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| National Hunt season 2014 |
Here at the Hit&Miss sports blog we are delighted to Introduce
Racing enthusiast
Chris Day @Chrisday100
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| National Hunt season 2014/15 |
Ten To Follow National Hunt Season 2014-15 to use as potential ante-post betting and to add to your horseracing alerts this season as will The Hit&Miss Sports blog as we will follow all ten as the season progresses big thanks to chris for his hard work and research in compiling his ten to follow this national hunt season.
ALLEZ COLOMBIERES
Willie Mullins has a tremendous record in graded hurdles with recruits from France in recent seasons, Un De Sceaux and Vautour both winning high class races last season and, in Allez Colombieres, I believe he may have another potential star. His 4 year old began life last summer in the same APQS races in which Un De Sceaux learnt his trade and he has already demonstrated an ability to act in heavy ground so ought to have no trouble handling mid winter conditions across the Irish Sea before presumably being aimed at Cheltenham in March.
Mullins’ targets are notably difficult to discern even in the weeks leading up to the festival but my recent information is that stable insiders have been backing him to follow Vautour and Champagne Fever and land a hat trick of Supreme Novice Hurdle victories for the trainer.
BEAT THAT
Perhaps the most impressive victory of Aintree’s 3 day Grand National Meeting was that of Beat That in the Grade 1 3 mile novice hurdle. Nicky Henderson’s 6 year old travelled hard on the bridle until 2 out when he was shaken up to beat Cole Harden, a battle hardened performer, by an eased down 4 lengths, with 25 lengths back to the third. He followed that up with a ¾ length beating of Willie Mullins’ Cheltenham winner, Don Poli 26 days later at Punchestown and always looked like holding his 153 rated rival.
Connections seemed unsure whether he should be aimed at this season’s World Hurdle or go straight over fences, a job he looks made for but, whatever they decide, he’s clearly high class and likely to take a lot of beating.
BROTHER BRIAN
The EBF Novice Hurdle, run at Sandown Imperial Cup Meeting on the Saturday before Cheltenham, has a history of producing high class horses and last season’s renewal has already started to throw up winners from amongst the placed horses. Having stayed on strongly into fourth on the day, he got his reward at Cheltenham in April, winning a decent handicap hurdle comfortably enough from a perch of 127 and his revised rating of 134 should ensure he gets a nice racing weight in a race like Haydock’s Fixed Brush Handicap Hurdle on Betfair Chase day before presumably pursuing a career over fences.
He could end up a fancied runner in the 2 mile 5 furlong novice handicap chase at the festival given that he’s already shown a liking for the track and is likely to prove a better horse over fences.
DOCTOR HARPER
Anyone who saw Doctor Harper grind it out from a mark of 138 in a 22 runner handicap hurdle over 3 miles 1 furlong at Aintree in April will have no doubt what his job is likely to be in future seasons. Having finished third in the aforementioned EBF Final, he relished the step up in trip and fierce pace at Liverpool and saw it out very well when strongly challenged from the last, displaying an attitude which should stand him in good stead when sent chasing.
Raised 7lbs for that victory, the stable have a great record in Haydock’s Fixed Brush Handicap Hurdle in November and he could join his illustrious counterparts, Gevrey Chambertin, Dynaste and Grands Crus, who have taken the prize in recent seasons before embarking on a career which could take him perhaps to the RSA Chase but likely to the Hennessy and possibly even Grand National in years to come.
CALIPTO
Paul Nicholls’ 4 year old was made favourite for last season’s Triumph Hurdle on the back of a very impressive 3 ¾ length beating of subsequent Adonis Hurdle winner, Activial, at Newbury’s Hennessy meeting and a subsequent victory over course and distance in February. His stirrup leather broke at Cheltenham when he looked to be going best of all and he appeared to get lit up when sent off market leader for the Aintree version when fading into 3rd behind Guitar Pete 20 days later. The trainer seemed to rate him very highly in the run up to Cheltenham and his current mark of 143 ought to be very workable in top class handicap company this winter.
It won’t have been wasted on his trainer how well he appeared to like Newbury’s flat circuit and he could reappear in the Gerry Feilden Hurdle in November with a run in the Betfair Hurdle in February a likely precursor to the Champion Hurdle 6 weeks later. Zarkandar won the Betfair before a good run at Cheltenham and Nicholls could be eyeing a similar path.
CHAMPAGNE WEST
After finishing a 10 length second to Beat That at Ascot in November, Champagne West rolled off a hat trick of victories in novice hurdles before finishing off his campaign with a fourth place in the Sun Alliance Novice Hurdle at Cheltenham. He may not have truly stayed the 3 mile trip in Grade 1 company but was only a short head away from third place and is a very interesting prospect for staying novice chases this season.
Possibly likely to begin over 2 ½ miles on soft ground, Hobbs is never afraid to run his novice chasers in good class open handicaps and the 2 ½ mile handicap chase at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day before a step up to 3 miles in the Betbright Chase at Kempton in February could be legitimate targets if he takes to chasing as his point to point background suggests he should.
SAPHIR DU RHEU
In conceding 11lbs and defeating subsequent Coral Cup and Grade 1 hurdle winner, Whisper, at Ffos Las in early February, Paul Nicholls’ 5 year old arguably put up one of the handicap performances of last season and he was clearly over the top when disappointing at Fontwell 22 days later and wisely put away for the season. He’d earlier won the competitive looking Lanzarote Hurdle with the minimum of fuss from mark of 145 and was being touted as a World Hurdle contender, although Nicholls always maintained that he'd look after him with a view to sending him chasing this season.
He thrives on heavy ground but also operates on a less testing surface and, as he improved his hurdle rating by 35lbs last term, must be viewed as a serious contender wherever he appears this season.
SGT RECKLESS
Despite being placed in the best 2 mile novice hurdles at Cheltenham, Aintree and Punchestown last spring, it’s fair to say Mick Channon’s 7 year old revealed himself to be 10 lbs short of top class over the smaller obstacles but that only really tells half the story.
At Cheltenham he was given an exaggerated waiting ride by Dominic Elsworth and made up a vast amount of ground in the strait to come home fourth before finishing further behind Josses Hill when second at Aintree when ridden closer to the pace but these were only his fourth and fifth races over hurdles and he appeared a bit backward and big for the smaller obstacles compared to the more flashy flat breds he was competing with.
The owner had both Calypso Bay and Somersby acquit themselves well in Arkle Chases but I think this horse may be better over further and the JLT Chase over 2 miles 5 furlongs would be an ideal target in the spring. Before that, expect to see him bid to win the King Henry V111 Novice Chase at Sandown’s Tingle Creek Meeting, a race his former trainer always liked to aim her better novice chasers at.
SUNTIEP
Perhaps the most difficult to understand ride at the Cheltenham Festival was that given to Suntiep in the 4 mile chase for amateur riders by Patrick Mullins, who appeared to exude confidence by holding his horse up at the back of the field, only allowing him to come off the bridle 3 out and ending up less than 2 lengths behind the winner. When he'd previously won a small race round Fairyhouse in heavy ground, the trainer said he’d be willing to come out of retirement to ride him, so assured was his jumping.
Now rated 138, he'll need to improve on that to get in the Grand National field but I'm pretty sure that will be easily within his compass as he’s only appeared on a racecourse on 6 occasions and he'd be at the top of my Grand National List for April at this stage.
TAQUIN DU SEUIL
Immediately after Taquin Du Seuil had crossed the line first in last season’s JLT, Jonjo O'Neill appeared to say this was the horse he considered to be his best chance of landing the 2015 Gold Cup and, despite him having dual festival and Grade 1 winner, Holywell, in his stable, I’d have no hesitation in agreeing with him. A grade 1 winner over 2 ½ miles over hurdles at Sandown, the only blip last season was when he was beaten into third at Sandown in a Grade 1 over 2 miles on good ground, a defeat which appeared to convince connections to step him up in trip.
A gorgeous looking horse who appears to handle all underfoot conditions, he can easily improve on his 159 rating once he goes over further which will presumably be on the radar early this season.
There is space at the top table for staying chasers this season and, at 25-1 for the Gold Cup, he’s the only ante post bet I’ll be recommending at this point. The bonus is that AP McCoy will be riding him and the stable obviously know what’s required to win the big one plus the races to take in on the way.
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