Hi all,
Inside today’s main piece I look back at yesterday’s highlights. Plus, I preview the best of Thursday’s action at Leopardstown and Limerick.
Leopardstown Wednesday Recap
Wednesday’s Leopardstown card began in foul weather. The softening ground didn’t prevent Marine Nationale making a winning chase debut in the beginners chase. Last season’s Supreme winner showed a perfect jumping technique for novice having his first start over fences. He was accurate, fast, and economical at his fences and if you have backed him for the Arkle at Cheltenham you will have been delighted by this performance. He’s now odds on for the Cheltenham Festival and whilst those odds look short it’s hard to see what will beat him there.
In the Grade 1 Paddy's Rewards Club Chase, Favourite Captain Guinness disappointed, allowing Dinoblue to triumph. The winner strengthened her position at the head of the betting for the Mares’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. She’ll take the beating in that race. Runner up Gentleman De Mee was conceding race fitness to his stablemate is on course to retain the Grade 1 Dublin Chase back here in February, a race he won last season.
Heavy ground on the hurdles course allowed Caldwell Potter to dominate the Grade 1 Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle. He was cut to as short a 8/1 by Paddy Power for the Supreme but he won’t have the speed for a race like that on better ground. A future chaser in the making. If does head to Cheltenham, it’s more likely to be for the Ballymore than the Supreme.
More Moore
Trainer Gary Moore had a remarkable day. Editeur Du Gite carried top weight to success in the Grade 2 Ladbrokes Desert Orchid Chase for the second year running. It was a game success by the 9-year-old who had been taken on for the lead but still had enough in reserve to produce a good jump at the last to seal victory.
Things got better for Moore at Chepstow. Salver landed the Grade 2 Coral Finale Juvenile Hurdle and Nassalam won the Coral Welsh Grand National by 34 lengths. Just five ended up completing an attritional race. Not wanting to take anything away from the winner, who clearly goes well around here and has finally clicked over fences, but this must rank as one of the worst renewals of recent years.
As i said in yesterday’s column I couldn’t see beyond the first five in the betting. Unfortunately, I went with the second and third and not the joint favourite.
Thursday Preview
There’s no racing on ITV this afternoon and the eyes of NH fans switch across the Irish Sea to Leopardstown and Limerick where there’s Grade 1 action at both tracks.
Leicester has been abandoned that leaves Catterick to provide the sole jumps action this afternoon this side of the Irish Sea and there’s a teatime an all-weather fixture at Newcastle. In truth the British racing was poor even before the loss of Leicester’s card.
Leopardstown
Looking ahead, Leopardstown hosts a couple Grade 1s this afternoon.
Home By The Lee bids for back to back successes in the Jack de Bromhead Christmas Hurdle (1:50). He faces an up and coming staying hurdler in Irish Point. This is the 5-year-old’s first run beyond 2m 4f but I’m hoping he’ll stay as I have backed him ante post for the Stayers Hurdle in March. Hopefully he can stamp himself a stayer going places by beating Home By The Lee.
Savills Chase (2:25) promises an epic showdown
Gold Cup hero Galopin Des Champs facing stiff competition from Fastorslow and Gerri Colombe. Envoi Allen and A Plus Tard are more star names in this year’s line-up. Add in last year’s winner Conflated and potential improvers in I Am Maximus and Churchstonewarrior and you can see why this is the race of Christmas.
Galopin Des Champs heads the betting. However, he’s been beaten twice by Fastorslow since Cheltenham including on his seasonal return in the John Durkan last month. Fastorslow is improving and it’s surprising to see him being twice the odds of the favourite. You could argue that he should be favourite and if he was trained by Willie Mullins he would.
Gerri Colombe is another staying chaser on the upgrade. The rain that arrived on Wednesday has come in time for him given he missed the King George VI to run here.
I think we’ll see Galopin Des Champs being given a prominent ride. If he is then he might be able to beat Fastorslow this time. This is a big test of Gerri Colombe’s Gold Cup credentials. The more testing the ground the more he will like it.
Is I Am Maximus Being Underestimated?
The bookies have ignored I Am Maximus Grade 1 Drinmore Novices Chase (2m 4f) success. However, the horse he beat in the Drinmore Found A Fifty won a Grade 1 novice here on Boxing Day so that form looks solid. Given he won the Irish Grand National as a novice, stamina for 3m won’t be an issue. If his jumping holds up, he could surprise.
Churchstonewarrior is the outsider of the 11 runners, and you can understand why as he’s got 20lb to find with the likes of Fastorslow and Gerri Colombe never mind the favourite. However, he was useful novice chaser last season, and his three figure odds are a bit of an insult.
Limerick
At Limerick, Gaelic Warrior stands out in the Grade 1 Guinness Faugheen Novice Chase. The 5-year-old faces just four rivals and seems to have scared off most of his perspective rivals. He’ll be long odds on but barring a fall is a certainty.
Thursday Selection:
I thought I had a good Boxing Day punting wise. Well, I had an even better Wednesday with three winners. Sadly, one of them wasn’t yesterday’s selection Bells Of Peterboro who was a beaten horse turning for home.
Thursday's selection comes from the Savills Chase. I' don't expect Churchstonewarrior to win and he probably won't place but the 150/1 available with Bet365 is far to big and is worth a £1 each way. If you can get more than 12/1 about I Am Maximus he's another sporting play in the race.
Leopardstown
2:25 – Churchstonewarrior – 150/1 @ Bet365 (each way).
Good luck with your Thursday bets.
John