Here are a few horse that I'm looking forward to this National Hunt season.
Beherayn
4yo B-G
H D Daly
34-
Very eye-catching bumper performer last season and there was plenty to like about his debut over 2m at Warwick. He showed plenty of speed that day and just weakened late on. Never able to keep tabs on the leaders over 1m 5f at Newbury he kept on late suggesting the 2m would be no problem in the future. No surprise to see him come out and win his bumper early but he is a nice big strong sort who should be able pay his way in novice hurdles over 2m – 2m 4f. He’s a nice prospect.
Charlotte Street
5yo B-G
C Llewellyn
3-
I’m not normally a big fan of bumper horses but this gelding impressed me on his debut when staying on well for a remote 3rd behind a highly regarded horse of Nigel Twiston Davies. The son of Sassanian kept on in taking style and he still looked like he had plenty of growing to do. Having not raced since November he was probably weak or had a problem but he is a horse I feel with have no problems winning his bumper early in the season before making an impact in 2m 4f – 3m novice hurdles. He has a bright future.
Duc De Regniere
5yo B-G
N J Henderson
110-
Very impressive French bred gelding who created a decent impression when winning at Newbury on his debut. Always travelling well he pulled clear of some useful horses and looked a smart act. Followed up that win with an impressive display at Kempton when stepping up in trip and looked quite an exciting prospect. Disappointing at Cheltenham in March that run is best forgotten. He strikes me as a useful individual and should be interesting if he is sent chasing this season. He is sure to win races.
Go Johnny
7yo B-G
V R A Dartnall
04055-
Not exactly form to get excited about but I just think this horse may be very well handicapped off 92 and he has shown glimmers that he has races in him. Having found trips of 2m – 2m 2f too short for him on his first 3 starts he looked capable of improvement when making his handicap debut over 3m. Travelling nicely he was always looking a threat before weakening after a mistake 4 flights from home. Dropped back to 2m 4f on his next start he was never really fluent in his jumping and looked outpaced the whole way. This was not his showing and I feel we will see more of him this year over 2m 4f – 3m. If taken the handicap chase route I’m sure he’ll be capable of winning a few races off his very lowly mark.
Kealshore Lad
6yo B-G
D McCain Jnr
15522-
A horse that seems to revel in testing conditions and stays about 3m. Looks the type who could be much better if sent chasing this season and possibly well handicapped enough off a mark of 110. His trainer done very well with his runners in handicap chases last season and I just feel we haven’t seen the best of this horse yet. Regardless to whether he stays hurdling or goes chasing I would be very confident of him winning 3 or 4 races. He needs soft ground.
Mistanoora
8yo B-G
N A Twiston-Davies
6060040-
Well many people will think I’ve gone mad including this horse but I assure you there is a big handicap hurdle in this horse this season and I really think he could pop in at a big price sooner or later. He was a horse I monitored closely last season and he is seen to him best over a stiff 3m with a bit of cut in the ground. Having dropped all the way down to 131 she was a solid 4th in the Pertemps at Cheltenham and despite a 6lb rise I still feel he is well handicapped. Formally rated 155 he is still well handicapped to pop in, in one of these decent staying handicaps this season. I would like to see David England take 5lb off his back one day and I’m confident he will collect a decent prize or two this season.
Openditch
5yo B-G
H C Knight
134-
A winner and then 3rd in a bumper last season he was made a solid 2nd favourite for his hurdles debut but failed to get into serious contention before staying on late when the race was over. Looks the sort that will be suited by 3m this season and could develop into a fair handicap novice hurdler. Future lies over fences but could pick up a couple of hurdles events before going chasing. He should make a smart chaser in time and is a nice prospect who is capable of winning his novice first time out this year.
Oedipe
5yo Ch-G
N J Henderson
1-
The question of the best handicapped chaser in Britain is very simple in my eyes and it’s a question that needs a one word answer. That answer is Oedipe and for me he is one of the most exciting prospects in training this season.
Having been well talked up prior to his British debut at Kempton he faced a good bunch of novice handicap chasers and whilst a mark of 117 was being said as extremely low by many French form followers it remained to be proven.
Proven it was and he probably was a more impressive winner than what Kauto Star was in the King George and that’s saying something. He just travelled like a smart act and he moved through to lead with distinct ease. Striding through to lead 5 out he just kicked on 3 out and turned the race into a procession. Dickie Johnson was looking around coming to the last but there was nothing in the same postcode as this horse and he won in an absolute hack canter.
The handicapper done his utmost really to give this horse a fair rise but even the 20lb he put this horse up looks extremely fair and he just looks an absolute future star of the chasing game. Connections must have realised how well treated he was to leave him for the rest of the season and now he gets to start his second season chasing off an unbelievable mark of 137.
So what’s the plan then, well considering he is from the same ownership as the Henderson’s former smart chaser Fondmort it would only be right to see him be aimed at the Paddy Power Gold Cup, then the Boylesports Gold Cup. He is definitely off a mark that could see him win both and I think he is a serious chaser in the making. This horse could easily tear through the handicap ranks this season and I really expect him to win a couple of big races along the way. He just looks such a natural star to me and Im very excited to see whether connections keep at 2m 4f or extend him up to 3m later in the season. I suppose the Paddy power is the race he looks a shoe in for and with that in mind if he’s in the weights he will be one of my big early season bets. Oedipe is definitely a horse with huge potential and he is one horse who I think we will hear plenty of this season. He oozes class and off a mark of 137 he is a handicap certainty wherever he starts off this season.
Palarshan
9yo B/Br-G
H D Daly
2-
This is a horse I have always liked and I personally feel he has a big chase in him at some stage. Having missed all of 2006 through injury he returned at the Cheltenham festival in March for the Racing Post Plate (the race in which he got injured in 2 years before hand) and he ran a blinder coming 2nd to the talented and consistent Idole First. Having been settled in rear early he stayed on well and wasn’t knocked about. He was running on strongly up the hill and he gave the impression his problems were behind him and he was ready to kick start his career again.
I feel this horse is going to be a top class handicap chaser this season and it was nice to see him put away after that effort instead of rushing him for Aintree or Ayr. He looks sure to do very well this year and off 138 he doesn’t look badly handicapped. He clearly needs at least 2m 5f and with the impression 3m will suit better there is no reason why he couldn’t turn out to be an ideal Hennessy Gold Cup prospect. Best suited by a bit of cut in the ground he is a horse I expect to do well in leading handicaps this season and is very much one to stay on the right side of. I could see him winning either the Hennessy or the Boylesports Gold Cup this year, he’s that sort of horse and if anything he looked better than ever at Cheltenham in March, having been off so long there is certainly more to come.
Ring Back
6yo Ch-M
B I Case
26210-
The first thing I noticed with this horse is that she doesn’t stay an inch above 2m 4f and with that I think you can ignore her efforts at Cheltenham, Plumpton and Huntingdon last season. If you do that her form is 21 and for me her run at Towcester was mightily impressive when scooting up over a stiff 2m on testing ground. This to me shows she could stay slightly further than 2m and with that in mind I would be inclined to back her in 17-19f handicap hurdles this season especially on soft ground.
Rated 109 she is certainly well handicapped and given connections have booked Tony McCoy on a couple of occasions suggest they think a bit of this filly. She is still relatively unexposed and she looks the type to do very well in handicap hurdles over the trips previously mentioned.
Seven Is My Number
5yo B-G
D E Pipe
10-
I was once told to always follow Pipe horses that win their bumpers on their debut as they usually end up top class chasers. If that is the case then Seven Is My Number must be worthy of respect. The Ascot race he won on debut was hardly a top class bumper but he was well supported prior to the race and he won with plenty of authority. On his 2nd start he was never travelling and it just wasn’t his showing at all. He was again supported before hand and the vibes on track was that he was quite useful. Given the ground was much better when he won at Ascot its fair to say he doesn’t want soft ground. I just feel he could make into a useful novice hurdler this season before becoming a smart chaser next season. He is a horse I’m keen to stay on the right side of this season and I think he could have a big year ahead of him.
Snow Patrol 6yo Gr-G
P J Hobbs
1-
A winner on his only start for this yard and he was very impressive beating some fair sorts in good style. Relishing the ground he looked a decent prospect and given he had previously shown good form in Ireland he could end up being a very serious prospect. A mark of 115 looks very soft in my opinion and I can see him winning a few handicaps on soft ground before the handicapper gets him. He is bred to love soft ground and when conditions are like that he looks one who could win some good races over the minimum trip.
Star De Mohaison 6yo B-G
P F Nicholls
11-
One of the leading 3m chasers in Britain and returned in emphatic style over hurdles last season destroying what was a competitive field over hurdles. Always looking a smart act he continued his forward stance over fences with a gutsy win over the Listener at Sandown where his jumping really won him the race. The Listener loomed large at nearly every fence but he kept pulling out fantastic jump after another fantastic jump. Finally seeing off his rival at the last fence he stayed on strongly up the hill looking as if he could go round again.
The one thing that wins this horse his races is his outstanding jumping and he has the ability to just stand off a fence and land running. It was his jumping that saw him become the leading 3m novice chaser the year before and his Sun Alliance win at Cheltenham was one of the spectacles of the season as he gradually turned the screw on his rivals one by one and saw them all off with an outstanding leap two out.
He has always struck me as one of the most talented chasers in his yard but I can’t help feeling that Paul Nicholls would rather see Denman or Kauto Star win the Gold Cup than this fellow.
He has speed so there is no reason why he couldn’t become a Ryanair prospect but the fact this horse jumps and stays all day has always led me to believe me would be more than classy enough to win a Gold Cup in a normal year.
Having been sidelined for the 2nd part of last season through injury in remains to be seen when he will make his reappearance this season but I wouldn’t be surprised if connections decided that he is still well treated off 139 over hurdles and looked at a staying handicap hurdle sometime in December for him before going chasing again after Christmas.
The handicapper has this horse rated 158 over fences and for me he could be an interesting horse for the National if allowed to run off a similar weight. His mix of speed, stamina and raw jumping ability are all outstanding credentials for a National prospect and for me he is one of the most exciting chasers in the country. Bar Kauto Star and Denman I feel he is the best staying chaser in training and I still don’t think we have seen the best of him yet.
Theatre Knight
9yo B-G
J Howard Johnson
13542-
This horse was one of my biggest bets last season when he won on his reappearance and he showed endless stamina running on all the way to the line to gain an emphatic success. The handicapper was quite fair on him but he struggled next time due to the drop in trip and not because he was up in grade.
Over 3m 6f he just struggled to stay next time and having looked dangerous early on he faded late finishing in the middle of the pack.
He then just didn’t get home over 3m 1f next time on soft ground but showed his ability when a good 2nd in the Topham at Aintree in April.
He is that type of horse that wins his races with very good jumps and I don’t really think we have seen the best of him yet.
This season I would expect to see him staying 3m easily and I would think all of the yards horses will be a lot better this year as the yards horses haven’t totally been right the past two years and that means most of them are open to improvement.
Although stamina is still an issue I do feel this horse could make up into a Grand National prospect and he does seem versatile when it comes down to ground conditions. He is a horse that I could see winning a couple of fair handicap chases this year before being aimed for the National. He loved those fences last season.
Chris
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