The Open Meeting Exclusive - Friday Selections

1:15 - 2 Miles 4 Furlongs. Steel Plate And Sections Novices Chase
Selection - Fingal Bay

Dynaste - Looks The best Alternative To Fingal Bay

This looks a really hot race, you will see many of these come the Festival in March. I have sided with Fingal Bay (Fingal Bay - 10 To Follow) because I feel he is the best horse in the race, he has been described by Phillip Hobbs as 'Phenomenal'. His chasing debut victory at Chepstow was easy enough without being flashy, but he's not that type of horse, he does what is required but nothing more. Hobbs has been public in saying he shows nothing at home but saves his best for the track. I think a stiff 2 1/2 miles will be absolutely perfect and with some chasing experience in the locker, I expect him to win. It cannot be forgotten he is the only horse to beat Simonsig under rules, and although the grey had excuses, I thought he beat him pretty fair and square. In terms of betting, if he's anything shorter than even money I will be staying away, there's too many other really talented horses in the field for him to justify that price in my opinion. If even money about Fingal Bay fails to materialise, Dynaste is my second preference (Dynaste - Novice Chase Insight). The grey was rated 161 over hurdles and David Pipe has said he's been schooling well at home. He has course form under his belt when he was 2nd in the Cleeve Hurdle last year and 2nd to Aegean Dawn at this meeting 2 years ago. In between those efforts he gave Big Bucks a scare at Ascot in the Longwalk Hurdle. Unioniste won on his British debut for Paul Nicholls at Aintree 3 weeks ago, he receives a 4 year olds weight allowance here. This is a big step up in class and he will need to build on that performance, but as we know the French breds tend to peak at a younger age and a Paul Nicholls novice chaser is always respected. In conclusion, I think Fingal Bay will win but in terms of which horse I will be backing, it's very dependent on price.

1:50 - 2 Miles. Paddypower.com Handicap Chase
Selection - Free World E/W

Free World Will Appreciate The Better Ground

I know this is a bit of a random one, but I think the race looks very open and I am struggling to find a winner. Owned by Clive Smith, Free World was rated as highly as 153 over fences when trained in England by Paul Nicholls. Transferred to Ireland in the summer of 2011, his handicap mark has steadily been falling to the 134 he finds himself off here. His form figures don't read too well, but I think he is a good ground horse who doesn't like it worse than good to soft. I don't really understand why he went to Ireland where the ground is always worse, but back on decent ground in last years Grand Annual he was running a much better race until coming down 4 out. I thought he was travelling pretty well and was just starting to make his move when he met the 4th last all wrong, he was 25/1 that day and I fancy you may get a decent price here. I think he is an ok each way bet when I feel many of his rivals have question marks over their heads. Kid Cassidy needs to learn to settle He has had a hard life and it shows because he looks like a worrier whose not keen on hustle and bustle, consequently he's kept out of the way at the rear of the field. He is obviously immensely talented, but looks difficult to win with and I can't be having him. The market will be telling of his chance. Astracad could potentially be an improver this year after a decent novice chase campaign last year. He was down the field in the Grand Annual but ran ok in the Aintree equivalent the following month. He ran off 145 in those two races and on the back of the Aintree run he has a squeak if he's improved for the summer, his consistency is admirable. However, the Aintree race was much weaker than the Grand Annual and 145 does look harsh. Consigliere has a poor first time out record and still looks plenty high enough in the handicap.

2:25 - 2 Miles. Sharp Novices Hurdle
Selection - Dodging Bullets

Dodging Bullets (Green Sleeves) - He Has Experience To Fall Back On

Dodging Bullets got his career on track when losing his maiden tag at Cheltenham last month. Although he ran in snatches, he was well on top at the end and will appreciate a faster run race. The run will have brought him on and was a nice starting point to follow on from a successful juvenile campaign last year, it should have put him spot on for this race. He was travelling very strongly in the Triumph as they turned for home but maybe didn't quite stay up the hill, although he was only beat 4 lengths. I would say he ranked highly as a juvenile last year and retaining his novice status this year is a huge plus. He has the experience that some of his rivals may lack in this race and I expect him to capitalise on it. Whether he's more talented than his rivals is unknown, the beauty of the race is they are all unexposed, but he will have more street sense, I expect him to use this to his advantage. Court Minstrel won well at Cheltenham last month quickening nicely to score by 4 lengths. He proved he was a smart bumper horse last year, 9 lengths separated him and My Tent Or Yours in the Grade 2 contest at Aintree and there may not much between them again here. I see no reason why he can't make the step up here but I wonder if that was 'his day' last month. Previous winners of the maiden hurdle he won last month include: Court In Session, King Of The Night and The Jigsaw Man. It would be fair to say that none of those have progressed to be top class. When you compare Court Minstrel to Dodging Bullets, I feel he may be a notch below him. However, in terms of betting, if 3/1 or bigger materialises about Court Minstrel I feel he is worth the punt to make the step up in class. Tominator was impressive last time out and ran well in the Ces, but I feel he may need further than 2 miles.

My selections for the day:
1:15 - Fingal Bay
1:50 - Free World E/W
2:25 - Dodging Bullets
3:00 - Deutschland
3:35 - Titan De Sarti
4:05 - Pentiffic

Any questions or comments? Contact me through Twitter:

@JoshRWDown

THE REVIEW - Friday The 'Showcase' Meeting

There's nothing quite like the atmosphere at Cheltenham, that buzz around the paddock before the opening race cannot be matched. Returning to the 'Home Of Jump Racing' was superb and certainly whet the appetite for next months 'Open Meeting'. If any of you readers have never been to Cheltenham, I can't speak highly enough of the racecourse, it's impossible to leave dissatisfied!

Having had time to reflect on my racing at Cheltenham over the weekend. Lets start at the beginning.....Friday:

Neptune Novices Hurdle:
The race was all about one horse, The New One from the Nigel Twiston-Davies yard. He was an easy winner at Newton Abbott over 2 miles on his hurdling debut and he was equally impressive when taking this higher class contest. Any doubts what his optimum trip is were promptly swept aside after he powered up the hill to a 3 length victory. 2 1/2 miles is definitely his trip, he will need even further in time. He was slightly novicey at some of his hurdles but otherwise his jumping was safe and when Village Vic asked him a serious question when joining him at the last, he responded strongly to Sam Twiston-Davies urgings and won a cosy 3 lengths. Village Vic looked the best of the rest and seems to fit a similar mould, he will need 3 miles in time too but may be a notch or two below top-class. Top-class is what the winner looked, his trainer after the race stated: 'I think he's very special, I hope his jumping errors were just inexperience. Big Bucks will not go on forever so in 18 months time we might be looking at races like the World Hurdle.' He's obviously rated very highly and looks to be a Gold Cup horse in the making, he will return to Cheltenham next month for the Open Meeting. I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so in my pre weekend blog! The New One was a good thing!! http://thehorseracingblog1.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/selections-showcase-cheltenham.html

The New One

2 Mile 4 Furlong Novice Chase:
Those of you who read my pre weekend blog will know that I was very sweet on the chances of King Of The Night in this race. His 3rd place finish was a good effort and he will have learned a lot from the experience. He jumped nicely throughout, albeit a bit slow and slightly right-handed. I would say that he would be seen best going right-handed. I haven't given up on him yet. Carlito Brigante was a battling winner and was gettable when looking back at his previous winning course form, he's just too inconsistent. He's a notch below top-class but it depends if you catch him on a going day. Domtaline was a bit of an unlucky second, he measured his fences superbly and nearly won by 'out-jumping' his rivals, another day he would of won the race. There's a win in him somewhere this year. I don't understand why Go All The Way was favourite, his form over hurdles wasn't very good and I don't hold him in the same regard as others. He was a beaten horse when he came down and gave Andrew Lynch a cracking limp! The horse I've taken out of the race though is Kingsmere. This resident of the Henry Daly stable came down 2 out and was probably a bit unlucky. He was almost going too well when swinging off the bend and met the second last completely wrong, I don't think he took off, he just ploughed through it. He was tanking along! I think he caught Jake Greenall out, it looked like he let Kingsmere make his own mind up whilst Kingsmere was hoping Greenall would make his mind up for him. Routs (who navigated so incredibly adequately from the back seat on his phone all weekend) told me after the race that whilst on a stable tour Daly had said he really liked this horse and was hoping that he could make a very good chaser. Tell you what Henry. I think you might be right! He's subsequently gone into my Sportinglife stable and I'm hopeful he might be that good horse Henry Daly has been missing since the retirement of Mighty Man.

Kingsmere

Pertemps Hurdle Qualifier:
Have to admit, considering this was one of the most competitive races of the meeting, I didn't do too badly. I tipped Heaney (3rd) from Ireland and Viking Blond (2nd) as an each-way shout. I would take another chance on Heaney as he looked to have a few traffic problems at the top of the hill, although he came there menacingly turning for home, he had used too much petrol to get there and couldn't go with the the front two up the hill. His handicap mark won't change too much and I think he has another win in him. My each-way selection Viking Blond ran a stonker! I felt he may have a good chance off 127 and so it proved, the Twiston-Davies yard had a great meeting and you can't help but feel that this was his day. He looked a picture in the paddock and may have been primed for the race. Twiston-Davies likes to run his horses so I would expect to see him again soon and depending on what happens to his handicap mark, he could go close again this year. He is a reliable type, but I would be interested to see what they do with the blinkers though. He didn't wear them on Friday and it seemed to freshen him up. The winner, Action Master, looked seriously well handicapped and it will be interesting to see how much his rating rises in due course. He won with plenty in hand and I wouldn't be surprised if he was stepped up in class next time out. Sivola De Sivola ran another eye-catcher without getting close to the front end, he's becoming difficult to place.

Viking Blond

3 Mile Novice Chase:
I said I didn't think this was a great novice chase, which may have been a bit harsh, but having seen the outcome I've concluded it was a bit better than I gave it credit, but not that much. The winner, Sire Collonges impressed me a lot actually. He wasn`t that great over hurdles, but I get the impression whatever he did over hurdles was a bonus because he was bought as a chaser and he looks a good chaser too! Like Domtaline, the other Nicholls novice chaser, he jumped immaculately. Nicholls must school his horses like hell because they jump so much better than the other other novices it's embarrassing! Apart from Walsh`s nearly embarrassing loss of balance at the second last the greys performance was perfect. Always prominent, the grey dictated things from the front and was always in control. 20-1 ante-post for the RSA chase looks a bit skimpy at the moment, I don't think he beat much but his style of racing would seem perfect for that race. Jumping from fence to fence, at his own pace, dictating the race might be ideal, it just depends if he's good enough. It's likely he isn't and he may give the better horses a tow into the race. I backed White Star Line, who ran poorly, he made a bad mistake when the race started to hot up which wasn't ideal but I think he was beat anyway. He's not a natural over a fence. Whilst Sire Collonges looked athletic, White Star Line certainly didn't. There's also a possibility he didn't stay 3 miles, may be a revert back to 2 1/2 miles is on the cards?  Sea Of Thunder ran ok but he was never beating Sire Collonges, if he wasn't a Gigginstown horse he wouldn't of gone off 11/8 favourite! The winner looks like fences have been the making of him and he ticks a lot of the right boxes. He's progressive and you can't help but like the horse.

Sire Collonges Falls At Aintree Last Year

Maiden Hurdle:
Court Minstrel gave owner Janet Davies her first winner at Cheltenham and upset the big boys whilst doing so. He was smooth in success and is a strong traveller, which should hold him in good stead when competing in better company. It depends how much he will find off the bridle, looking at Friday's 4 length victory it's feasible to say he will find plenty, the winning margin was extending all the way to line. He strengthens the form of The New One who beat him in the Aintree Bumper and also the highly rated novice Tistory from the Henderson yard who beat him 3/4 length at Ludlow. I like him an awful lot. The award for worst effort of the meeting across the two days goes to the John Ferguson trained Population who pulled up just after half way. It was weird. Titan De Sarti made a much improved return after a lengthy lay off, he was outpaced at the top of the hill but stayed on past beaten horses to take 3rd, a step up in trip looks on the cards and he may be an animal on an upward curve this term. Landscape from the Paul Nicholls stable ran disappointingly but may have needed the run after nearly a year off. Softsong from the Phillip Hobbs stable pulled like hell and was so free that Richard Johnson let him stride on and although he finished 5th beaten 13 lengths he was bang there at the last. He made a mistake and soon weakened but he may be one to keep an eye on because his effort was better than it appears at first sight. The Romford Pele has course form following his 7th in the Cheltenham Bumper and looks like a decent yardstick.

Titan De Sarti Ran A Much Better Race

Amateur Riders Handicap Chase:
I fancied Iheardu, if I put you onto the horse, I'm sorry Uheardme. It was a terrible bet! Always in rear and never closer until pulled up. When he won this race last year it was a much weaker renewal than this year, the winner Hunters Lodge was a classic case of 'follow the in form trainers!' http://thehorseracingblog1.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/autumn-twiston-davies-factor.html He became the second part of a Twiston-Davies double, albeit slightly fortuitously! The Gordon Elliot trained Romanesco was p*****g all over him at the last until he landed too steep and turned over on landing, leaving jockey J J Codd thumping the ground with frustration. The back seat sleeper (apparently he only snores when horizontal, thank god!) stood in his lucky spot on the grass, whilst the rest of us sat in the seats. The lucky spot had brought him a winner when Court Minstrel won the previous race and he wasn't for persuading when asked if he was watching with us. Immediately after Hunters Lodge crossed the line we looked down to where he was standing and saw him stationary, looking a bit glum. We assumed he had backed Romanesco, I was praying he had backed Romanesco! Sadly, he had backed the winner. I was already lining up the abuse he was going to receive that evening! The one day ban some of the jockeys got for showing 'misconduct' was ridiculous. The 3 mile start isn't in a suitable position to cater for big fields in handicaps, the entrance onto the course just isn't wide enough to have 20 jockeys competing for very little room, consequently it gets messy. The start is fine for smaller fields but it's not working for the bigger fields. Amendments needed please Simon Claisse.

Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle:
This race looked seriously difficult on paper. It turned out to be much easier than it looked after Dark Lover won very decisively, Ryan Mahon gave it a peach of a ride and as soon as they turned in there was only one winner. The 605 day absence obviously didn't hinder him in any way, you would expect he's a miles better than the 120 rating he was running off! He should step up in class now and he could have another handicap win in him, he is on an upward curve. Changing Of The Guard ran another great race, ever consistent but always finds one to good. I hope the handicapper is kind to him because you have to admire his reliability. Persian Snow ran an eye-catching race, staying on from the rear to take 3rd. He was very highly thought of in his early days, I remember him winning a bumper around Ascot a couple of years ago and kept an eye out for him afterwards. He was saved for the Aintree bumper but didn't make the shake up, sadly he didn't transfer that form to hurdles initially. It appears he may be starting to get his act together over hurdles now, could appreciate a step up in trip and perhaps one to put in your Sportinglife stable.

Any questions or comments? Contact me through Twitter: @JoshRWDown