Pauling’s Proud the one but Be Aware of Skelton team April 23, 2024 A BRILLIANT concluding card to the National Hunt season begins with the Novices’ Championship Final Handicap Hurdle (1.50pm). It’s as competitive as you would expect with many horses being targeted at a final big payday of the season before they head out to the paddocks for the summer. Ben Pauling’s FIERCELY PROUD was entered to [...]
Inis Oirr and Git Maker to do us Proud April 16, 2024 IT’S VERY much National season at the moment, with last week’s Grand National succeeded by Saturday’s Scottish Grand National (3.35pm) at Ayr. With Willie Mullins’ I Am Maximus winning at Aintree, the Closutton handler now leads the British Trainers’ Championship, despite only having had 19 winners this season. There isn’t much Mullins hasn’t won on [...]
Don’t be Torn from old boy Summerghand at Newmarket April 16, 2024 CLASSIC trials are upon us again with today being the middle day of Newmarket’s three-day Craven Meeting and the ITV cameras are there to cover the action from the Rowley Mile. Godolphin and Charlie Appleby hold a strong hand in both trials, with Dance Sequence a firm favourite for today’s Nell Gwyn (3.35pm) and tomorrow’s [...]
Jim Culloty: Grand National is not scary at all! April 12, 2024 THE GRAND National was one of Jim Culloty’s favourite, and apparently easiest, races as a jockey, winning the 2002 renewal aboard Bindaree. Looking back on his previous rides in the race, Culloty revealed that he wasn’t at all scared by facing some of the biggest fences that National Hunt racing has to offer. Culloty, [...]
Jim Culloty: Bindaree needed one chance and the rest was history April 12, 2024 AS A jockey Jim Culloty rode some of the best around and will forever be associated with the three-time Gold Cup winner Best Mate, while later he would train the winner of the Cheltenham showpiece himself, when successful with Lord Windermere in 2014. Culloty also won the Grand National as a rider aboard Bindaree in [...]
Waters the one to end Mullins’ National drought April 10, 2024 YOU CAN almost certainly count on one hand the amount of big races that Willie Mullins has won only once. And while Saturday’s Randox Grand National (4.00pm) isn’t exactly an easy race to win, the fact the Closutton supremo has only trained the winner of it once will be a statistic he’ll be keen to [...]
Rain at Aintree but Brighterdaysahead nonetheless April 10, 2024 IT HAS been a miserable winter, but the rain clearly has no interest in ceasing in time for Grand National day, hence heavy ground form is looking the most persuasive, even at this time of year. With that in mind, Dan Skelton’s GWENNIE MAY BOY could be the one in the William Hill Handicap Hurdle [...]
Tres Bon Jon set for more success stepping up in trip April 10, 2024 IT HAS been a miserable couple of months for Nicky Henderson. Not only has he had to deal with the setbacks to his stable star Constitution Hill, but a sickness bug worked its way through the yard, resulting in no winners at the Cheltenham Festival and some high-profile absentees. JONBON was one of them in [...]
Bridge and Water won’t be troubled by handicap marks April 10, 2024 DAN Skelton’s knack of plundering valuable handicap hurdles has been clear for all to see. Langer Dan has been haunting the handicapper since winning the William Hill Handicap Hurdle (2:20pm) for the Skeltons in 2022, and tomorrow they fire five bullets at this year’s renewal. Harry has opted to ride 7/1 favourite Kateira, who could [...]
Impaire to not let his rivals Passe in Aintree Hurdle April 10, 2024 AINTREE’s Grand National Festival gets underway today and while the big race on Saturday will be the spectacle many are waiting for, today’s card is full of top-quality contests. I struggled to find a bet in the opening two Grade Ones, as I expect the Manifesto (1.45pm) to be fought out by the one-two from [...]
