'He is the best novice chaser around,' says the Irish jump jockey and Betway ambassador in his exclusive column
We had some wonderful racing at Leopardstown and Kempton on Saturday.
The highlight for me was Douvan here at Leopardstown, he is the future and is arguably as good a young horse that we’ve seen for a while.
He was up against some good horses in the Grade 1 Racing Post novice chase, but he had the race won some way out and absolutely bolted in.
He is the best novice chaser around by some way and it will take a very good horse to beat him this season.
Edward O’Grady’s Kitten Rock missed Leopardstown and we’ll know more about him when we see him next month, but Douvan is odds on to win The Arkle at Cheltenham and at this stage, he looks one of the Irish bankers for the festival.
The horse that I’d take out of The King George was Don Cossack. He came down two out, but he was upsides the winner at the time and, if he had stood up, I think he’d have been bang there.
I thought Ruby gave Vautour a super ride and he was only just caught, but to my eyes, he just didn’t get home.
Cue Card was a worthy winner and he has always been a high-class horse and on the basis of his victory at Kempton, he is now a worthy Gold Cup contender.
I suppose we’ll learn a good bit more about the Irish Gold Cup challenge after the Lexus Chase (3.05pm) at Leopardstown.
Don Poli will start favourite and I wouldn’t have thought it was a difficult call for Bryan Cooper to ride him over Sir Des Champs.
Don Poli was very good at Aintree and I can see him improving a fair bit for that outing and with that run under his belt, I think he’ll be very hard to beat.
Sir Des Champs might chase him home. He was good at Thurles – he did what he had to do, but he meets stiffer opposition.
On his day, he is a high-class horse, but Don Poli is unexposed and with conditions bound to be very testing, that will suit him and I think it will be a Willie Mullins one-two with Sir Des Champs chasing home Don Poli.
I ride First Lieutenant for Mouse, but he looks up against it. It is great to ride in these Grade 1s and my horse has run well in this race before, but he has a lot on his plate and the principals will have to underperform for my horse to get involved.
I start the day aboard Showem Silver (12.10pm) for Noel Meade. I don’t know a great deal about him, but this looks a real good maiden hurdle. I think Chain Gang might be the one here and we’ll know more about my horse after Monday.
Mall Dini runs in the Pertemps Qualifier (12.45pm) and is a real chaser in the making. We won’t see the best of him until he jumps a fence, but he has a nice mark and I think there is more to come from him over hurdles.
He won his maiden very well just before Christmas, but it won’t be easy for him in his first handicap. Having said that, I still think he could run a nice race.
Zabana (1.20pm) developed into a very good horse over hurdles last season and he is a horse that I’ve gotten to know well.
He jumps super and I schooled him over six fences on Christmas Eve and I’d like to think that he could do well (over fences) this season. But this looks a very tough first start over the larger obstacles for him and Tell Us More should be hard to beat.
The Grade 1 three-mile hurdle (1.55pm) should go to Arctic Fire. He steps up to three miles and he had the option of running in the Ryanair Hurdle here on the last day.
If he stays – and he should – he’ll be hard to beat and I think Alpha Des Obeaux will chase him home.
Martello Tower won at Cheltenham last season and starts off here against some very good horses. You’d have thought that he’ll improve for this. I ride Price Of Scars for Gordon Elliott, but on ratings, he has it to do here.
The bumper looks a good race and I like Gurteen for Robert Tyner, who chased home Min on his first start under rules.
Unless Willie Mullins’ Some Neck is above average, I think Gurteen will take all the beating.
