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Next big trial is the Fighting Fifth.
IF and its a big IF the following lineup we will know a lot more.
Punjabi
Hurricane Fly
Starluck
SolwhitI love it when people write shyte on here
If I was Wullie Mullins I would be over the moon with the way Hurricane Fly ran there.Over the moon my Ar*e,there was a lack of spark in that performance,fair enough if he was only running on 3 cylinders but it would appear he was running on 4,if i wasn"t team captain of Celestial Halo utd,i would be playing for the Hurricane fly rovers and i would be questioning our commitment!
Id have to be on Binocular…and i still believe if AP could ride the CH again there would be a different result.
The most downbeat thing about Hurricane Fly was how easy Solwhit beat him, he never needed the whip and he will come on for that run, I think Solwhit has a big chance and will appericate the hill.
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If Dunguib takes his place in the Royal Bond a week on Sunday, it will be the third time we have seen him in only 35 days. Despite the ease with which he has won his first two races, is that not a tad unusual for a horse of his undoubted ability and potential?
Perhaps there’s absolutely nothing for him after Christmas, or he simply needs racing to keep him fit, but it looks to me as though Fenton is getting as many runs as he dare in to him so as to give himself the option of aiming him at the Champion Hurdle.
If Hurricane Fly wins impressively next time out then the Supreme will be the target. If he doesn’t, I can see connections of Dunguib having a very difficult decision to make.
- Total Posts 170
It’s an easy decision.
Have a great chance to win at the festival for the 2nd time in the Supreme.
Run the race of his life in the CH and maybe not finish in the top three.
It’s going to be a great race again this year and I would take all of the below to finish in front of Dunguib. (not in this order!)
Celestial Halo
Binocular
Solwhit
Punjabi
Hurricane FlyAll young horses – its not like the Hardy Eustace/ Brave Inca/ Harchibald era as it was 2/3 years ago when they were coming to the end and not a huge amount of good horses were coming through. These animals are here to stay for the next 3 or 4 years and though a year on, Dunguib could have a good chance, why not take the better opportunity for a festival win now?
This does not include other good performers such as Zaynar that could be aimed at it
If it came up good ground, you could add Starluck into that list as well.
If Dunguib takes his place in the Royal Bond a week on Sunday, it will be the third time we have seen him in only 35 days. Despite the ease with which he has won his first two races, is that not a tad unusual for a horse of his undoubted ability and potential?
Perhaps there’s absolutely nothing for him after Christmas, or he simply needs racing to keep him fit, but it looks to me as though Fenton is getting as many runs as he dare in to him so as to give himself the option of aiming him at the Champion Hurdle.
If Hurricane Fly wins impressively next time out then the Supreme will be the target. If he doesn’t, I can see connections of Dunguib having a very difficult decision to make.
Dunguib only ran at Punchestown on Saturday because he was supposed to go for a school and a gallop up the Curragh as his main preparation for the Royal Bond but the weather put a halt to that plan.
After the Royal Bond there’s only probably two other races he’ll run in – Leopardstown at Christmas and the Deloitte and Touche at the Hennessy meeting. Five runs over hurdles for a novice going to Cheltenham would be about the norm I would’ve thought.
- Total Posts 17716
Ya!! keep running him
I agree with Red saying Solwit will appreciate the hill but I doubt if he will appreciate the gallop. I’m not convinced that race against Muirhead and an under par Hurricane Fly or the fact he beat Punjabi in heavy ground means he’s some sort of speed merchant and that would be my worry with him.
Discounting his latest win I think the horse stays too well to be flying round Cheltenham at a rate of knotts. will get too far behind and be finishing better than most but for plave money.
Tony McCoy said he was happy to be riding Binocular did he? Tony McCoy said he’s the best hurdler he’s ever sat on so it’s little wonder he’s happy.
As Bear says if he could ride him again in last seasons race it would be a different result. I’m see most of you are trying to finds one to beat him, even trying to convince yourselves Dunguib will run……..absolutely nbo chance of that happening.Come the day there can be only one:-
Binocular Champion Hurdler 2009
Come the day there can be only one:-
Binocular Champion Hurdler 2009Punjabi beat the 2010 winner Celestial Halo then mate!
My take on the main contenders imo for the champion are;
HURRICANE FLY: Year too early,also has to convince against older horses and outside his own country.Hype horse from the irish who crave another istabraq..an istabraq hes not.
SOLWHIT: Can see this fellow being a standing dish in the 2m 4f aintree hurdle ala Al Eile.Cheltenham may be a problem for him though,although i fancy if conditions are right and hes in touch 2 out…he could make them go.Sure to stay on up the hill too.
DUNGUIB: Class animal but deffo a year too early,would be folly to risk him in a champion in his first season hurdling.Should be a supreme nov hdl banker.
PUNJABI: Reigning champ but i feel a rather lucky champ.Everything fell in his lap for him but if the 3 jockeys on the leaders could ride the last 2 flights again then iv no doubt in my mind it wouldve been Binocular,CH,Punjabi in that order.Place claim this year at best.
CELESTIAL HALO: I see this running a big race,especially if the ground was against Binocular.If ruby conserves a little on him this year and kicks between the last 2 he will gallop on all the way to the line.
BINOCULAR: Many people thought he was champion hurdler in waiting 2009,but im sure he will atone in 2010.AP will be counting the days till this race as i think that day still irks him.Providing the horse is in good nick then i cant see past him…..unless the ground was bottomless.
Out of everything else i think GO NATIVE could be an interesting horse if he got his ground and a fast pace.Acts on the track and march may just be his time of year.
All in all id go BINOCULAR-CELESTIAL HALO 1-2.
Celestial Halo is by and far my favorite horse in this division and IMO is he gets gd-sft for this he will he very hard to beat. His performance in the 2008 Triumph Hurdle is still the best 2mile hurdling performance I have seen since getting into National Hunt a few years ago, and I cant think of anything in this division that would have beaten him that day with everything in his favour.
Zaynar IMO is also at his best on gd-sft and he looks a decent animal but it remains to be seen if he could cope with Celetial Halo on the surface.
Hurricane Fly should also love good or good to soft but think Celestial Halo could run him out of it. I have not written off hurricane fly yet because I never expected him to beat solwit the other week anyway, but at the same time I think he has a lot of speed and on gd-sft I think he could be vulnerable to the Halo.
Solwhit loves soft/heavy going and on those terms he would be very hard to beat. I would not hold it against Hurricane Fly too much for getting beaten by solwit on bottomless ground because it is just what Solwit does and he is probably the best about at doing it, hurricane fly wasnt running against horses of Solwits calibre last year on bottomless ground.
Punjabi and Binocular also love good ground and it would be a very good race on those terms between those two and Hurricane Fly, with celestial halo probably also in the Mix.
I always bet cheltenham antepost for gd-sft ground and so I have to go with Celestial Halo, he is the monster in this division IMO.
I always bet cheltenham antepost for gd-sft ground and so I have to go with Celestial Halo, he is the monster in this division IMO.
You are a quick learner Bulwark!
I wouldn’t rule Dunguib out of the equation just yet. He could yet turn out to be the Fly in the Hurricane’s ointment.
Inexperienced horses do win Champion Hurdles you know.
Gambling Only Pays When You're Winning
Where does that leave us?
They walked for the first mile and you couldn’t have ruled any of them out turning in so its probably best not to read too much into it.
Go Native was very impressive though. Looks the new Harchibald. I’m having some more of that 11/2 Hurricane Fly given how easily he dismissed Go Native last year. Maybe Colm Murphy might have a change of heart with Voler La Vedette?
She’d be the one to have a saver on IC. Looks like Zaynar is the best hurdler at Hendersons now – doesn’t look like the Champion Hurdle form last season is worth too much though.
Punjabi/Celestial Halo?
Really has blown the market right open.
The formlines are all over the place. Solwhit beats Hurricane Fly, Hurricane Fly has beaten Go Native, Voler La Vedette beats Go Native, Go Native beats Solwhit and Binocular, Binocular has beaten Celestial Halo, Solwhit has beaten Punjabi, Punjabi has beaten Celestial Halo and Binocular.
Jaysus my head hurts!!
Dunguib or Hardy Eustace maybe??!!!
If I was Wullie Mullins I would be over the moon with the way Hurricane Fly ran there.
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