

Agree with Bluesky that the good to soft description of part of the track at Sandown seems ridiculous from what I saw (admittedly from the sofa!) Very dangerous to read too much into that race I feel and at this stage I would not put Sanctuaire within a stone of Sprintre Sacre. 12/1 for the CC next year is about right but has far more to prove imo.

 

Yes, Fulkes, Saturday was only one race but irrespective of Sanctuaire's and Sprinter Sacre's abilities, do you really believe S. Sacre would have given Sanctuaire 14 lbs, if he'd run at Sandown against him? Very unlikely.

 

Timeform sectional analysis - 89.4% finishing speed when around 93% is normal. Not a case of soft lead/quickened.

 

It looked a false race to me Tam and I would not trust the form. I would be amazed if Sanctuaire got anywhere near Sprintre Sacre next year and at this stage I would say there is a good stone between them.

 

Fulkes, it may have been a false race- especially if you want to believe that.
Playing devil's advocate, I could say that he beat a better field than Sprinter Sacre has beaten this year. I'm a Sprinter fan, but it is his scope and quality of jumping which impresses me most- not the opposition he has beaten.
Yes, Sanctuaire's resolution; ability to cope with a 'mistake;' and capacity to handle Cheltenham worry me more than knocking his efforts last Saturday- which need no justification.

 

The only thing which makes the form suspect is that nobody was expecting him to do it. If that had been Sprinter Sacre you can be damn sure that he would have been given a rating far in excess of 169. All the evidence says that it was strong form: the time was good, the pace was good, the way he jumped was good, the way he travelled was good, the horses he beat were good. Everything about it was good but, because we weren't expecting it, it is difficult to accept.

The only question mark in my mind is whether he can do it again.