Tag Archive for: Cheltenham Festival

Sa Fureur has to work to bring up hat-trick at Thurles

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Sa Fureur was made to pull out all the stops to justify cramped odds in the Markaye Contracts Ltd Michael Purcell Memorial Novice Hurdle at Thurles.

The six-year-old was the 5-6 market leader to complete his hat-trick following successive Punchestown wins and provide trainer Gordon Elliott with a third successive victory in this Grade Three contest.

Ridden by Jordan Gainford, Sa Fureur threw down his challenge from the home turn, but 22-1 shot Buddy One proved a willing rival.

There was little to choose between the pair all the way up the run-in, but following a protracted duel the Elliott runner edged it by a short head.

Two came close together on a couple of occasions, prompting a stewards’ inquiry, but the placings remained unaltered.

“I always thought I was getting the better of Jack (Gilligan, on Buddy One) but he pegged me back in the last couple of hundred yards. My horse stuck his head out though and had jumped the last two well, which is very important,” said Gainford.

“He had a nice run the last day in Punchestown and is a horse who doesn’t do a lot when he gets to the front. He is a nice horse for the future and the ground was lovely for him.

“He is a nice big strong horse, will fill out more and get even better.”

Brides Hill after winning at Thurles
Brides Hill after winning at Thurles (Thomas Weekes/PA)

Gavin Cromwell is eyeing a step up to Grade One level for Brides Hill after she opened her account over fences in the Carey Glass Irish EBF Colreevy Mares Novice Chase.

A three-time winner over hurdles, the six-year-old fell on her fencing debut at Fairyhouse in the autumn and had been placed on each of her three starts since.

She faced a far from straightforward task in this two-and-three-quarter-mile Listed contest, with Cheltenham Festival heroine Telmesomethinggirl the marginal favourite at 6-5 as she aimed to confirm her superiority over Instit (13-8) after finishing first and second at Naas last month.

The familiar rivals turned for home vying for the lead, but 7-2 shot Brides Hill was travelling strongly in their slipstream and quickened away smartly once given her head by Luke Dempsey to score by four lengths, with Telmesomethinggirl beating Instit to the runner-up spot.

Cromwell said: “She got an awful fright when she fell at Fairyhouse and it has taken her a long time to get confidence and, in her races since, she has been slow to warm up over the opening fences.

“She came straight into it today and jumped brilliantly. We had given her a pop this morning, when she was very good, and Paul Carberry actually schooled her on Saturday and got a good tune out of her.

“She isn’t a winter ground mare and is a lovely mare going forward for next year. It wouldn’t have been the end of the world if she didn’t win today as she’d have been a novice for next year, but now the Grade One Boylesports Gold Cup at Fairyhouse is a possibility.”

Haddex Des Obeaux will miss Arkle through setback

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Haddex Des Obeaux will miss the Sporting Life Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival, with Gary Moore ruling his progressive novice chaser out for the season.

Since unseating on his chasing debut, the six-year-old has yet to finish outside of the top two and following a handy second to the well-regarded Frere D’Armes at Kempton in November, notched up back-to-back victories at Doncaster and Warwick.

He was sent off the favourite on both of those occasions, but it was at Warwick last month where he earmarked himself as a chaser on the rise – jumping and galloping a useful cast into submission to win the Edward Courage Cup by 19 lengths.

He was due to return to Warwick to take on the mighty Jonbon in the Kingmaker Novices’ Chase earlier this month before being a late defector and it appears the setback that caused him to miss that Grade Two contest will also keep him on the sidelines throughout the spring festivals.

“He missed the Kingmaker and he will miss the rest of the season,” said Moore.

“He’s got an injury – it’s not a serious injury but it’s enough to put him out for the rest of the season.

“By the time I get him back the season will be over and he’s too nice a horse to rush back for one race or something.”

Haddex Des Obeaux ridden by Jamie Moore goes on to win The Wigley Support Fund Edward Courage Cup Handicap Chase at Warwick
Haddex Des Obeaux ridden by Jamie Moore goes on to win The Wigley Support Fund Edward Courage Cup Handicap Chase at Warwick (Nigel French/PA)

By the same sire as Moore’s Champion Chase contender Editeur Du Gite, the Lower Beeding-based handler is now looking forward to Haddex Des Obeaux returning next season where he could become the next Cisswood Stables resident to make his mark in the two-mile chase division.

He continued: “It’s a division I love and hopefully when he comes back he will be able to get up there among the better ones.”

Cheltenham ruled out for leading French juvenile St Donats

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Top French juvenile St Donats has been scratched from the Triumph Hurdle with Hugo Merienne preferring to complete the four-year-old’s preparations for the Prix Alain du Breil closer to home.

That Grade One contest at Auteuil has always been his main target for the spring, but he was given a speculative entry into the Triumph Hurdle in case the race became a suitable tune-up option in the build up one of France’s premier four-year-old contests.

Second to Emmet Mullins’ McTigue in a Grade Two in October, he turned the tables on his conqueror in style when last seen – taking the Grade One Prix Cambaceres by an impressive 11 lengths under James Reveley, who has ridden him in all his races to date.

That ready victory saw him priced up around the 10-1 mark for a Cheltenham Festival bid, but the Chantilly-based handler has decided to bypass Gloucestershire’s showpiece as he builds up St Donats’ fitness for his spring objective in the French capital.

“The horse is not ready, we had to give him a bit of a quiet week so the Triumph is not an option any more,” said Merienne.

“With how his preparations are going we have decided to stay in France. He will go for the Prix d’Indy (March 19) or the Prix de Pepinvast (April 8). It will probably be the Pepinvast. His target is the Grade One Alain du Breil.

“We entered him (in the Triumph) in case the horse was flying and everything was going well and you never know, it may have been looking a poor Triumph. But he is the best horse in Auteuil and you don’t want to take chances anywhere if you have the best in Auteuil.”

St Donats is arguably the best juvenile in France and Merienne, who experienced Prestbury Park success while working for Willie Mullins during the halcyon days of Vautour and Faugheen, went on to explain some of the qualities the son of Saint Des Saints has.

He continued: “He has a good mentality and is a tough horse. He has been improving every time and has learned from race to race and I think we still haven’t seen his limits.

“We will see this spring if he can be as good as a four-year-old as he was as a three-year-old, but there is no reason why he can’t be as good.”

Connell readying novice pair for Cheltenham mission

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Barry Connell has seen his yellow and blue silks carried to Cheltenham Festival glory before but should either Marine Nationale or Good Land win in the Cotswolds next month it will be extra special.

Martello Tower was trained by Mags Mullins when winning the Albert Bartlett in 2015, while Pedrobob was prepared by Tony Mullins to win the County Hurdle in 2007.

Now, of course, Connell is training his horses himself – and making great waves whilst doing it.

He has had two runners in Grade One races this season and won them both. Marine Nationale overcame a mistake at the last to win the Royal Bond at Fairyhouse, while Good Land oozed class in winning the Nathaniel Lacy at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Both horses are now leading contenders to strike Festival gold, with Marine Nationale in line for the curtain-raising Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and Good Land bound for the Ballymore.

“They are both good. We have one last piece of work to do with them before they go but we couldn’t be happier with them,” said Connell.

Good Land was impressive at Leopardstown
Good Land was impressive at Leopardstown (Donall Farmer/PA)

“They are both on course, unless something untoward happens. It’s three weeks from now and won’t be long coming in. We’re very happy with them. Once we get them on the ferry all the hard work is done.

“They have the ability to go over there and win, the two of them. They are both Grade One winners, we are not going over there winging it with something that has won a maiden hurdle. The two of them are entitled to be there on merit.

“It’s a pleasure to be travelling with two fantastic horses like that and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Brandy back in action at Punchestown

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Leading Cheltenham Festival contender Brandy Love will return from 10 months off the track in the Quevega Mares Hurdle at Punchestown on Wednesday.

The seven-year-old will be a hot favourite to make a successful reappearance in a Grade Three contest Willie Mullins has farmed in recent years, with six of the last seven winners hailing from Closutton.

Brandy Love, who not been seen in competitive action since slamming Cheltenham Festival heroine Love Envoi in the Grade One Mares Novice Hurdle Championship Final at Fairyhouse in April, will sport new colours on her comeback having been snapped up by Gold Cup-winning owners Joe and Marie Donnelly.

She is a 7-2 chance with Paddy Power to provide Mullins with a 10th victory in the Mares’ Hurdle at Cheltenham and those odds are sure to contract further if she can make a winning return in a race that has previously won by the likes of Annie Power (2016), Limini (2017) and Laurina (2019).

The biggest threat to Brandy Love in the Racing TV-sponsored contest appears to be the Gordon Elliott-trained Queens Brook, who was last seen chasing home another high-class Mullins mare in Shewearsitwell at Leopardstown in December.

John McConnell’s Scottish Champion Hurdle winner Anna Bunina also merits consideration off the back of finishing fourth to Gaelic Warrior in a competitive handicap hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Declan Queally’s pair of My Design and Robyndeglory, the Stuart Crawford-trained Ailie Rose and Rebel Ivy from James Motherway’s yard complete the field.

Baker hoping to chart Pertemps path with Mullins recruit

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Jon Snow is pencilled in for his British debut at Chepstow on Saturday, as he looks to book his slot at the Cheltenham Festival.

The French-bred gelding was previously run in the Susannah Ricci silks and trained by Willie Mullins, winning five times over hurdles and fences before changing hands last autumn.

George Baker is now the eight-year-old’s trainer after he topped ThoroughBid’s Autumn Sale at £50,000 and is looking forward to running him for the first time for new connections at the weekend.

Entered in the Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle at Chepstow, the horse’s performance will determine which race he lines up for when the Festival gets under way at Cheltenham in March.

“All being well, Jon Snow’s entered up at Chepstow in the Pertemps qualifier on Saturday,” said Baker.

“If he finishes in the first four on Saturday and he qualifies for the Pertemps, he’ll go there.

“That’s over the extended trip, the three-mile trip, which I think would suit him.

“If he doesn’t finish in the first four on Saturday then we have the option of the Coral Cup, he will probably run in one or the other of those two – those are my thoughts are the moment.

“Let’s hope he gets through Saturday in good form, we’re pretty excited to get him out on the track.”

Jon Snow is partly owned by Paul Bowden, the same man also involved in the ownership of Flat campaigner Lucander – a horse likely headed for the Winter Derby at Lingfield after a successful bout in the desert of Bahrain.

Few owners can say they have switched their attentions from the Bahrain Flat scene to the Cheltenham Festival in the space of a month, but Baker’s wide-lens approach has paid dividends for connections so far.

He said: “It’s brilliant really, Paul Bowden has been a fantastic supporter of ours.

“You’ve got to make this game fun for the owners and if that means searching for opportunities on foreign shores then that’s great, and it’s also fantastic to be involved in the bigger races back home.”

Leading contender Hip Hop Conti will swerve cross-country challenge

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Hip Hop Conti will skip the Cheltenham Festival despite the French cross-country specialist enhancing his reputation in a Pau Listed event on Sunday.

As short as 7-1 for the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase, many envisaged the Emmanuel Clayeux-trained six-year-old would attempt to replicate the exploits of Easysland, who lowered the colours of the great Tiger Roll when triumphing for France in the Festival’s most unique contest in 2020.

However, Clayeux is keen to give the son of Lauro plenty of rest following his exertions in the Prix Gaston De Batatille at the weekend, which means embarking on a raiding mission to Prestbury Park is on hold for the time being.

“I’m very happy because I thought he was a bit young for the distance, but he is clearly better than I thought,” said Clayeux.

“The race was run really quick and he didn’t jump very well at the beginning, but he got better and better and finished very quick.”

Explaining the reasoning for missing Cheltenham, he added: “It will come too soon because he had a very hard race.

“He will now come back in October for the next meeting at Pau and not before. He should be better next year.”

Scriptwriter’s owner Adams will be back on more familiar ground this weekend

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Prominent owner Mark Adams hopes it will be ‘downhill’ all the way for Scriptwriter in Saturday’s Coral Adonis Juvenile Hurdle at Kempton.

The Milton Harris-trained four-year-old is among Britain’s top hopes for the JCB Triumph Hurdle, despite having his colours narrowly lowered by Comfort Zone in the trial at Cheltenham last month.

A Group Three performer for Aidan O’Brien on the Flat, Harris shrewdly purchased the Churchill gelding and he won on all three starts for the Warminster handler before going down by three-quarters of a length to the Joseph O’Brien-trained Comfort Zone.

Adams, who also co-owns the likes of last season’s Adonis Hurdle and Aintree’s Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle winner Knight Salute, and last season’s Grand National ninth Jacamar, hopes Scriptwriter can bounce back in the Grade Two contest at the Sunbury track.

“He’s well and we are looking forward to the Adonis and seeing how we got from there,” said Adams.

“I have a lot of faith in the horse, so we have high hopes.”

On Sunday, Harris was in St Moritz to see the Middleham Park-owned Mordred finish unplaced in the Evangelos Pistiolis Foundation – 83rd Grosser Preis von St Moritz, a local Group Two contest on the ‘White Turf’, which was reduced to four furlongs because of melting snow.

The Warminster handler was also an interested bystander as Adams took part in Skijoring, a winter sport in which a person on skis is pulled by a horse, dogs or a motor vehicle.

“It has not gone to plan so far,” said Harris. “Mark got taken out at the start by another horse on Sunday and there’s often a bit of carnage in it. It is not for the faint-hearted.”

Skijoring races span three consecutive weekends and not being one to shirk a challenge, Adams is keen to return for some unfinished business next year.

“I was a bit banged up and bruised last week, but not this weekend,” said the owner.

“I got taken out at the start. One of the other drivers couldn’t control their horse when he came out of the stalls and took me off the track in the wrong direction.

“I managed to turn my horse around, but they wouldn’t let me join in the race. It was disappointing.

“This is the first time I’ve done it, I’ve just got my licence to race this year.

“Milton had been talking about it for a few years. I ride horses as well and kind of put the two together, but I came out and didn’t quite realise how big an event this is.

“I haven’t quite made my mind up if I will do it next year, but I feel a bit frustrated this year and a bit unfulfilled.

“So I am probably going to have to come back next year and have a go.”

Adams quipped: “Milton will probably give me a shove, regardless. I don’t think he’d do it – I’m not sure they’d find a horse big enough to tow him!”

Coltor carrying hopes of Cheltenham success for Nick Bradley Racing

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Nick Bradley and Roger Fell are mostly associated with winners on the Flat, but they are planning an audacious raid on the Cheltenham Festival with ex-Dermot Weld inmate Coltor.

Fifth in the Boodles Fred Winter at Prestbury Park when trained by Weld in 2021, the dual-purpose six-year-old won four times for the legendary Irish handler while housed at Rosewell House, before switching the Curragh for North Yorkshire at a cost of 25,000 guineas last autumn.

A fact-finding mission on the Flat identified the son of Free Eagle requires further than the minimum two miles these days and the plan was hatched to target either the Coral Cup or Pertemps Final at the Festival next month.

Having qualified for the longer of the two races by finishing a close-up second at Musselburgh recently – with Rendlesham winner Wakool back in fourth – Bradley suggests the Pertemps could be the perfect spot for his rare jumps runner unless conditions dictate dropping back in distance.

“We took him for a spin at Kempton on the all-weather to learn a little bit and Tom Marquand rode him. He said there is no way in the world he is a two-mile hurdler,” explained the managing director of Nick Bradley Racing.

“If you look in Ireland they were using various types of headgear, which I’m not a fan of. So we took it all off, went back to basics over two miles on the Flat to get him from 85 per cent fit to 100 per cent fit, so we could go to Musselburgh for the Pertemps qualifier.

“My assistant is called Lewis Poskitt and he needs all the credit as he spotted the race. We were thinking Musselburgh or the Haydock race and obviously we qualified by finishing second anyway so didn’t need to run at Haydock.”

He went on: “That was a great run and he’s come out of the race fine and now he is being put away for a run in either the Pertemps or the Coral Cup. He will probably go for the Pertemps, but if it comes up soft or heavy then it would be Coral Cup.

“The horse who finished behind us at Musselburgh won the Rendlesham and I think we go there with a massive chance.”

It would not be the first time Bradley has enjoyed success at the Festival as he was the man responsible for purchasing Junior on behalf of Middleham Park Racing for £35,000 before he went on to strike at both Royal Ascot and then by a whopping 24-lengths in the Kim Muir while trained by David Pipe.

Nick Bradley speaks to a jockey at Beverley
Nick Bradley speaks to a jockey at Beverley (Mike Egerton/PA)

“Years ago I bought a horse called Junior who won at Royal Ascot and the Cheltenham Festival,” continued Bradley.

“He had the widest winning margin at the Festival until Tiger Roll beat him the other year. He is one I’ve enjoyed success with before.”

Meanwhile, with the start of the Flat turf season just over a month away, Bradley and Fell are targeting Doncaster’s SBK Lincoln with another of their new recruits, Toshizou.

Formerly trained by Joseph O’Brien, he is a best price of 33-1 for the prestigious season-opening handicap and Bradley believes his odds offer real value judged on his best form in Ireland.

He added: “If you watch his two runs last year – the run at the start of the season was really good, he was just too far back. Then he was sent off favourite next time and I thought he ran fine that day but came back lame.

“We got him going early January and we’re on target for the Lincoln. At the moment he might need a little help to get in, but it’s a race that will cut up plenty.

“He will go and have his first away day in about 10 days and we don’t know levels of ability or anything like that at present, but based on the form of his first run in 2022, he was a very well-handicapped horse then and I told all the owners to back him at 40-1 for the Lincoln a few weeks ago. I don’t know what price he is now, but he was definitely the wrong price at 40-1.

“The horse has done everything right so far, but March will be the month we find out more.”

Nicholls fears Cheltenham woe for Lorcan Williams over whip

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Paul Nicholls fears he will be without jockey Lorcan Williams for the Cheltenham Festival after the rider apparently contravened the new whip rules at Haydock on Saturday.

Williams prevailed by a short head aboard Makin’yourmindup in a driving finish to the Albert Bartlett Prestige Novices’ Hurdle, but Nicholls believes the rider had committed a whip offence in the process.

New rules surrounding whip use were introduced last Monday, with a tougher penalty structure for breaches, starting at a four-day suspension for going above the permitted seven strikes.

Nicholls indicated Williams had gone above that threshold, with the race’s Grade Two status ensuring any penalties would be doubled under the new regulations, with the champion trainer claiming the rider is expecting 16 days on the sidelines.

However, the Ditcheat team must wait until the whip review committee meets on Tuesday to have any punishment confirmed and with suspensions implemented seven days later, any ban for Williams would not begin until March 7/8, which would rule him out of Cheltenham if the jockey’s prediction is right.

Nicholls told Betfair: “I think Lorcan has got himself into some hot water under these new whip rules. My understanding and his understanding, but it’s got to be confirmed on Tuesday when the whip review panel meets, he thought he was going to get 16 days which would rule him out of Cheltenham which is tough really.

“It’s one of those situations, he said if he hadn’t given him a couple of cracks, he wouldn’t have won. What was he to do, drop his hands and get beat? This is where there’s a grey area and it’s difficult.

“I don’t what the outcome is, but it looks like he’s going to have to sit out Cheltenham which is terribly sad.”

Any whip suspensions incurred this week would come into effect during Cheltenham week, so Nicholls has warned stable jockey Harry Cobden to keep that in mind over the coming days.

Harry Cobden and Paul Nicholls are on red-alert over the whip
Harry Cobden and Paul Nicholls are on red-alert over the whip (David Davies/PA)

He added: “Harry is going to have to be careful – this is the week the lads have got to be careful, up to and including the weekend, because if you get into trouble, that is when you could well miss Cheltenham.

“The following week, with the structure of the whip review and the dates and that, they’d be OK for Cheltenham. The lads have got to be careful and I’ve already stressed to Harry he’s got to be very careful because we don’t want him missing Cheltenham because that would be a disaster for everyone involved.

“These new whip rules are going to cause a headache, I can see that.”

The British Horseracing Authority underlined no decisions on possible riding offences will be made until the whip review panel meets.

A spokesperson said: “The Whip Review Committee have not yet met to consider referrals from last week. Until they meet to consider the rides then no breaches have occurred and no penalties are decided or imposed, and any suggestion as to possible penalties is pure speculation.”