Tag Archive for: Aintree Bowl

Super Shishkin shines on step up to three miles

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The King George VI Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup could be among Shishkin’s targets next season after the top-class chaser kicked in the turbo to secure the Alder Hey Aintree Bowl.

Nicky Henderson’s charge earned superstar status by winning his first 10 completed starts over obstacles, a run which included successive victories at the Cheltenham Festival and three Grade Ones.

The wheels came off in last season’s Champion Chase, with Henderson putting his abject performance on desperate ground down to a rare bone condition, while a fairly uninspiring start to the current campaign in the Tingle Creek at Sandown suggested his best days may be behind him.

Not for the first time, however, Henderson weaved his magic, getting Shishkin back to something like his best when stepped up in trip for February’s Ascot Chase, after which he did remarkably well to finish second in last month’s Ryanair after a performance lacking much zest.

The Seven Barrows handler felt the time had come for his former star two-miler over three miles and he was the 7-4 favourite to successfully graduate to the staying trip on Merseyside.

Once again it was not entirely plain sailing, with Nico de Boinville having to get lower in the saddle on a couple of occasions while Ahoy Senor attempted to make all under Brian Hughes.

Nico de Boinville celebrates Shishkin's Aintree success
Nico de Boinville celebrates Shishkin’s Aintree success (Mike Egerton/PA)

The latter looked likely to prevail after drawing clear between the final two fences, but as has been the case on a few occasions over the years, Shishkin saved his best for late in the day, thrusting home on the run-in to get up and beat Ahoy Senor by a length and a half.

Henderson said: “He’s a very good horse and that was a very good race, fair play to Ahoy Senor, he was going well in the Gold Cup when he came down. It was a genuine Grade One race. We were almost here to find out who was second best – without Bravemansgame we haven’t really solved that.

“He was so much better today than at Cheltenham. He does finish very well, he’s tough and he stays but he is getting quite lazy in his races.

“He’s won that by staying – his first race over three miles – so the trainer has got it wrong for the last two years, we know that!

“We admitted that after the Tingle Creek, he won a Grade One over two-mile-five at Ascot, we thought we were right staying at that trip in the Ryanair but to be honest he wouldn’t have won over any trip.

“There were a few issues, he was very sore all over and we’ve had lots of people working on him. We took the tongue tie off as he didn’t like that. We’ve got to tweak things and that’s our job. I think it’s body not mind.”

Henderson will now stick at three miles with Shishkin, with the King George VI Chase at Kempton an “obvious” target next term.

He added: “Three miles is where we’ll stay, we won’t be coming back. I know the Gold Cup is not much further than this but it is a different track. The obvious place is the King George, then take it from there. Whether you go Betfair and then King George, you are fairly limited in your options but the King George is the obvious target. He won’t go to Punchestown now.

“He used to be very straightforward but like everybody, he gets a bit creaky. We had the four weeks and it’s all worked.

“When you are racing over three miles you want them racing lazily, you don’t want them to be keen when you up them in trip. You’d rather see him wake up a little bit more, we’ll see, I might have a few more tricks yet.”

Ahoy Senor (red) was just denied by Shishkin
Ahoy Senor (red) was just denied by Shishkin (Mike Egerton/PA)

Lucinda Russell was more than satisfied with Ahoy Senor’s effort in defeat.

She said: “I’m exceedingly proud of him and let’s face it, Shishkin is a fabulous horse who keeps galloping.

“It must have been hard for Brian (Hughes) who had never ridden him before, but he thought he had them at the last.

“I think he got tired eight strides before the last, he made that mistake and he was slightly on the back foot.”

A Plus Tard was the only other finisher in the five-runner heat, with Conflated and Ga Law both pulled up.

Henry de Bromhead was upbeat after A Plus Tard's third place
Henry de Bromhead was upbeat after A Plus Tard’s third place (Tim Goode/PA)

Despite being beaten a total of 17 and a half lengths, Henry de Bromhead was pleased to see A Plus Tard finish his first race this year, having been pulled up in both the Betfair Chase and Cheltenham Gold Cup on his only two starts.

He said: “Obviously he didn’t finish off the race as well as we would have liked but there were still positives.

“It was effectively his first run of the year, and Rachael (Blackmore) said he jumped and travelled well but got tired.

“She was happy with him until then and he’s heading back in the right direction.

“We are happier than we were and that will be it because he’s so much better going left-handed, and we won’t look towards Punchestown.”

Bravemansgame ruled out of Aintree Bowl

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Bravemansgame will not be permitted to run in Thursday’s Alder Hey Aintree Bowl Chase.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up had been cleared by the British Horseracing Authority to contest the Grade One heat, with the eight-year-old switched into the sole ownership of Bryan Drew on Tuesday, having previously been owned in partnership with John Dance.

Dance founded Vertem Asset Management, a prominent sponsor within racing, but that firm is one of three trading names of WealthTek LLP, which was last week ordered to cease trading by the Financial Conduct Authority due to “serious regulatory and operational issues coming to light”.

Bravemansgame won the King George at Christmas
Bravemansgame won the King George at Christmas (John Walton/PA)

However, the BHA has announced the Paul Nicholls-trained King George winner will no longer be able to run after an intervention from the FCA.

A statement read: “In light of new information, including a court order, provided to the BHA on Wednesday 12 April by the Financial Conduct Authority Bravemansgame is no longer able to take part in the race and has been withdrawn.

“The BHA will continue to liaise with the FCA and other affected parties.”

Shishkin ready to step up in Aintree Bowl

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Shishkin will step up to three miles in the Aintree Bowl, with trainer Nicky Henderson rating the April 13 contest as the potential “race of the year”.

The nine-year-old was a dominant force in the two-mile chase division until he was pulled up in the 2022 Champion Chase and after struggling on his return in the Tingle Creek, Henderson successfully stepped him up to two miles and five furlongs for an impressive 16-length victory in the Ascot Chase.

Shishkin was duly sent off the evens favourite for the Ryanair Chase at Cheltenham but he was slow to stride and a bad mistake three fences from home cost him valuable momentum, with the gelding eventually staying on to finish a two-and-three-quarter-length second to Envoi Allen.

Shishkin was a wide-margin winner at Ascot in February
Shishkin was a wide-margin winner at Ascot in February (Steven Paston/PA)

Henderson will now roll the dice at a longer distance on Merseyside, where possible rivals include Bravemansgame, Conflated and Protektorat, the respective second, third and fifth in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, as well as the 2021 Gold Cup winner A Plus Tard.

The Seven Barrows trainer said: “The Bowl is going to be some race because everyone’s threatening to run. It won’t be a re-run of the Gold Cup because I can’t see the Gold Cup winner coming (Galopin Des Champs), but I can see the rest of them coming. So he’s going to have join in with them. It could easily be the best race of the year.

“Ascot suggested that two-miles-five-furlongs wasn’t a problem, so you’re going three extra furlongs on an easier track. So it shouldn’t technically be a problem.

“If this works then that will definitely tell us where we go next year. You’d be thinking about the King George or even the Betfair Chase to start with. And if the King George goes well then obviously you’ve got to think about the Gold Cup. But again, everything has to go right.”

Nicky Henderson with Aintree hopeful Shishkin
Nicky Henderson with Aintree hopeful Shishkin (David Davies/PA)

Henderson admitted he and his team have needed to address a couple of issues since Cheltenham, after Shishkin hung left throughout the race.

He added: “We haven’t found issues that we haven’t corrected and I’m hopeful he won’t do all that again. He shouldn’t. We haven’t done anything dramatic, it was more physio, chiropractors – hopefully we’ve helped him.

“He’s a horse that has in the past had a few issues. We had those issues and we got him right and it all came together at Ascot and then we slightly fluffed our lines at Cheltenham, which was sad.

“But he still finished a remarkably good second, having got it all wrong. So if we have ironed that out then we’ve got every right to think we must have a chance at Aintree.”