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Thanks for that TAPK, although I still see him taking a hand in the finish at Cheltenham!
At Aintree he won on good ground, and he showed stamina to beat subsequent Punchestown winner Fiveforthree. Over 2m he would need soft ground, you say.
This is what he got when winning against Punjabi and then Muirhead and Hurricane Fly. If the Champion Hurdle was run on heavy he would probably be 5/2 fav.
Some people were dissapointed with his Newcastle effort, but I thought it was a cracking run. People were fooled into thinking he had a lethal turn of foot after he beat Muirhead, but really it was a case of nothing being able to go with him on that ground when Russell said "go". At Newcastle he was caught flatfooted before staying on really well at the finish.
Today he proved he could win over 2m on decent ground in a race which was not run at lightning pace. I think this was the final piece of evidence that Solwhit is a serious Champion Hurdle contender, and the stronger pace at Cheltenham will only help him more.
Had to back Zaynar again at 5’s, he was pushed out after Solwhits win, but with Karaback, Starluck, Jumbo Rio and Cape Tribulation all in close proximity in their last races and how easy Zaynar beat all of them I had to back him again with the drift.
Still see VC wont budge though.
Jumbo Rio isn’t a bad animal. A more realistic way of placing him behind Zaynar in the Triumph would be just ahead of Mourad, as I’ve no doubt he’s Morad’s superior, and Jumbo Rio didn’t show his true form in the Triumph.
VC won’t move on Zaynar’s price as Victor and his pals own the horse. Would be far more significant if they’re top price about one of the other Henderson horses or a Coolmore horse in any race.
Punjabi again is left out of calculations.He clearly is a very stuffy horse thats needs time to get fit,look at his last run,as he travelled better than anything before blowing up rounding the bend.You can trust henderson will haver him A1 come march time.leave him out at your perril!
Well Sentry Duty just cantered all over Mr Thriller and Katchit, that was impressive, think he will not race till March now.
Henderson has quite a hand for the Champion.
I backed Sentry Duty for last seasons Champion Hurdle but he’d gone off the boil by March.
I think they started him later this season with a view to the Champion Hurdle. It;s interesting that he was quoted at 10/1 for the World Hurdle, butI doubt he’d stay the trip tbh.
With Hurricane Fly most certainly not running seems
Mikael D’Haguenet go for the Champion Hurdle now.- Total Posts 17716
Well Sentry Duty just cantered all over Mr Thriller and Katchit, that was impressive, think he will not race till March now.
Henderson has quite a hand for the Champion.
Wouldn’t think the form’s worth a light myself.
Mr Thriller’s a one-paced galloper who’s won both his races this season off a strong pace, and off a steadier pace Friday got done for toe by a 2 miler. Katchit is a shadow of his former self.
10/1 for the WH is a joke, imo.10/1 is a joke for the World Hurdle maybe, but I wouldn’t rule him out of the Champ.
Sentry Duty has always been a horse with plenty of ability. Beat Celestial Halo as a novice and defied a huge weight to win The Ladbroke last year.
The form may be suspect, but after his performance at Cheltenham on Friday over two miles-five, I’d be more inclined to have a crack at the World Hurdle.
He won a valuable h’cap at Newmarket over one mile-six and given how well he travelled and powered up the hill this past Friday, I would take a chance on his stamina in a fairly average renewal of the World Hurdle (two or three, aside).
Like last season, he’d be no better than mid-field in a Champion, but his class could see him in the mix over a mile further.
I have to say I disagree strongly with that view Bos.
Barry said to Nicky after the race that he’d be dropping him back in distance if it was up to him. The horse has so much speed, and I just can’t see him staying the trip tbh.
He had gone off the boil by the time he ran in last season’s Champion and Big Bucks has the World Hurdle sown up imo. However, seen as they have 3 other live contenders for the Champion they may go down that route.
Mikael has been added to the Champion Hurdle betting following numerous ‘requests’ for a price with William Hill.
Could it be that Willie will be putting chasing on the back burner this season?
The main problem is still tactical. Any number of runners can be e.g. "fancied" and "worth a go at the price" but only one or two will strongly benefit from how the race will be run. The bridle horses will struggle manfully I would have thought, given the forcing pace of Zaynar, Halo, and A.N.Other (MDH?) with Punjabi and perhaps Solwhit tracking just behind, the fancy-dans will be stretched all-out from the get-go, and wouldn’t want to be on any of them after the last.
Punjabi is the champion and he has the best weapon – tactical pace. He cruised round with the "speedster" Binocular in March and then left him trailing as he powered away from him off the bend in pursuit of the hares, having enough stamina and heart to battle past them.
Given the way the race may be run, the champ looks primed for a repeat effort. The other who could perhaps match Punjabi’s race-winning manoeuvre is Solwhit, who would benefit more than most from muddy-soft ground, if it went that way again. Couldn’t rule Halo out either. Impossible race to call with confidence
I think Binocular will put in a performance in the Champion, the likes of Zaynar, MDH and Celestial Halo will help him rather than hamper but maybe the horses mentioned just are that more stronger in the finish but I expect him to be involved in the finish.
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