Trust the Special Envoi Sent to Punchestown With Love

by Roy Brindley, 28 April 2023

Love Envoi can bring some Euros back to blighty with success at the Punchestown Festival on Saturday. The Harry Fry-trained star has a remarkable career record of eight wins and two seconds from ten-lifetime starts.

Love Envoi can assume her place at the top of the mares’ two-mile hurdle division with victory on Saturday. ©GettyImages

Love Envoi can assume her place at the top of the mares’ two-mile hurdle division with a victory on Saturday. No caste was lost in defeat when chasing home the outstanding Honeysuckle at the Cheltenham Festival six weeks ago. With the dual Champion Hurdle winner now retired, Love Envoi can now rule the mares hurdle roost, starting with victory in Punchestown’s Mares Champion Hurdle at the weekend.

Triumph Repeat Forecasted

There are four colts and four fillies in the Ballymore Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle. In this contest, the fairer sex receives a seven-pound weight concession. Resultantly a repeat of the Triumph Hurdle result is entirely possible.

At the Festival, Lossiemouth accounted for Gala Marceau by two-and-a-quarter lengths. Zenta, in third, completed a clean sweep for fillies. In a weak renewal of this contest, Saturday’s race can produce another 1-2 finish for the Willie Mullins-trained pair.

Trust the Champion Chase Form

Saturday Grade-1 jumps action is not restricted to just Punchestown. At Sandown Park, an Irish runner, Captain Guinness, can plunder the bet365 Celebration Chase prize. Here favorite, Jonbon, is turned out quickly following a facile success at the Aintree Grand National meeting.

Not for the first time in Jonbon’s jumping career, the big question is, what did he beat? The next question is, can Saturday’s odds – the Nicky Henderson-trained horse is trading at 7/4 with the best racing betting sites – be justified? For a horse making his first appearance outside of novice company, we believe not.

All of Jonbon’s four rivals met in the Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival in mid-March. Captain Guinness fared best, finishing second, ten lengths adrift of Energumene. Greaneteen was third, beaten 24 lengths, and Editeur Du Gite was a further ten lengths adrift if fourth. UK bookmakers and punters believe Editeur Du Gite will fare best this time. He is only 9/4 to score on Saturday, and that price reflects his rating. Allocated a mark of 166 following a 14/1 success at Cheltenham in January, he is officially considered the best horse in this contest. But Captain Guinness has long been rated in the low 160s, and the form worth of his second in the Champion Chase should be given deserved credit and not simply be dismissed as a “muddling race”.

Wob Woth a Bob With Roche Aboard

The booking of the Irish-based rider, Leigh Roche, on Wobwobwob in Leicester’s 3. 05 pm takes the eye. Adrian Paul Keatley’s charge overcame a high draw to finish a close-up fourth at Redcar on his seasonal debut indicating this four-time winner could be on the scoresheet again soon. Some top stables and jockeys contest this race, but it is still a handicap with plenty of form on display. Our selection appears to be a straightforward ride. And, if Roche’s journey from Ireland is a statement of expectation, he could reward the each-way punters who avail of the 12/1 odds currently offered by the best horse racing betting sites.

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