Last weekend, we were treated to two days of fantastic action from Leopardstown for the Dublin Racing Festival.
It didn’t disappoint, as there were plenty of familiar stars on show, as well as novices showing their potential.
We aren’t quite as spoiled with the top-class races this weekend, but there is still plenty to enjoy across the tracks.
Here, we’ll preview a select number of Graded races from Newbury, as well as the Grade 2 Novices’ Chase at Warwick.
(All prices are correct at time of writing)
A field of five has been declared for the 2:25 Grade 2 Denman Chase at Newbury, and current short-priced favourite is Paul Nicholls’ star Clan Des Obeaux.
The multiple Grade 1 winner is clearly the one to beat, but there are concerns surrounding the yard’s poor form, with only a 3% strike rate for the trainer in the last 14 days (at the time of writing).
The ten-year-old is still well fancied however, and comes into the race in respectable form, having finished second in the King George VI Chase on his last outing, following success in the Punchestown Gold Cup last April.
Royale Pagaille is likely to be the biggest danger to the favourite, and he was particularly impressive when winning gamely as top-weight in the Peter Marsh at Haydock last month.
Earlier in the season he suffered an injury, a wound on his fetlock, but looked to have recovered well on his last outing and be back on the road to fulfilling his undeniable potential as a top-class chaser.
He is best-priced at 22/1 for the Gold Cup in March, and this could well be a preparation run, with his odds guaranteed to shorten significantly if able to overturn Clan Des Obeaux here.
Imperial Aura has failed to complete in each of his last four appearances, having unseated his rider, been pulled-up twice and falling in the Betfair Chase.
When at his best he is certainly worth considering, and is a contender who recorded a hat-trick of wins in Class 1 races in 2020, most significantly at Cheltenham where he beat Galvin and the late Whatmore.
If able to jump fluently and refrain from making critical mistakes, he could still be able to compete at this level.
Eldorado Allen has plenty to find with the favourites here, and is currently rated 17lbs lower than Clan Des Obeaux.
He has been running well enough in competitive company but has struggled to get his head in front on many occasions.
He beat Nicholls’ pair Hitman and Greaneteen in the Haldon Gold Cup in November, but it’s difficult to see him competing with the top two off level weight here and he could be out of his depth.
De Rasher Counter is the outsider of the field, and receives 6lbs from his rivals.
He is a course and distance winner who hasn’t been seen on track since October 2020, due to a tendon injury.
In 2019, he won the Ladbrokes Trophy, beating a Cheltenham Festival winner in the late, great The Conditional, but he does appear to be quite difficult to fancy here and could well improve for the run.
He may be set for an attempt at the Grand National in April.
Our selection: Royale Pagaille 5/2 – the eight-year-old is improving and could set the marker for other Britain-based Cheltenham Gold Cup hopefuls here.
Alan King’s course and distance winner Sceau Royal heads the field for the Grade 2 Game Spirit Chase at 3:00.
The experienced ten-year-old returns over fences for the first time this season, following a third-placed finish when last seen chasing in the Celebration Chase at Sandown last April.
He finished almost sixteen-lengths behind Greaneteen on that occasion, with retired champion Altior in second.
This term, he has been running respectably over hurdles, but was slightly disappointing at Cheltenham in December when a beaten favourite in the International Hurdle.
Hitman receives 6lbs from his elder rival and was last seen finishing five-and-a-half lengths behind Greaneteen in the Tingle Creek Chase.
Despite finishing in second and being unable to be competitive at the finish, Hitman did finish ahead of three respected types in Captain Guinness, Nube Negra and 176-rated Chacun Pour Soi.
Funambule Sivola won when last seen at Doncaster last month, and is another course and distance winner.
He finished three-and-a-quarter lengths behind the spectacular Shishkin at Aintree last April, and has been performing well since, bar an underwhelming performance at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day.
Sky Pirate last won in the Grand Annual at the Cheltenham Festival last season.
He has been seen four times this season, but has been well-beaten in all of his races.
However, excuses can be made for the Jonjo O’Neill runner, as he has been top-weight in three handicaps and run in the Desert Orchid Chase against Shishkin and Greaneteen in those four appearances.
Our selection: Funambule Sivola 11/4 – despite only four going to post, the field is open here and it wouldn’t be a shock to see any of the runners prevailing.
We believe Venetia Williams’ runner is the likeliest winner, and will run well to continue the trainer and jockey Charlie Deutsch’s rich vein of form.
An open field head to post for the Betfair Hurdle at 3:35, with Colin Tizzard’s Jpr One currently competing for favouritism with Nicky Henderson’s Broomfield Burg in the Grade 3 Handicap.
Both come into the race after winning last time out, and both have looked to be progressive types, with 4lbs higher-rated Broomfield Burg the more experienced of the two.
Soaring Glory will have to carry top-weight to victory here, but has already done so this season in a Listed affair at Ascot and has to be respected.
He performed well enough when last seen to merit a mention among the favourites for this contest, as he finished ahead of Tritonic and Not So Sleepy, both of whom have won Graded races this season.
Knappers Hill finished third behind Jonbon and Colonel Mustard on his last outing, following an unbeaten streak, with I Like To Move It the last of five.
Boothill and Fifty Ball have both finished behind Soaring Glory in the past year, with Boothill coming in third in the aforementioned Ascot race, and Fifty Ball finished second in this contest last year.
On that form, Fifty Ball would be well in contention, but he hasn’t been convincing since, running three times over fences, and a return to hurdling could be beneficial.
Tritonic has been largely inconsistent over the course of his career to date, but is clearly talented and could have plenty of potential.
The five-year-old is currently rated at 146, and may find this tough at the weights, with plenty of his rivals improving and running off a much lower mark.
Jetoile chased Constitution Hill home on heavy ground when last seen, finishing twelve-lengths behind in second.
Prior to that he had recorded two comfortable wins in Class 4 races, and could be well worth a watch here, rated at 133.
First Street makes his second appearance following wind surgery, and looked impressive when winning at Kempton last month, beating Royaume Uni who finished in third.
Glory And Fortune finished ahead of two of his rivals here in the Christmas Hurdle, but is at a much bigger price.
He’ll run off a mark of 143, and shouldn’t be ruled out, with him certainly having each-way claims in a competitive race.
Howdyalikemnow looked out of his depth in Graded company when last seen, but does drop back in trip.
Lord Baddesley is the outsider of the field and has plenty to find to be competitive.
Our selection: Fifty Ball 12/1 – returning to hurdles off the same mark as when he ran here last year, chasing hasn’t quite gone to plan for him yet, but this could be a perfect chance for him to return to the winners’ enclosure at an enticing price.
Jetoile (11/1) is interesting, whilst Welsh Champion Hurdle winner Glory And Fortune (20/1 – EW) shouldn’t be ruled out each-way, but may find it tough to win at his current rating.
We turn our attention to Warwick, ahead of the 2:05 Kingmaker Novices’ Chase, which could provide us with plenty of clues ahead of the Arkle Chase at the Cheltenham Festival next month.
The favourite, Edwardstone, is a course and distance winner who comes into the race having recorded three wins on the bounce this season, after being brought down on his return to track in November.
He has looked extremely impressive, beating Third Time Lucki at Sandown in December.
Third Time Lucki is likely to improve on that run, and he put in a good performance at Doncaster last month, beating second-placed Do Your Job by thirty-lengths, but For Pleasure did fall at the final fence which made the winner’s task easier.
Brave Seasca is another who has had a hat-trick of successes this season, beating Sky Pirate in a Class 2 Handicap most recently, but this is his first appearance in Graded company and he’ll receive 5lbs from the leading pair in the market.
For Pleasure is the outsider of the four, currently available at 28/1 which appears to be a big price for a talented, although unpredictable and fairly unreliable, runner.
The seven-year-old will go forward and make the running, setting the pace for the others who will hope to overtake him towards the finish.
As a five-year-old, Alex Hales’ runner did manage to overturn Third Time Lucki over hurdles, beating him at Cheltenham.
It will be a tougher task this time out, however, with Dan Skelton’s runner having shown plenty of progression since.
Our selection: Edwardstone 10/11 – it’s difficult to see past the favourite in the market, as he has been improving and shown great promise over fences this season.
He could be a star, and is currently favourite for the Arkle Chase at the Festival.
KM
THE CONDITIONAL 