IRELAND: MULLINS LEADS INTO FINAL DAY: ‘Betdaq the kingmaker’ declared Daqman yesterday before Willie Mullins seized the €147,500 BETDAQ Champion Hurdle pot at Punchestown, but was he just king for a day? There’s just over €91,717 between them as Gordon Elliott fights back on the final day of the season.
HE SENDS OUT A SCORE OF RUNNERS: Gordon Elliott has 13 runners but Willie Mullins 20, as the trainers’ title race goes to the wire. Also determined to go out on a high is owner J P McManus, who has had 17 winners in the last 14 days and has 15 runners at the Punchestown finale.
ENGLAND: HENDERSON PLAYS EARLY ACE: In England, Paul Nicholls pitches for a sensational finish – £168,846 needed – which would require a hat-trick from his 13 runners at Sandown, without reply from Nicky Henderson. But Nicky plays an early ace with Altior.
591 WINS YOU COULD HAVE HAD
I have my own unofficial title race. You can’t win on the horses if you don’t set yourself targets.
One way is to challenge the received supremo, in this case Pricewise of the Racing Post.
I declared our jumps season ended when the Flat began at Daqman 22, Pricewise 15. Since then, I’m leading 9-4 again, and the overall totals are now: 416-175 (that’s 591 wins you could have had following us both since November 2013). Here’s how we line up today:
1.50 Sandown Lambeau Field (Pricewise), Hollywood Road (Daqman)
2.40 Haydock Calder Prince, Zoravan (Pricewise), Afjaan, Oh This Is Us (Daqman)
3.35 Sandown The Druids Nephew (Pricewise), Doing Fine, Sugar Baron (Daqman)
DAQMAN GOES TO HOLLYWOOD
1.50 Sandown Winners have come only from the top half of the handicap, sharp sorts like Ptit Zig (2013) and Lil Rockerfeller (2015).
Call Me Lord ‘could be anything’ but is lumbered with a 135 rating for success only in the French Provinces on very soft ground.
It could be an incredibly fast race. Most of them have made the running sometime in their short careers.
Hollywood Road impressed me at Huntingdon when beating into the places two last-day winners from big fields. He was 8.2 on BETDAQ this morning, early mouse
2.25 Sandown (Oaksey Chase) Menorah tries to win this for the fourth year running. Third Intention was placed one of those Menorah years and Colin Tizzard has been firing in the winners.
But 5.7 BETDAQ offer Josses Hill may be the one, dropped to Grade 2 for the first time since he beat Tea For Two in the Peterborough Chase last backend, which looks good since Tea For Two pipped Cue Card in the Aintree Bowl.
Cheekpieces first time should help Art Mauresque and Traffic Fluide, another dropped down from Grade 1 and getting weight all round today.
3.00 Sandown Altior has had only two races this year so should be up to following on from his easy Arkle success at Cheltenham.
Special Tiara’s Champion Chase at Cheltenham was boosted this week by runner-up Fox Norton’s success in the Punchestown equivalent but the three-year-younger Altior slammed Fox Norton 13 lengths at Newbury.
3.35 Sandown (Gold Cup) First and second last year, The Young Master and Just A Par meet again, but Harry Cobden can’t claim now, which increases The Young Master’s advantage.
Just A Par has won only a veterans’ chase since taking this in 2015 but The Young Master has been even more disappointing.
So maybe it’s best to look elsewhere, with nine out of 10 winners coming from the bot tom half of the handicap.
I thought Sugar Baron shaped like a stayer when not far away in the Kim Muir but Doing Fine looked really powerful when winning at Cheltenham 10 days ago and, if he’s none the worse for that, looks like he could take these off 10st 3lb with Tom Scu booked.
With The Young Master his sighter last year, Doing Fine’s trainer Neil Mulholland could have a second big shout in the race with The Druid’s Nephew kept for the good ground and down nearly a stone onhis last five starts. Noel Fehily switches from Doing Fine but probably can’t do the weight.
I’ll take the two young pretenders with their light weights: Doing Fine at 5.6 and Sugar Baron at 9.2 on BETDAQ this morning
THE MAGIC OF ROBBIE POWER
3.10 Punchestown A 9.4 offer on BETDAQ early mouse, Warrantor has been thereabouts in several big handicaps, inclduing third in the Midlands Grand National yet the handicapper has kindly dropped him 6lb this year.
Call It Magic (10.5) has always looked as thoughhe needs a trip, and what can you say about the jockey, Robbie Power: Magic!
3.50 Punchestown (Mares Champion Hurdle) I remember the 2013 Fairyhouse Mares Novice Final turning up Annie Power and Glens Melody, who won the next two runnings of this race.
Can we dare bet this year’s Fairyhouse winner, Augusta Kate, can today topple Apple’s Jade, who beat Vroum Vroum Mag in the Mares’ Hurdle at Chel enham? I took 6.4 she can.
4.25 Punchestown (Champion Four Year Old Hurdle) Willie Mullins bids for a five-timer in this race with three of the seven in this field, including Meri Devie, the filly I put up for a winning debut back in December. I can get 7.6 about her here.
Winter ground didn’t suit her action and she was no match on the soft against Mega Fortune (Bapaume second) in a Grade-1 test at Leopardstown in February.
Mega Fortune (second), Bapaume (third) and Landofhopeandglory (fifth) were themselves no match for Defi Du Seuil in the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham.
5.35 Punchestown Air Horse One (fourth) took a wide route in the County Hurdle at Cheltenham and was staying on at the finishb ut he’d completed a hat-trick at Ascot over further and today’s trip is ideal. A final fling for me at 9.2.
DAQMAN’S BETS (each staked to win 20 points)
1.50 Sandown
BET 3pts win HOLLYWOOD ROAD
2.20 Leicester
BET 12pts win TIME TO EXCEED
2.25 Sandown
BET 4.25pts win JOSSES HILL
2.40 Haydock
BET 7pts win AFJAAN
BET 7pts win OH THIS IS US
3.10 Punchestown
BET 3pts win WARRANTOR
BET 2pts win CALL IT MAGIC
3.35 Sandown
BET 4.5pts win DOING FINE
BET 2.5pts win SUGAR BARON
3.50 Punchestown
BET 3.75pts win (nap) AUGUSTA KATE
4.25 Punchestown
BET 3pts win MERI DEVIE
5.35 Punchestown
BET 2.5pts win AIR HORSE ONE
DAQ MULTIPLES 3 x 3pt win doubles and 1pt win treble Josses Hill (2.25 Sandown), Altior (3.00 Sandown), Augusta Kate (3.50 Punchestown)
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