THE BATTLE OF THE CHAMPIONS: Skelton’s last stand or Willie’s big steal! Both headlines are on the sports pages today as the 2024-25 jumps season reaches its grand finale with the culmination of a battle royal for the trainers’ title between the champion, Willie Mullins, and the long-time leader, Dan Skelton, surely a future champion.
TITLE FINALE AT SANDOWN: Daqman sets the scene with his figures for the title finale at Sandown before headlining each race as follows:
SPARE BOWEN THREE CHEERS
BIG RISK FOR SKELTON HOPE
HE IS WARRIOR OR GENTLEMAN
NO MORE BLUES FOR NICHOLLS
IT’S NOT TIME YET, WILLIE..
HOLY SMOKE! GROSS GOLD CUP
A SUNNY FUTURE FOR SKELTON
FIGURES FOR THE TITLE FINALE
WINNERS, WINNERS! The score of Dan Skelton 179, Willie Mullins 35 has Skelton more than five times ahead of Mullins for winners in the 2024-5 jumps-trainers’ championship but it’s decided on prizemoney won, not on winners. Skelton is around £68k ahead going into the final day.
DAN SKELTON £3,352,540
WILLIE MULLINS £3,284,057
Mullins 21, Skelton 9 is the scoreline that is likely to decide the outcome. That’s the number of runners each stable sends to Sandown this afternoon.
SPARE BOWEN THREE CHEERS
⭕ 1.20 Sandown (Novices Hurdle Championship Final) Title-holder Mullins and challenger Skelton may regret swerving this £51k handicap, but it could be the 180th feather in the cap of Sean Bowen, who has been sure of the jockeys’ title for some time.
So sure that he has only three rides at Sandown, Nardaran in this and Classic Anthem in the 1.50 before his Sandown Gold Cup chance on Resplendent Grey, when the Skeltons are hoping he can help deprive the raider Mullins of some of the £100k-plus prizemoney.
BIG RISK FOR SKELTON HOPE
⭕ 1.50 Sandown (Novices Hurdle Championship Final, winner £20,812) Skelton could go more than £80k up, but he has to risk a dual April winner going to the well for a 15-day hat-trick.
Riskintheground, who has stepped up 12lb and into Graded company to land the double, pulled off an almost identical feat in lower class last summer, raised 11lb but completing the treble, though that time he had 60 days to do it in.
Before being caught out by the National fences, Bad was on a roll at Kempton. Mahons Glory has won twice going further in lower grade.
Insurrection and Eyed are progressive novices. Classic Anthem likes the course but his stable is out of form.
HE IS WARRIOR OR GENTLEMAN
⭕ 2.25 Sandown (Oaksey Chase, winner £45,560) This is where Willie has that lean and hungry look, unabashed by a four-horse assault against Skelton’s outside chance with Boombawn.
This is not a handicap but a Grade 2 and for Skelton to ‘lower the boom’ would require this 153-rated to improve up to 13lb.
Paul Townend’s pick from the Mullins quartet is Gaelic Warrior (170), Arkle hero last year and Aintree Bowl winner this.
Paul Nicholls, who landed a race hat-trick (2019, 2021-22), trained Pic d’Orhy (162) to win the Ascot Chase but that’s always been his favourite course and he’s 10 now.; I mean Pic not Paul.
Main danger to Gaelic Warrior is back-to-form Gentleman De Mee (160), another Mullins and extremely versatile at his best: second in the 2024 Champion Chase but hero of the Topham Trophy (2m 5f) earlier this month, giving 20lb to the runner-up.
NO MORE BLUES FOR NICHOLLS
⭕ 3.00 Sandown (Select Hurdle, winner £45,560) Beaten the last twice by Mullins’ ace Lossiemouth, Take No Chances (146) for the Skeltons has the mares’ allowance to help her against the geldings, which include stablemate Gwennie May Boy.
Mullins drops Kitzbuhel back in trip and hopes first-time hood and the Townsend expertise will steady this keen-going sort.
There are grounds for believing that Blueking d’Oroux can avenge Ascot form with Lucky Place at level weights, with the Paul Nicholls yard able to turn over 2022 and 2023 favourites in this.
IT’S NOT TIME YET, WILLIE..
⭕ 3.35 Sandown (Celebration Chase, winner £99,663) Hold the champagne! It would be an Unexpected Party were one of the Dan Skelton pair to beat Jonbon, who goes for a Celebration hat-trick.
Mullins’ genius is not likely to transform veteran Energumene but could awaken seven-year-old Il Etait Temps despite a year’s absence.
He beat Gaelic Warrior at Punchestown last May and this would be the perfect prep for the festival there next week (Champion Chase or Gold Cup).
HOLY SMOKE! GROSS GOLD CUP
⭕ 4.10 Sandown (Gold Cup, winner £98,473) Willie Mullins is not only a training genius but a master manipulator of the form.
He has as many runners as the home squad combined and blows the race wide open with a grenade called Grangeclare West, the Grand National third, nearly a stone in front of the field so pushing 11 horses out of the handicap.
It means that Dan Skelton’s sole hope, Ho Joly Smoke, is 12lb wrong. I won’t even grace this gross race with a selection.
A SUNNY FUTURE FOR SKELTON
⭕ 4.45 Sandown I think it would be a poignant final if Northern Irishman, Neil Mulholland, who has grafted brilliantly from his base near Bath, could strike with last year’s winner, Ike Sport, saved for this again.
But this is worth only £18,211 and by now the Bunting will be flying for 68-year-old Willie Mullins (who has four in this in case the pennies count), though the future is Mostly Sunny for Dan Skelton, still only 35.
DAQMAN’S BETS on Betdaq Betting Exchange
2.35 Sandown (win 10, win 30)
BET 10pts win GAELIC WARRIOR
BET 4pts win GENTLEMAN DE MEE
3.00 Sandown (win-50 bull’s-eye bet)
BET 7pts win BLUEKING D’OROUX
★ 3.35 Sandown (supernap)
BET 20pts win JONBON
4.45 Sandown (win 12)
BET 2.75pts win IKE SPORT
5.50 Doncaster (win-50 bull’s-eye bet)
BET 1pt win and place QUEEN’S PALACE
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