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HEADLINE ROUNDUP

NOT GONE YET

Yesterday was about confidence for EL FABIOLO, and he got that by the bucket-full, as the former Arkle winner returned to the winners’ enclosure for the first time in nearly 23 months.

Yes, the race was a who’s who of good horses not at their best. SPILLANE’S TOWER, last year’s King George favourite, is a prime example of this, and the inclusion of LANTRY LADY, BALLYADAM, and SHOOT FIRST also confirmed this.

EL FABIOLO was one who seamlessly fit into this category pre-race, but there was no doubting the performance he produced as soon as the flag was raised. He was dominant. It’s weird to say this about an impressive Irish & English Arkle winner who went off 2/9 for the 2024 Queen Mother Champion Chase, but fences didn’t seem to suit him.
We don’t know what happened after his novice season, but he started jumping really badly, ever since the Champion Chase fall. Even before then, he was showing a good engine, but on the way to winning the Irish & English Arkle, he was far from fluent at his obstacles.

After falling on his final two starts of last season, he was naturally going to come back to hurdles, and he will be staying over flights for the foreseeable.
This then begs the question of where next, and what will be his main target?
Post-race, Willie Mullins said: "We'll probably stay over hurdles for the foreseeable future, but I'll have a word with Simon and Isaac.

"I think that trip [2m3f] looked fine. He could go back to two miles. I'm looking at a race like the Aintree Hurdle, but the Irish Champion Hurdle and Red Mills Hurdle could be options as well."

Will he be heading to the Champion Hurdle? Surely not. Does he have to be considered for the Aintree Hurdle? Well, yes.

Say we get to the end of the season and EL FABIOLO has dotted up in the Red Mills Hurdle, he will be a horse heading to a big spring festival that hasn’t already had a hard spring festival race. LOSSIEMOUTH, BRIGHTERDAYSAHEAD, SIR GINO, GOLDEN ACE, THE NEW LION and more will have had this, and EL FABIOLO, on his day, is very talented.

He has the ability to come on for yesterday’s seasonal reappearance, and he jumped fine to us on his return to hurdles. Maybe he’s wasted too long over fences, and we say the term “wasted” loosely as he did win four Grade 1s, but he had a bit of the old EL FABIOLO about him yesterday, and you’d have to be a fair cynic to write him off from Grade 1 contests over 2m4f going forward.

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BIG RACE PREVIEWS

14.25 GRADE 3 NEW YEAR’S DAY CHASE

Tramore’s feature race of the day is the contest that AL BOUM PHOTO used to mop up on the way to the Gold Cup. Yes, it’s the New Year’s Day Chase.
This year’s race isn’t a walkover for a Willie Mullins contender; it’s actually quite competitive!

HEART WOOD heads the market. He’s worth trying this trip again after his winning effort over three miles two starts ago, and the John Durkan never really went his way. He isn’t a Grade 1 horse, but he does have some nice form with FACT TO FILE from the Ryanair, and he was fourth to GALOPIN DES CHAMPS in last year’s Savills Chase. This is the type of race he can win.

CHAMP KIELY is back after a whopping four-day break! He ran in the Savills Chase, but he clipped heels with FASTORSLOW and quickly shipped off Harry Cobden. He was good enough to give ONLY BY NIGHT a proper race over two miles at Naas on seasonal reappearance, and he won a Grade 1 over three miles on his final start of last season. Conditions should suit.

CROKE PARK hasn’t won in over a year (four starts), and some of the races he’s contested haven’t been vintage. HEART WOOD has him held based on their Punchestown run earlier this season, and he didn’t exactly improve a tonne for race fitness on his next run at Down Royal. First-time cheekpieces go on, which suggests connections are a bit stumped as to what is up with him.

GENTLEMAN DE MEE is next in the market. He’s been a tricky customer for a while, as he looked gone at the game before winning the Topham at Aintree. Hard to fancy him here after his 42-length seasonal reappearance defeat, and is three miles for him? Unsure.

CLASSIC GETAWAY ran in this race last year, and it was his seasonal reappearance. Today, it is his second start of the season, and he was behind none other than AFFORDALE FURY lto. He was 22 lengths behind, admittedly, but this is a grade of race that he can compete in, and he did bolt up in a Grade 2 at Gowran Park in February. He has his level, and this is probably it.

ILE ATLANTIQUE is trying three miles again. Connections gave him a go at the trip at Punchestown in April, but he fell before they could find out if he stayed the trip. Even though everywhere else is pretty decent ground, Tramore is still soft, and that could play into his hands as he loves dire conditions. He does have ability, but he hasn’t shown it for a while.

PERCEVAL LEGALLOIS would need a massive career-best to win this, and Gavin Cromwell’s yard form is a bit off.

MAXXUM completes the field. Again, hard to see him winning this, though he is a Grade 2 hurdles winner, and he beat GALA MARCEAU that day. Much better hurdler than chaser, however.

Verdict: ILE ATLANTIQUE needs soft and gets his conditions today and is worth following for the yard who won this last year.

14.15 AULD REEKIE HANDICAP CHASE

The Auld Reekie has been won by some nice ones in the past, notably MINELLA DRAMA and NUTS WELL, and this year’s race is pretty competitive.

THE KALOOKI KID heads the market, and he has a decent Musselburgh record. He beat SAINT SEGAL over course and distance three starts ago, and SAINT SEGAL has improved 18lbs since. He ran a very fine race behind REPLENDENT GREY in the Colin parker, and connections dipped his hoof into Grade 1 company at Aintree. Obvious chance off 139.

JET TO VEGAS had the form of his Ascot beginners’ chance boosted in the Grade 1 Kauto Star Novices’ Chase as THOMAS MOR finished second to KITZBUHEL. It was a fine effort from JET TO VEGAS lto, and his KINGSTON PRIDE form also looks good. Like THE KALOOKI KID, he ran in a Grade 1 at Aintree, though his was over hurdles behind SALVATOR MUNDI. Has a bit more to prove off a 2lb lower mark than THE KALOOKI KID, but he’s wildly unexposed.

INSURRECTION has been beaten by a combined 65 lengths across his last two runs, but one of those efforts was in the Jack Richards, and the other was his seasonal reappearance. He does need to bounce back, and his handicap mark of 139 is 5lbs higher than his last winning mark.

BREIZH RIVER is down to 115, which is 16lbs below his last winning mark, and that was just over a year ago, so it’s not out of the question that he could go well today. His two runs for Tristan Davidson have shown more promise than his previous seven runs for Paul Robson, but he is 0/2 at Musselburgh.

INOX ALLEN may have pulled up on his most recent run at Cheltenham, but he bolted up off 119 at Perth on his final start of last season, and he jumped quite nicely. It was a bad race that he won, so that is considered, and Alan Doyle takes the ride to claim three.

REXEM has been in bad form for a while, and his only spark in the last nine runs was a half-a-length win at Clonmel. He was a decent novice hurdler once upon a time, and he has won off 131 before, but he isn’t the easiest to trust.

TOMMY’S OSCAR is a little legend, and he now has a mark of 140, which is 12lbs below his last winning mark. He hasn’t been in great form recently, which is the worry, but he has two wins and one second at Musselburgh, so he does like the track. This could be the day to catch him on a lowering handicap mark.

MALYSTIC and BLEU D’ENFER completes the field. The former is in pretty bad form, but he is very similar to TOMMY’S OSCAR as he is well-handicapped on old form. The latter has been smashed in two runs this season, and it’s hard to see him bouncing back.

Verdict: INSURRECTION top place in the top 3 looks a bet.

CHELTENHAM PREVIEW

A beautiful day for racing today but the ground is unseasonably quick, so we’re going to highlight the good ground horses.

12.15 2M 4F CLASS 2 MAIDEN HURDLE

STEP AHEAD has been supported and Kim has had a great start to the season. Rumour has it Kim is set to leave the training ranks and emigrate to Australia. Back to this horse, he didn’t hit the reserve at the Cheltenham sales but that was at £145k no less! Bailey describes this lad as ‘stunning horse’. There aren’t many trainers who describe their horses in that way, so we must go with him and will bet him too. NEON DREAM is a danger on pedigree given two of his half brothers were good ground winners and one of them, SHOOT FIRST, won at Prestbury Park no less. Dutch.

12.50 2M 4F CLASS 2 NOVICES CHASE

REGENTS STROLL will be a warm order tomorrow and we did like the way he went about things last time out. The god ground will be perfect for him. Should win.

13.25 3M CLASS 2 HANDICAP CHASE

Nicky Henderson won this last season with CHANTRY HOUSE at a price and his EXCELLO is interesting at the bottom of the market, he needs good ground. NEW ORDER isn’t the best horse in the race but he likes good ground.

14.00 2M 4F PREMIER HANDICAP CHASE

Surely IL RIDOTO has to bounce back to form sometime soon? The ground should be more perfect for him! TWIN JETS looked good last time out at our beloved Newbury and he looks the hedge.

14.35 2M 4F GRADE 2 RELKEEL HURDLE

The Skelton fave is very short here and deserves some respect given the way he demolished the field last time out. It’s weird to see THE REAL WHACKER in here and we’re sad he hasn’t been so good for a long while. LUCKY PLACE won this race last year and is highly touted but has had a bad start to the season, if he bonces back he can win this.

15.10 3M HANDICAP HURDLE

ACE OF SPADES is apparently still on a progressive mark and is the Fehily syndicates best chance today (they’re bullish). SPIKE JONES is the good ground danger.

15.40 JUNIOR BUMPER

This is a tough bumper but we tipped the 16/1 winner last year! SOLLYS GOLD looked pretty smart last time out, deserved fave. Who are the dangers? BAILLYS COMET is very, very well bred. They are the two selections.

RISK ON

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