The Irish champion jockey and Betway ambassador previews his Saturday at Gowran Park, and also discusses Lulamba's win at Newbury last weekend.
It’s been another interesting week, with plenty of Cheltenham chat across the media as the Festival gets ever nearer, and it’s all great fun in the build-up to the biggest week in our sport. One of the big clashes everyone is looking forward to is Kopek Des Bordes v Lulamba in the Arkle. Having caught the replay of Lulamba’s win at Newbury last weekend, I’d say that experience will stand him in good stead going into the Festival. Although he did plenty wrong, I thought he overcame it well to win nicely in the end. He’s certainly got more chasing experience than we have, and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a concern going there with only one run over fences under our belt. But his Cheltenham experience will count for a lot, and I think he’s learned plenty from his recent schooling sessions. These are the clashes you want to be involved in as a jockey, so hopefully we’ll have a smooth run between now and next month and can head there with a big chance in one of the opening races of the meeting.
Before that, though, I head to Gowran Park on Saturday for four good rides, starting with MADNESS D’ELLE / (12:45) in the maiden hurdle. We were very happy with how he ran on his first start for us when finishing second to a nice horse of Donnacha O’Brien’s at Punchestown last month, and I’d say he’ll improve plenty with that run under his belt. It’s been well documented all year that a good few of our horses have needed their first run, and the way he shaped the last day suggests we should see an even better version of Madness d’Elle here. Arouet, from Paddy Twomey’s yard, is rated 101 on the Flat, so he’ll be an interesting recruit to hurdling, but we have the benefit of experience over obstacles already, so I’d be hopeful we can go one better this time.
STORM HEART 6/4 (13:20) runs in the Red Mills Trial Hurdle, the first graded race on the card. He’s a horse I rode plenty in his juvenile days, and I always thought he’d be an improver, but he’s just had a few niggling issues that mean we haven’t seen him on the track as much as we’d have liked. He did win nicely the last day at Limerick on heavy ground over two and a half miles, and I’m not concerned about the step back in trip here, as he’s always shown plenty of speed. This looks a good race that should throw up plenty of winners, and Kawaboomga could be the most interesting runner considering how some of his form has worked out. He wasn’t beaten far by Kopek Des Bordes in a maiden hurdle on debut, and then came out next time and beat both William Munny and Koktail Divin – serious form in the context of any race. That said, he’s been off the track a long time now, so taking on race-fit rivals after 13 months away might be a big ask, but it will be interesting to see how he gets on.
We then have IMPAIRE ET PASSE 4/5 (15:40) later on the card. He’s a very talented individual who’s been very good to me over the years. Unfortunately, we haven’t managed to get him out since he was brought down at the Punchestown Festival, but it’ll be great to see him back on track this weekend, and this looks the ideal opportunity for him. He seems in good order at home, and this is a nice trip and a nice track to start him off at. Although he doesn’t quite come out best at the weights, I think he’s straight enough to do himself justice and start his season with a win.
My final ride on Saturday is KING ALEXANDER / (16:15), and he looks very solid here with that chasing experience under his belt. While most of his better hurdle form came on good ground, his recent runs on testing ground have shown he’s extremely versatile regarding conditions, and that will no doubt stand him in good stead this weekend. Champagne Jury could be the biggest danger after getting off the mark over hurdles last time. It’s interesting they are keen to send him chasing so soon, but he’s shown a decent level of ability and has proved he handles testing ground, so he’s entitled to plenty of respect. That said, I’d be very disappointed if King Alexander can’t make it third-time lucky over fences here.
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