Not often one to take too
much of an interest midweek (it can be a lottery, particularly in ground
conditions like we are currently ‘enjoying’) but Special Catch was a nice
winner for any of you who follow @kingofthejumps on Twitter. His form stacked up
and he did as expected to take a fairly weak contest at Catterick. If any of
you are on Twitter and not currently following, it may be worth giving us a
follow and a retweet as sometimes the odd fancy will be put on there and not in
the blog if there’s only 1 or 2 of interest on the day. Also feel free to email
kingofthejumps@gmail.com if you
have any comments, feedback, questions or suggestions for this blog.
Off to Ludlow (pictured below) again tomorrow
and felt I should at least browse the declarations for tomorrow’s meetings and
try and pick out the odd one to watch out for. The 2.10pm sees Dark Energy run
for Fergal O’Brien and again Miss Ally Stirling rides. Fergal recently did a
stable tour on the At The Races site and said of this horse: “I'm looking at a ladies race at Ludlow in
mid-December which will be ideal for him”. It’s a
low grade race so he won’t get bullied; jockey knows him well and he proved he
goes on soft ground. It is a 14 runner, Amateur Lady Riders Handicap Hurdle so
he may be an each way price and if he is I’ll probably have a tiny interest.
The following 2.45pm race is
another I may have a small interest in if Allthekingshorses is even a half
decent price as an opening handicap chase mark of 127 could turn out to be
workable for a horse who beat Rocky Creek off level weights over hurdles. I
wouldn’t think he’ll scale the same heights as that rival but is by Kings
Theatre so should make a decent chaser (his trainer seems to be a big fan of
the sire) and although maybe suited by slightly better ground, I thought that
of the same trainer’s (and same sire’s) Carrigmorna King but he justified my
support at this track on chase debut so hopefully Allthekingshorses can do the
same tomorrow.
The other race of interest
is the very next race at 3.15pm which sees Nicky Henderson (pictured below) run the talented Polly Peachum
who has to give 7lb to the field. However, she may just be up to it as the form
of her 3 runs to date looks smart as she wasn’t beaten far on debut in a
jumpers bumper by the impressive Devon Drum, and has subsequently racked up 2
wins in a bumper and a novice hurdle, beating Mischievous Milly in the bumper
(beaten a short head next time before taking hurdles debut by 21 lengths giving
weight away) and Pure Style in the novice hurdle (who won a jumpers bumper on
the bridle by 8 lengths next time out). The other horse I like the look of in
the race is The Wicked Kipper who is a close relation to Cue Card; was beaten
only 3 lengths by the very able Midnight Minx on debut; and is by Kings Theatre
so should improve for hurdles and tomorrow’s step up in trip. The Henderson
horse is likely to be plenty short enough so if the Wicked Keeper is an each
way price it may pay to side with her given the potential for improvement and
the weight she receives.
Over at Newbury, Nicky
Henderson could take the 12.15pm Juvenile Hurdle with the now gelded Amoralist as his
schooling has reportedly gone very much to plan, but the 1.20pm is certainly
the race of the day for me. Alan King runs 2 here and both Arabian Heights
(owned by the McNeil family) and Fair Trade could stake their claims, the
latter having been rated 114 (he ran in the Guineas) and having schooled well.
He is very well regarded by the Barbury Castle team and should make his mark
over hurdles but tomorrow is no easy task as Poet (also smart on the flat), The
Nephew (who cost £55,000 at the sales in the spring and could have more to
offer under Barry Geraghty on better ground than he’s encountered in 2 runs to
date) Snake Eyes (a very well regarded son of Oscar who shocked many when
beaten on debut but surely has plenty more to come) and a couple of other
interesting sorts all line up in this uncharacteristically strong, 19 runner
maiden hurdle! I’ll certainly be going “no bet” but it’s a nice surprise for a
Wednesday afternoon card. Henderson could take the 3pm contest with Cocktails
At Dawn, who he not only loves because of the name but also thinks could be a
very exciting horse. He fell when booked for 2nd in a Point (the
winner sold for £300,000) and is by the same sire as Simonsig, so you would
think he’ll show up well in this Novice Hurdle.
It’s always nice to be on
course so I’m looking forward to Ludlow tomorrow but just praying the predicted
rain doesn’t arrive! As always, it could end up being a day just for watching
but at least there is a bit of quality on show so hopefully it will be a decent
day out - though I doubt we'll be inclined to try out any cocktails on a cold, wintery December day!
Happy Days!
No comments:
Post a Comment