The horse racing broadcaster provides his best selections for Saturday at Wetherby, Ascot and Down Royal.
There’s something for everyone this Saturday with the jumps season gathering pace, with 10 NH races on ITV4 from Wetherby, Ascot and Down Royal before coverage switches to the Flat and the US with the Breeders’ Cup in the evening.
Given the slow start to this National Hunt season, there are an unusually large number of high-profile horses in action. The hard part to determine is whether some will be anywhere near fully wound up for bigger objectives down the line, or whether their trainers have identified these races as early-season targets in their own right. Jumpers run far fewer races a season than they used to, so for some having a pipe opener can be a waste of a run and with all-weather gallops and schooling grounds it is easier to get horses ready than it was in the days when turf was the only real option.
Wetherby will have been delighted to attract reigning Champion Hurdler Golden Ace to the Mares’ Hurdle at 13.50 where she faces two decent but in theory inferior rivals. There is the prospect however of a muddling gallop and she was of course a fortuitous winner at Cheltenham. Jeremy Scott has only had a handful of runners this season and it could well be this is prep for meeting higher profile horses in the Fighting Fifth. Hopefully her class will tell but it does not look the ideal day to be supporting her and just serves as a race to whet the appetite for the season ahead.
A more appealing bet looks to be TAKE NO CHANCES (14:22 Wetherby) in the West Yorkshire Hurdle over 3m. She ran really well in the Mares’ Hurdle at the Festival behind Lossiemouth when the steady tempo was not in her favour and has had the benefit of a run when finishing fifth at Chepstow. She has won handicaps at this trip but has been largely campaigned over shorter in Graded races and that versatility may prove an asset in a race which again lacks a confirmed front runner. It would be no surprise to see Potters Charm try to dictate and this is the time of year when Nigel Twiston-Davies traditionally excels. With son Willie now on the license they will be keen to get off to a quick start in the higher profile early-season races before the Irish ride into town but may find the Skelton mare too tough.
The Irish could still end up taking home a tidy haul courtesy of HEWICK (14:57 Wetherby) and LE COQ HARDI (15:45 Ascot). Hewick definitely looks to have been targeted for the race as it is the best opportunity he has of getting the ground he likes. Given a solid enough workout in a three-runner Thurles hurdle, he is reunited with Gavin Sheehan who rode him to his King George victory in 2023. He struggled to lie up early on that day and Sheehan may well have to be a little patient here with the likes of Pic D’Orhy, Protektorat and The Real Whacker all usually ridden forward. But Hewick responds well to pressure and can come out on top in what in another race looks an above average renewal.
Le Coq Hardi has made a good start to his chasing career and is still unexposed at 3m having only tried it for the first time when fourth in a big field at Listowel. The second and third that day have both won since and the experience of the hurly burly of the Kerry National will stand him in good stead going forward. The stable is in good form (17/54 with NH horses in October A/E 1.34) and historically have never sent many runners to Ascot over jumps, so Le Coq Hardi’s participation looks of particular interest.
Back at home Henry also has a far more obvious chance in the Grade 1 Champion Chase with ENVOI ALLEN (14:40 Down Royal) who has won this race twice in the last three seasons. He is now an 11-year-old but beat Hewick and Gerri Colombe in this race last year, and again it looks highly likely this has been earmarked as an important early-season target. Spillane’s Tower will likely provide stern opposition as ground conditions and the likes of the same connections Fact to File and Inothewayurthinkin rather curtailed his opportunities last campaign after an excellent novice season and again provides a fascinating clash in one of Northern Ireland’s premier jumps races.
Finally, a stable to be very much onside with at present is that of Anthony Honeyball who has very much hit the ground running this Autumn and saddles DANCE AND GLANCE (15:10 Ascot) in the Lavazza Handicap Hurdle. With the big West Country meetings just around the corner he has won with four of his last seven runners which include wins at both Cheltenham and Aintree and is a yard to be with over the next couple of weeks.
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