Equinties - no stars in sight

Gm Equinauts

A brilliant winner for our bumper preview in OLD BLUE EYES yesterday at an unbelievable price given the pedigree he owned.

We have three to dissect today! Subscribe to our weekender edition to enter the bumper competition.

Let’s dive in.

HEADLINE ROUNDUP

NO STAR IN SIGHT

KAUTO STAR was the chaser of a lifetime.

Remember his 2011 King George win when he beat LONG RUN in an all-time classic with the likes of CAPTIAN CHRIS, SOMERSBY, and MASTER MINDED in behind?

A history maker.

That all seems like a long time ago now as this year’s King George renewal looks set to be a bit below average, as shown by yesterday's scratchings.

Unfortunately, all of Willie Mullins’ horses were taken out of the King George yesterday including the ante-post favourite GAELIC WARRIOR.

In all honesty, we only expected him and IL ETAIT TEMPS to go to the race, but with the fact that Mullins doesn’t want to run GAELIC WARRIOR overseas at three miles on his first start of the season, he will stay at home and run over the minimum distance instead.

As for IL ETAIT TEMPS, he has had a setback which has caused his scratching.

So, this is the race we are left with; we have CORBETTS CROSS and ENVOI ALLEN strongly representing the Irish with FOUND A FIFTY in there for Gordon Elliott after scrambling home recently.

BANBRIDGE and HEWICK are not certain to run if the ground is soft, JUNGLE BOOGIE would want it soft to run, and the same can be said for ROYALE PAGAILLE.

BRAVEMANSGAME is working back from the Grand National, AHOY SENOR is… well, he’s AHOY SENOR, GA LAW has yet to prove himself truly in Grade 1 company, GINNY’S DESTINY is not proven in this company either or over this distance, GREY DAWNING probably won’t run, L’HOMME PRESSE is having his first start of the season though he could be a danger, and PROTEKTORAT is returning to three miles for the first time since he was beaten in the 2024 Denman Chase.

That’s your British and Irish competitors for the King George, though France could have IL EST FRANCAIS (if he is sound) and GENERAL EN CHEF (depending on his run in Saturday’s Coral Gold Cup) to run also.

With such a weak race at present, Dan Skelton has now given the race a second thought for his up and coming top chaser GREY DAWNING otherwise, that’s it, ladies and gentlemen, that’s the King George.

It’s certainly no vintage renewal and you might drop your knife and fork at the Christmas dinner table to go watch it, you might not.

However, it could get a boost if…

FAST TRACK TO KEMPTON

… a few Irish horses get supplemented.

Yes, having mentioned frequently (most recently in Monday’s Newsletter), FASTORSLOW should be supplemented for the King George.

Why do we bring this up again? Well, there is fuel to the fire to suggest that he might.

In the Racing Post, trainer Martin Brassil said: "If everything goes well with him over the next few weeks we'll consider supplementing him. There is also the option of running in the Savills Chase at Leopardstown over Christmas as well, so we'll run in one of the two I would imagine.

"We know he's a better horse on better ground and we'll see what way the ground is at Kempton."

So, it looks like ground will be a key thing behind him being supplemented, but either way, he could win the race if it was soft ground!

If he isn’t supplemented, could the horse that finished two places ahead of him in the John Durkan go?

That’s right, would SPILLANE’S TOWER be a live player in the King George?

He did plenty to prove to us that he is a good Grade 1 chaser on Sunday, and with JP McManus looking to split up FACT TO FILE, CORBETTS CROSS (who will go to Kempton), I AM MAXIMUS, and INOTHEWAYURTHINKIN, could Jimmy Mangan’s six-year-old grab the boat with CORBETTS CROSS to come over to Kempton?

With Mangan pretty insistent on the fact that he needed the run on Sunday, one would hope he’ll improve and could be a player wherever he runs at Christmas.

A LOOK AHEAD

If you thought the King George was a damp squib, then you’re going to hate the old Hennessy!

It’s that time of week again where we start eyeing up a race for the weekend and today a very, very poor renewal of the old Hennessy, now the Coral Gold Cup, is under the microscope, so let’s dive in.

COLONEL HARRY represents the same connections that won it last year and he’ll come on for his second in the Colin Parker. He beat TRELAWNE in a Grade 2 at Wetherby last season before running okay in Grade 1s at Aintree and Cheltenham. Those latter races have helped his rating stay below 150 and he’s a fair joint favourite with the Irish raider for De Bromhead.

De Bromhead’s is SENIOR CHIEF who is coming to our home ground fit having won lto at Cheltenham. Described as a big baby still last year, he has come into himself and looks on the up. His pedigree suggests the more rain the better so the predicted soft ground will be right up his street. Deserved fave.

Willy Twiston-Davies thinks BROADWAY BOY has “got a very good chance” based on his nice seasonal reappearance at Cheltenham lto but then again, SENIOR CHIEF was having his seasonal starter too and pumped BROADWAY BOY. Big swing in the weights though now in favour of BB.

His second to FLOORING PORTER last year before bolting up at Cheltenham and then justifying a mark of 146 in a handicap at Prestbury Park is good form.

That last win at Prestbury Park saw him beat a subsequent winner THREEUNDERTHRUFIVE and Ryanair winner PROTEKTORAT, so it’s hard to knock the form considering he’s rated 148.

SENIOR CHIEF beat him that day, and he beat him by a good distance as well, but can he maintain the form?

He’s still fairly unexposed and the cheekpieces did the trick at Cheltenham lto. He was also second to the subsequent Bet365 Gold Cup winner MINELLA COCOONER in a Navan beginners chase last season, so that form looks nice.

VICTTORINO has dropped down to a nice mark of 143 and we are certainly in Venetia Wonderland at the moment. He won nicely at Ascot on good around Christmas last year off 142, so he’s well-weighted. Will he like the ground? Well, he bolted up on soft last season as well, so he should handle it nicely.

Paul Nicholls has planned KANDOO KID towards this race for a while and all the pieces are starting to fall into place. He’s unexposed over staying distances as he hasn’t tried it very much. The one time he did he pulled up, but the ground was quite quick. He has nice form with DJELO, but potentially has something to prove off 145.

GALIA DES LITEAUX is the likely runner for the Dan Skelton yard, and she should go well. She was campaigned in a mixture of mares’ chases and handicaps last season, though he was second to MY SILVER LINING in the Classic Chase off 142. It’s her second run after a wind-op, though she is two pounds higher than that second in the Classic Chase. Could it be one more run and then head back to Warwick?

GENERAL EN CHEF has Grade 1 form in France, connections aren’t coming over for no reason, and he also has race fitness.

HENRY’S FRIEND was a Grade 2 winner last season and with a run under his belt over hurdles, this has clearly been a plan and he runs with a light weight.

REMASTERED was second in this race to LE MILOS in 2022, so he comes here off a three-pound higher mark. He has good course form, but maybe he gave up his chance by winning at Wincanton last month.

Verdict: This is a vote with our heart over our head here because we love MIDNIGHT RIVER and we know this race has been the plan for a year. He has had a nasty fall since that plan was put in place so it was nice to see Harry give him an easy time of things lto on reappearance. Harry is currently jocked up on their other horse so we shan’t pay anything yet and wait for the day but at least now you know who we’re eyeing up. he’s a class horse.

RISK ON

We are still working on the bets and will post to X @equinties

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