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Sandown now under threat from frost.
One of Saturday’s premier jumps meetings at Sandown Park is now under threat from the effects of the current cold snap.
Despite being covered for most of the week, the course has reported areas of the track are frozen under the frost covers, and a precautionary inspection of the track has now been arranged for 8.00 am on Friday morning.
Discussing the current situation, Sandown Director of Racing Andrew cooper said:
We need to be taking stock of where we’ve got too. There is frozen ground in a few places under the covers as of today, and while it is not yet significant, it is enough to raise alarm bells.
“The frost is not readily going to shift, and with another cold night forecast, we’ll have to see what that brings, and then take it from there.”
Wetherby officials are hoping their Totepool Towton Novices Chase Meeting on Saturday will continue to miss the overnight frost that seems to have hit so many other courses.
“We’ve had virtually a frost free week apart from a couple of hours before dawn today. It dipped to -1c, but it’s what is going to come that’s the problem.” Said Jonjo Sanderson, Wetherby Clerk of the Course.
“Happily, we have nothing to inspect at present, but we’ll just have to keep our eyes on things.”
Longsdon hoping Vulcanite can do well in Supreme test.
The Grade One William Hill Supreme Novices’ Hurdle gets The Cheltenham Festival underway on Champions Day, Tuesday, March 13, and a bumper entry of 91 has been declared for the extended two-mile contest (five more than in 2011) and the Jessica Harrington-trained Steps To Freedom currently heads race sponsor William Hill’s ante post market at 8-1.
The six-year-old has posted three wins from as many starts over the smaller obstacles, including a game neck success over Prospect Wells in the Grade Two Opus Energy Novices’ Hurdle at The Open at Prestbury Park in November.
A potential Irish challenge of 31 also includes Midnight Game, one of nine entries from the stable of Willie Mullins, and the Dermot Weld-trained Galileo’s Choice.
The home bid may be headed by the Nicky Henderson-trained Simonsig, Darlan and Grade One winner Captain Conan, (the latter currently 10-1 second favourite with the race sponsors). While the Donald McCain-trained Cinders And Ashes is thought to have a big chance if the going for the race is testing.
Sheikh Fahad Al Thani has become one of Flat racing’s leading investors over the past two years and his Pearl Bloodstock silks have been carried to top-level success by Lightening Pearl and Dunaden – the latter having captured both the Melbourne Cup and the Hong Kong Vase at the end of 2011.
The young Qatari royal is due to have his first runner at Cheltenham with Vulcanite, who posted an impressive victory in a Southwell novices’ hurdle on January 18 and is on course for a crack at the William Hill Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, for which he is a 20-1 chance with the race sponsor.
After today’s decleration stage, the five-year-old’s trainer Charlie Longsdon revealed:
“Vulcanite is a likely runner in the William Hill Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at this stage. He has been in good form since Southwell, and I plan to give him one more run either at Newbury (February 11) or Sandown (February 17) before Cheltenham. I would like to get another run into him just to give him some more experience and to sharpen him up, but obviously if the weather is not great then we won’t go anywhere.
“His victory at Southwell was only a schooling round and he won as he liked, which he had to that day to be honest. His first run at Kempton (2nd, December 26) was good form behind Tetlami. We were very green that day and we threw our race away over the first two hurdles, but he pulled well clear of the rest so you couldn’t knock his attitude.
“I would like to think the more experience he gets the less keen he will be in his races. To be honest, I would not want the ground too quick at Cheltenham because he is quite upright, but it is always on the easy side of good on the first day at Cheltenham so I am sure that it will be fine.
“Sheikh Fahad is very keen on going to Cheltenham, and that is the reason behind having this horse as a jumper. He will not be investing in the Jump game as he did on the Flat, but if this horse is a success he might have a few more, but if not then he probably won’t have any more, so it is quite important for us that we do a good job with Vulcanite.”
Finjal Bay heads Neptune list.
The Grade One Neptune Investment Management Novices’ Hurdle, one of the highlights of Ladies Day, Wednesday, March 14, has received 118 entries (22 more than in 2011).
Fingal Bay looks set to be one of the leading contenders for the two mile five furlong Grade One. For following a faultless start to his hurdling career for trainer Philip Hobbs, the gelding showed his class on his most recent outing when taking victory in the Grade One Challow Novices’ Hurdle at Newbury on December 31.
While there are a number of other top class contenders in this season’s ‘Neptune’, it could well be worth noting Boston Bob, who boasts Grade One-winning form for Willie Mullins, and who tops a list of 17 entrants from Ireland’s Champion National Hunt Trainer.
Meanwhile, fellow Irish handler Noel Meade was very positive today in his recommendation of following Monksland in the above race.
Gold Cup Day, Friday, March 16, kicks off with the Grade One JCB Triumph Hurdle over two miles and a furlong.
An entry of 77 for this year’s race includes Grumeti and Pearl Swan, who fought out the finish to the Grade Two JCB Triumph Hurdle on Festival Trials Day - last weekend.
Sadler’s Risk and Dildar have both recorded impressive debut wins, and are highly regarded for the Triumph Hurdle, while emphatic Irish Cesarewitch scorer Minsk is near to the top of bookmakers’ ante-post lists despite not having jumped a hurdle in public.
Also taking place on Gold Cup Day is the Grade One Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle over three miles. An entry of 95 includes Fingal Bay and Boston Bob as well as the Gordon Elliott-trained Mount Benbulben.
Walsh Has His Appeal Dismissed.
Ruby Walsh’s appeal against a three day Careless Riding ban, which he picked up at Cheltenham last Saturday, has today been dismissed by the British Horseracing Authority’s appeals panel.
Walsh was deemed to have leaned in on, and bumped eventual runner-up Grumeti in the closing stages of Saturday’s JCB Triumph Hurdle Trial at Prestbury Park, and while he came home a short head in front aboard the Paul Nicholls-trained Pearl Swan at the line, the Cheltenham Stewards reversed the placings, and gave Walsh the 3 day Careless Riding ban.
Having lost his appeal, Walsh will now be unavailable to ride at the valuable meeting at Newbury on 11 February, where he would have had likely rides in the Betfair Trophy, the Game Spirit Chase, and the Betfair Denman Chase.
Chepstow off but Cattarick re-inspect.
Chepstow’s national hunt card has been abandoned today due to a frozen track, while Catterick officials have decided after taking a look this afternoon that they will hold a further precautionary inspection at 8.00 am on Friday morning.
Chepstow officials covered their track on Sunday, but the low overnight temperatures this week have seen frost penetrate under the covers, and despite the apparent ground protection, large sections of the track are now frozen and consequently unraceable, and this left Clerk of the Course Keith Otteson with a relatively easy decision to call an abandonment of Friday’s meeting when he gave his track a cursory examination at 1.30 pm this afternoon.
Conditions at Catterick are markedly better, with officials conducting a 1.00 pm inspection, and finding the early morning frost patches had melted, so if racing had taken place today, the track would have been raceable.
However, another night of frosty conditions is forecast, and Clerk of the Course Fiona Needham has decided to take a further look at her track at 8.00 am on Friday morning, and commenting today, she said:.
“We are currently raceable, with the frost from Wednesday night having come out of the ground.
“The forecast for tonight is rather grim, but the forecasters have been wrong on the whole for most of this week, and we can only hope they are wrong again about tonight’s frost.”
Gamilati goes for Guineas glory.
Gamilati would appear to be the headline act in Friday’s UAE 1,000 Guineas at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai.
Mahmood Al Zarooni’s Cherry Hinton Stakes winner disappointed on her last run of 2011, coming home last of the eleven runners in York’s Lowther Stakes, but she put that run firmly behind her when coming home late and fast to win the UAE 1,000 Guineas Trial at Meydan last month, and if she can repeat her most recent form, she could prove hard to beat.
Zarooni will also run Pimpernel, a winner of 4 races in England, and runner up in the Group Two Rockfel Stakes to Aidan O’Brien’s highly regarded three-year-old Waiting.
Discussing his runners, Al Zarooni said:
“We were delighted with Gamilati when she won the Trial, and tomorrow’s mile should suit her well. With the advantage of that run under her belt, she looks our main hope, especially with Pimpernel not having yet had a run here or on the all-weather. But Pimpernel is a nice filly, and she should run well.”
Alsindi and Mary Fildes, who chased home Gamilati last time, re-oppose on Friday. While Marco Botti’s Colourful Notion is also considered as a potential winner by her connections.
Wincanton Abandon Thursday Meeting.
This afternoon's national hunt meeting at Wincanton has been abandoned due to a frozen track.
Clerk of the Course Barry Johnson was due to hold a precautionary inspection of his track at 9.00 am this morning, but prior to the designated inspection time, Johnson could see it was a hopeless situation, as lower than expected overnight temperatures had left large sections of the course frozen, and therefore unfit for racing.
With daytime temperatures today not expected to rise much above zero, Johnson decided to call an early abandonment of today's scheduled meeting.
Cyclone had hidden reason for disappointing run.
Trainer John ‘Shark’ Hanlon has reported Hidden Cyclone’s slightly disappointing run behind Sir Des Champs at Leopardstown over the weekend is now more easily explained, as the promising novice chaser scoped dirty in a post race examination.
A winner of 5 of his 6 races as a novice hurdler last season, Hidden Cyclone had been very impressive on his novice chasing debut at Punchestown, but he was lack-lustre in his jumping at the weekend, and he could only manage third place behind the Willie Mullins-trained pair of Sir Des Champs and Fist of Fury atLeopardstown.
However, having now found a reason why Hidden Cyclone failed to spark in his last run, his trainer is already planning to give his charge another run in the Nas Na Riogh Novice Chase at Naas on 26 February, with Hanlon explaining:
“He wasn’t right after the race, so we had him scoped, and it was dirty, so that explains a lot. He didn’t jump very well, but they weren’t going very fast, and the faster they go, the better he jumps.
“Our horses aren’t kicking at the moment, for one reason or another, but I’m sure they will come good.
“We’ll now leave Hidden Cyclone for a bit, and then we’ll probably go to Naas in a month’s time.
“He’s a very good horse, and he’ll have another big day.”
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