7-4 WINNER IN BANKERS DOUBLE: Daqman landed another double of bankers yesterday. Pain Au Chocolat (WON 2-7), selected when better than 1-2 on BETDAQ, crashed in price after a defection from the race and cruised home. Halo Moon (WON 7-4) also had no difficulty but was an over-the-moon odds-against.
IT’S FOUR MAXIMUMS IN A ROW: Pain Au Chocolat gave Daqman his fourth winning nap out of five and Halo Moon his eighth maximum-stakes success from 12 bankers this year, four in a row as follows:
WON 4-5 Thistlecrack
WON 1-1 Felix Yonger
WON 2-7 Pain Au Chocolat
WON 7-4 Halo Moon
COOL-HAND DAQMAN PLAYS THE NATIONAL GAME: The 126 possible runners for the Grand National are published today. Daqman picks three to check out in the run-up to the race, but remains poker-faced about his best shots, which he will reveal after the weights are announced, playing his final card on the day.
DAQMAN’S GRAND NATIONAL HOLD’EM..
It’s a hand of aces and jokers. We are dealt 126 cards today, the huge pack of Aintree Grand National entries, for Saturday, April 9, without weights until February 16.
We’ll be guessing who gets top spot, Many Clouds or Don Poli, but so many of the intended runners shouldn’t even be there, so few of them able to jump round the 4m 2f 74yd of the toughest track in the world yet carpeted with the lushest of grasses, often smooth as the green baize of a billiard table.
Many are too slow, unless it comes up mud; many too high in the ratings unless it’s riding fast.
Surprisingly, horses aged 10 and 11 took five in a row (11 out of the last 14 winners were of double-figure age) until Many Clouds scored last year as an eight-year-old.
I’ve picked three – let’s call them my community cards, because I’m putting them on show right away – for you to follow in their prep races and in the markets.
Nearer the day my Turn Card will be my ante-post bet; then I shall move all in with my River Card, the deal breaker on the day. I could turn up a pair of aces and get the one-two. Let’s play the holy game of poker.
COMMUNITY CARDS Hold on to these three to follow until the big day in April. Watch for their prep runs; watch for moves in the markets; watch for stories in the papers and words of encourage – or not – from trainers, potential jockeys and other connections.
If you feel strongly about one of them, or one of your own, but you can’t afford a big bet, just keep putting the loose change on him from your BETDAQ wallet, as you check the orange once or twice a week. You may hit paydirt two months from Saturday!
Cause Of Causes (G. Elliott, aged 8) Cause Of Causes (WON 8-1) did me a huge favour in the 4m NH Chase at Cheltenham last March, with this column on at 44.0, quite staggering BETDAQ value.
His trainer (who won the Grand National with Silver Birch for me in 2007) thinks Causes’ subsequent eighth in the National was better than the bare form, in that he’d won his ’National’ at Cheltenham only a month earlier, and – with the intention of not destroying his future prospects – was hunted round at the back at Aintree but travelled really well on the second circuit to finish well in a respectable position.
Double Ross (N Twiston-Davies, aged 10). Has twice completed the course over the Grand National fences, in the 2013 Topham and the 2015 Grand Sefton.
Showed his very best when fourth in November in the first leg of Annacotty’s massive PP Gold Cup and Cheltenham Trophy double, only five lengths off the winner, giving him 3lb.
Trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies has already won the National twice, with Earth Summit (1998) and Bindaree (2002).
Triolo d’Alene (N. Henderson, aged 9) Won the 2013 Hennessy Gold Cup, as did Many Clouds on the way to Grand National glory.
Finished his race well when jumping the National fences to win the Topham Trophy before his form fell away and he was pulled up in the big one at Aintree last year. Revealed he was on his way back with a Listed win at Kempton.
Watch him in the Ryanair Chase or the Cheltenham Gold Cup and ‘earwig’ the comments from trainer and jockey regarding the National.
TURN CARD I personally backed both Earth Summit and Silver Birch at 40-1 and 25-1 for their Grand Nationals, so it was frustrating to have near misses for this column more recently.
I was second at 14-1 (39.0 on BETDAQ in 2014) after second and third in the same year, 2012, with runner-up at 16-1 (from 20.0) and third 8-1 favourite (from a huge BETDAQ 60.0). The Turn Card will be my ante-post bet when the weights come out.
RIVER CARD We’ve reached the day itself; time to decide which horse is the ace: do I have the National winner; have I got enough ‘overs’ from my ante-post bet(s) to trade or play more horses… Or will I finish in the river anyway?
BREEZE UP FOR VROUM VROUM RELATIVE..
1.30 Wincanton In this opener at Winkers, the stats say we need a young horse (ages five or six always win) that’s favourite (four in a row).
I give you Brise Vendeenne (pronounce it Breeze Vonday-en), a half-sister to Vroum Vroum Mag (pronounce it ‘vroooooom’; stand well clear… and and just watch her go at Cheltenham!)
‘Brise’ is with Peter Hobbs, a trainer whose judgement at placing a horse is nigh on impeccable. And he’s having a fabulous season; over a million won.
Though breathing down the neck of the out-of-sorts Paul Nicholls yard for the title, he is 33-1 to the champion’s 6-5 favourite. Another four grand looks likely, courtesy of this Brise up.
Nicholls trains the danger, Lifeboat Mona, a Kayf Tara mare who won her maiden very easily over today’s CD in early December, and has a tongue-tie today which connections hope will overcome her breathing problems of the last day.
2.00 Wincanton It’s one of Venetia Williams’ favourite meetings. She won this race in 2010 and 2014; she won the 2.30 novices’ hurdle last year; she won the Dick Hunt Trophy (3.40) in 2014.
Pressurise could add to his recent Taunton success but he’s a 10-year-old having only the fifth race in his life.
In fact, they are a motley crew: The Brock Again has had only three (losing) runs in two years; Gino Trail only three in 33 months; Richardofdoccombe’s got round only once – he won! – in four starts and he’s also 10. What a shower!
ARSE SIR IVAN! QUALITY HORSE OF THE RACE
3.05 Wincanton Shammick Boy ground it out to win this last year but is 10lb higher now (reduced by the claim) and not in the same form, with PP posted against his two runs back in the autumn.
Paul Nicholls (Baoulet Delaroque) is 1-28 in the last fortnight, whereas his former pupil, Harry Fry (Sir Ivan) has had three winners inside a week.
Chris Gordon (Nore Legend) is also going well, but stable of the moment in this featured hurdle has to be Ben Pauling (Space Walker), who has already passed – with
Barters Hill number 21 on Saturday – his total tally of 20 last term. He’s currently five out of eight still standing.
Pauling has two runners at Towcester today, but 19.0 offer Space Walker (with Harry Dunlop on the Flat) makes a solo raid on Wincanton under Barters Hill’s rider, David Bass.
It’s a very tricky race but, assuming that class will out, I prefer Sir Ivan (6.2 offers on BETDAQ), third in a class 2 on this course on Boxing Day, and the moral at today’s class-3 level when beaten little more than a length at Wetherby in November, giving 10lb to the winner.
AS A MATTER OF FACT, IT’S A LAY FER ME!
3.40 Wincanton As De Fer likes it soft but not too heavy and has never put two races together. Lay.
Both Brody Bleu and Vivaccio have won races only when there’s been ‘good’ in the going return. The Italian Yob also prefers it on top.
Starkie hasn’t won since 2012 and his trainer, Paul Henderson, has had six runners in 14 days fare like this: three pulled up; the three others beaten a total of 109 lengths. I think I’ll pass on that one.
But Majala can register that sort of form on his own! Since his return in October: three times PU; three times out of the frame, beaten a total of 131 lengths.
Stiletto pulls very hard, despite a hood to try to settle him, and has been beaten favourite or second favourite the last twice.
It was an inauspicious try at fences for Unique De Cotte on the last day and he’s now festooned with aids: first-time tongue-tie as well as hood, giving weight all round.
Quite By Chance has scored back to back wins here at Winkers on his last two starts but what would have happened had Gores Island not been brought down, when moving with menace, on the last day?
They were both 6.2 on BETDAQ this morning: a straight stakes split to dutch them.
DAQMAN’S BETS (staked 1 to 9 for strength; 10 for a banker)
BANKER: BET 10pts win (nap) BREEZE VENDEENNE (1.30 Wincanton)
BET 6pts win SIR IVAN, and 1pt win and place SPACE WALKER (3.05 Wincanton)
LAY 5pts AS DE FER and BET 4pts win on each GORES ISLAND and QUITE BY CHANCE (3.40 Wincanton)
DAQ MULTIPLES: 3pts win double BRISE VENDEENNE (1.30 Wincanton) and PRESSURISE (2.00 Wincanton)
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