Can Irish Runners Sweep the Card on Day 2 of Cheltenham?
The Grade-1 Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle is the opening race on the second day of Cheltenham’s 2023 Festival. It is a fascinating contest where Willie Mullins’ – already a five-time winner of the race – is responsible for half of the ten-runner field.
Gaelic Warrior heads to the final flight ahead in last season’s Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle. Can Willie Mullins’ charge win the first race on Wednesday? ©GettyImages
The Irish trainer has an even stronger hand in the Champion Bumper that concludes the day’s racing. Fielding ten of the 24 runners, Mullins is chasing a fourteenth success in the biggest National Hunt Flat race of them all.
It is possible that Irish-trained runners will whitewash the home defense this afternoon. In addition to Mullins’ strong hand, Gordon Elliott has numerical strength and some short-priced runners on the seven-race card.
But things are rarely that straightforward at Cheltenham, and a banana skin result will probably catch out punters – and save the bookmakers – at some point in time. It would also boost Tote dividends on Jackpot, Scoop6, and Placepot bets. Let us hope we can avoid the bogeys and repeat Tuesday’s success by finding a placed horse in six consecutive races to land a healthy Placepot on Wednesday.
Leg 1, Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle, 1.30 pm
Former French racer Gaelic Warrior was short-headed in last season’s Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle at the Festival on his debut for Willie Mullins. He has won all three starts since but now faces a five-furlong step-up in trip.
The trainer appears bullish about his ability to stay 21 furlongs, but his stable jockey has elected to ride the bookies favorite, Impaire Et Passe. Another French import, he is three-from-three with winning form on soft and heavy surfaces.
Jockeys are notoriously bad judges, and the handicapper rates Gaelic Warrior as the better horse. The advice is to stick with the wisdom of Mullins and bank on Gaelic Warrior to finish in the frame where Impaire Et Passe is likely to join him. But, for the betterment of the Placepot dividend, hopefully, he will not!
Leg 2, Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, 2.10 pm
In two bumpers, two hurdles, and three chases, Gerri Colombe has maintained an unbeaten record. An impressive sequence it is, but the word ‘brilliance’ cannot yet be applied. Officially rated 154, Gordon Elliott’s contender is not the best horse in this contest according to handicap ratings – that distinction goes to Thyme Hill – and Sir Gerhard is also rated superior on figures.
Just 6/4 with the Cheltenham Sportsbooks, Gerri Colombe is very short and could be one of the day’s disappointments. Many of his rivals are improving and arrive at Prestbury Park on the back of last-time-out success. So this race looks worthy of two Placepot bullets, and once again, we are hoping the favorite will fail to make the frame.
Shot number one is The Real Whacker, a horse that has won both his chase starts (here at Cheltenham) and is over-priced by virtue of not hailing from a high-profile stable. The second is aimed toward last season’s Stayers Hurdle runner-up Thyme Hill.
Leg 3, Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle, 2.50 pm
26 runners and a favorite that is trading at 8/1. As the cliché goes, you will struggle to find the winner of this race with a search warrant! Remarkably, in 20 years, JP McManus-owned horses have made the frame just four times in this one. Therefore, we will ignore his three runners.
Narrowing the field down to 23 is no massive help, and if ever a race requires a scattergun approach, this is it. The first two of our seven selections are Bold Endeavor and Call Me Lord. The pair are trained by Nicky Henderson. He has enjoyed two winners and a second in this contest during the past four years.
Run For Oscar, HMS Seahorse, Beacon Edge, San Salvador and The Very Man are our other selections. The latter three horses – in some cases totally dismissed by the Cheltenham bookmakers – are all ridden by claiming jockeys …it is no coincidence.
Leg 4, Queen Mother Champions Chase, 3.30 pm
2023 is not a classic year for two-mile chasers. Edwardstone and Energumene are clearly the ones to beat on their best form. Each trade around 13/8 in this seven-runner contest. But they are not greats like previous winners Sprinter Sacre, Master Minded, Altior and Moscow Flier.
Energumene was turned over at odds of 4/9 – finishing third in a six-runner contest – on his latest outing. Edwardstone unseated his rider on his penultimate start. The duo are not bomb-proof. Yet should either fail to finish in the first two, several Placepot units will disappear. It looks feasible.
AN ABSOLUTE BELTER! 🤩
Editeur Du Gite battles all the way to take the Albert Bartlett Clarence House Chase 🥇#ITVRacing | @CheltenhamRaces | @niall_houli pic.twitter.com/kpS63hZ9PO
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) January 28, 2023
Sometimes, the eyes should believe in themselves – and the ears should not listen to other people. Editeur Du Gite beat Edwardstone on merit when they last raced six weeks ago. That day, back in third was Energumene. Despite trading at 5/1, the Gary Moore-trained Editeur Du Gite is our only selection in this race.
Leg 5, Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase, 4.10 pm
16 runners and 32 obstacles on predicted soft going? Not the kind of race where you would expect to find a 5/4 favorite (Delta Work) and a 9/4 second favorite (Galvin). Both horses were beaten senseless on their most recent outing, but the Cross-Country race at the Festival is a million miles away from a Grade-2 hurdle or a Grade-1 chase.
Galvin started 10/3 second favorite in last year’s Gold Cup – finishing fourth – and won the National Hunt Challenge Cup Novices’ Chase at the 2021 Festival. A semblance of that form over this unique course would see him win this contest for fun. He is a banker selection.
Leg 6, Grand Annual Chase, 4.50 pm
Global Citizen beat Andy Dufresne in this race last year, and both are in the lineup again. Proven on heavy going, they could go close albeit Global Citizen is aging and has to overcome poor recent efforts.
Aged six, Dinoblue is the youngest in the field. Like Andy Dufresne, he is owned by JP McManus who has had nine winners and/or placed runners in this contest since 2012. With improvement likely, Dinoblue must be included in our perm.
But, in a 20-runner handicap, taking a handful of selections is wise. Dads Lad, Elixir De Nutz and Thyme White complete the five we like and will give us a quarter of the field …should our Placepot perm still be alive at this juncture!
Placepot Selections
- Race 1: 3
- Race 2: 8, 10
- Race 3: 3, 6, 7, 12, 15, 16, 19
- Race 4: 2
- Race 5: 10
- Race 6: 1, 7, 8, 11, 18
Perm: 1 x 2 x 7 x 1 x 1 x 5 = 70 Placepot lines
