2 Mile Chasers 20/21

I can’t have that, DoubleJ.

I was on the horse for bundles myself, and thought Sheehan gave him every chance. The horses stamina was unproven at 3m, and sending him on would simply have gotten him into a scrap, that would have made it even more difficult to get home.

It’s never ideal to see a horse pull as hard as that, and in other circumstances I would agree with you, but in this case I think the ride was fair enough.
 
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Grasshopper said:
Nothing official, but suspect they will blame the ground. Also yard has been under a cloud (I’m told) and it’s possible the horses are not quite right......in which case Saint Calvados has run some race in the King George.
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That very thought was occurring to me as they started the final turn for home the other day.

(No after-timing intended :))

That said, I'm pretty sure the RTF% figure for the yard was shown as 100% on the day but, again, that's confusing because the yard only had one or two runners in the previous month or so, apparently.
 
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Grasshopper said:
I can’t have that, DoubleJ.

I was on the horse for bundles myself, and thought Sheehan gave him every chance. The horses stamina was unproven at 3m, and sending him on would simply have gotten him into a scrap, that would have made it even more difficult to get home.

It’s never ideal to see a horse pull as hard as that, and in other circumstances I would agree with you, but in this case I think the ride was fair enough.
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I understand your point, and I could be wrong. I’ve never ridden a horse so I’m literally nothing more than an armchair jockey.

The way he stayed on in the Ryanair against much superior horses says the distance shouldn’t have been an issue for me. I just get the feeling if you asked Sheehan if he could, would he ride the race differently, I suspect he’d say yes.

I obviously need something to blame for the loss of my money that day on Cyrname and Saint Calvados, and that’s the line I’m going with :lol:
 
Double J said:
I understand your point, and I could be wrong. I’ve never ridden a horse so I’m literally nothing more than an armchair jockey.

The way he stayed on in the Ryanair against much superior horses says the distance shouldn’t have been an issue for me. I just get the feeling if you asked Sheehan if he could, would he ride the race differently, I suspect he’d say yes.

I obviously need something to blame for the loss of my money that day on Cyrname and Saint Calvados, and that’s the line I’m going with :lol:
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The list of top-class 2m4f chasers who didn’t see out the King George trip is a long one, DoubleJ.
 
Coo, how the mighty have fallen. Just noticed Timeform have re-rated Altior to 163+ from 175+ (yeah, I know, I know, how come I’ve only just noticed). That drops him from their second best chaser to somewhere outside the top twenty.
 
Dunno, I think they only have the single rating which they re-rate as they go along. Certainly, they only show a single rating on their racecards. Here’s the bit about Altior.

“There was another surprise at Kempton on Sunday when Nube Negra (161+ from 146) lowered the colours of Altior (163+ from 175+) in some style in the Desert Orchid. Nube Negra was unconsidered in the market but found a lot of improvement on his first start for 11 months and just his fifth over fences. His performance was very impressive visually, but the time didn’t compare favourably to Shishkin’s over the same course and distance earlier on the card. Nube Negra will reportedly head straight to the Champion Chase now, though another step forward will be needed there, while the track will also test him more. Altior looked fit and well beforehand but turned in a laboured effort, looking a shadow of his former self. He held every chance in the straight but lacked his usual strong finish. A possible excuse has since come to light (reportedly scoped dirty), but it clearly remains to be seen whether he is still the force of old.”
 
Here’s their top chasers:

CHASERS
176p CHACUN POUR SOI
174 MIN
173 CYRNAME
171 AL BOUM PHOTO
169 POLITOLOGUE
168 DEFI DU SEUIL
168 DELTA WORK
168 MONALEE
168 NATIVE RIVER
168 SANTINI
167 BRISTOL DE MAI
167 PRESENTING PERCY
167 WAITING PATIENTLY
166p CHAMP
166+ DOUVAN
166 A PLUS TARD
166 FRODON
166 NOTEBOOK
166 ROAD TO RESPECT
166 SAINT CALVADOS
 
barjon said:
Coo, how the mighty have fallen. Just noticed Timeform have re-rated Altior to 163+ from 175+ (yeah, I know, I know, how come I’ve only just noticed). That drops him from their second-best chaser to somewhere outside the top twenty.
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Sensationalising....looking for free advertising by reaction!
 
barjon said:
Here’s their top chasers:

CHASERS
176p CHACUN POUR SOI
174 MIN
173 CYRNAME
171 AL BOUM PHOTO
169 POLITOLOGUE
168 DEFI DU SEUIL
168 DELTA WORK
168 MONALEE
168 NATIVE RIVER
168 SANTINI
167 BRISTOL DE MAI
167 PRESENTING PERCY
167 WAITING PATIENTLY
166p CHAMP
166+ DOUVAN
166 A PLUS TARD
166 FRODON
166 NOTEBOOK
166 ROAD TO RESPECT
166 SAINT CALVADOS
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Clan Des Obeaux ??????
 
barjon said:
Here’s their top chasers:

CHASERS
176p CHACUN POUR SOI
174 MIN
173 CYRNAME
171 AL BOUM PHOTO
169 POLITOLOGUE
168 DEFI DU SEUIL
168 DELTA WORK
168 MONALEE
168 NATIVE RIVER
168 SANTINI
167 BRISTOL DE MAI
167 PRESENTING PERCY
167 WAITING PATIENTLY
166p CHAMP
166+ DOUVAN
166 A PLUS TARD
166 FRODON
166 NOTEBOOK
166 ROAD TO RESPECT
166 SAINT CALVADOS
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If that were the field for a 3m hcap chase at Kempton on decent ground, name your 1-2-3.

Chacun Pour Soi top weight 11-10
The 166 horses on 11-0

(Addressed to everybody.)
 
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To be honest, I find it hard to look past Frodon at these weights.

Boum Boum and Champ to fill the spots, maybe.
 
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31 Entries for the Queen Mother Champion Chase

BETWAY QUEEN MOTHER CHAMPION CHASE (Grade 1)
Altior (IRE) 11 Mrs Patricia Pugh Nicky Henderson
Battleoverdoyen (IRE) 8 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
Bun Doran (IRE) 10 Crossed Fingers Partnership Tom George
Cash Back (FR) 9 Watch This Space Syndicate W. P. Mullins IRE
Chacun Pour Soi (FR) 9 Mrs S. Ricci W. P. Mullins IRE
Chatham Street Lad (IRE) 9 Mr V. Healy Michael Winters IRE
Cilaos Emery (FR) 9 Luke McMahon W. P. Mullins IRE
Defi du Seuil (FR) 8 Mr John P. McManus Philip Hobbs
Duc des Genievres (FR) 8 Sullivan Bloodstock Limited Paul Nicholls
Esprit du Large (FR) 7 Mr & Mrs William Rucker Evan Williams
Fakir d’Oudairies (FR) 6 Mr John P. McManus Joseph Patrick O’Brien IRE
Fanion d’Estruval (FR) 6 Mr David Wilson Venetia Williams
First Flow (IRE) 9 Mr A. N. Solomons Kim Bailey
Greaneteen (FR) 7 Chris Giles Paul Nicholls
Ibleo (FR) 8 The Bellamy Partnership Venetia Williams
Impact Factor (IRE) 9 Robcour Mrs J. Harrington IRE
Janika (FR) 8 Mr Simon Munir & Mr Isaac Souede Nicky Henderson
Le Richebourg (FR) 8 Mr John P. McManus Joseph Patrick O’Brien IRE
Magic Saint (FR) 7 Mr and Mrs J. D. Cotton Paul Nicholls
Min (FR) 10 Mrs S. Ricci W. P. Mullins IRE
Notebook (GER) 8 Gigginstown House Stud Henry de Bromhead IRE
Nube Negra (SPA) 7 Mr T. Spraggett Dan Skelton
Politologue (FR) 10 Mr J. Hales Paul Nicholls
Put The Kettle On (IRE) 7 One For Luck Racing Syndicate Henry de Bromhead IRE
Rouge Vif (FR) 7 Kate & Andrew Brooks Harry Whittington
Samcro (IRE) 9 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
Sceau Royal (FR) 9 Mr Simon Munir & Mr Isaac Souede Alan King
Simply The Betts (IRE) 8 Kate & Andrew Brooks Harry Whittington
Sizing Pottsie (FR) 7 Ann & Alan Potts Limited Mrs J. Harrington IRE
Tornado Flyer (IRE) 8 T. F. P. W. P. Mullins IRE
Waiting Patiently (IRE) 10 Mr Richard Collins Ruth Jefferson

31 entries 14 Irish-trained
 
Is Nicholls taking a bit of a gamble in running Politologue this weekend?

He's been adamant the last twice - his two career best runs [on RPRs] - that the key is having him ultra fresh.

Granted there will still be a couple of months between Saturday and the QM but I would hate to think they might leave his title behind this weekend.

Cards on the table, I have 20/1 ante-post for the QM hence my concerns. The time gap would be ideal for most QM contenders but I can't help remembering how serious Nicholls seemed about Politologue needing a proper break between races.

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Found this quote:
After he disappointed in the Tingle Creek last season we changed his routine. I said to John [Hales] I didn't want to run him before Cheltenham, where I'd have him absolutely right. That's what we did and we're training him the same way for this season's Tingle Creek, after which we'll go straight to Cheltenham.
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See post #344 DO.

He’s my biggest return of the festival and if he’s beaten in March and then Nicholls comes out with a “he’s better when fresh” comment... :mad:
 
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