Vautour good to go at Ascot, and he will improve
He’s working really well and the conditions of the race suit him. He’s getting five lbs off Ptit Zig while the other good horse in the race, O’Faolains Boy, has only run once since he won the RSA at Cheltenham last year.
Ptit Zig will have the fitness edge having had a run in Down Royal but, technically, we’re well in on the book.
Vautour was brilliant last year; he hasn’t run since Cheltenham when he was outstanding but we’re happy with him and fingers crossed he can get what could be a very important season off to a good start. He’s ready to do himself justice, but he will improve, there’s no doubt he’ll improve. Ascot will suit him and I’ll be very disappointed if he doesn’t win.
We were quite undecided about the Ascot option or whether we were going to keep him for the John Durkan. But the problem with waiting was the risk of it being rained off and then no prep for the King George.
Today’s race is 35 days before the King George so it’s an ideal lead in. He looks the right type for the King George with the way he won last year. He has great cruising speed, he’s a wonderful jumper and where he’ll end up you just don’t know. You start up hoping they’ll all be Gold Cup horses, that’s the dream, and until he tells us that’s not going to happen, that’s the road he’ll be going.
The big race in England this weekend is the Betfair Chase and I’m surprised the field is so small given it’s such a big pot. I think Silviniaco Conti will win. It’s between him and Cue Card really. Holywell will stay well but I don’t know if he’s good enough. But if there is to be a surprise it could be him.
Willie’s had a good week and we have plenty of chances at Gowran Park today and Navan tomorrow. We run a nice three-year-old in the first at Gowran called Footpad. He comes with a big reputation, has schooled well at home, seems to be a galloper more than a speed horse but it’ll be testing ground so that’s what’s needed.
Three-year-olds are hard to get a handle on. He’s been working with our other three-year-olds because you don’t want to work three-year-olds with older horses. We haven’t ran our three-year-olds so we don’t know if we have a good or ordinary bunch, but this fella goes as well as any of ours.
Paul Townend rides Footpad and a nice horse called American Tom in the second at Gowran. Douvan won this race last year. Would I think he’s doing the same work as Douvan? No, but Douvan is Douvan. This fella goes nicely, he’s schooled well, he looks like a staying horse and we’re happy with him. I think he’ll run a big race.
In the third race of the day, Willie runs the Gigginstown-owned Stone Hard. He looked a very good bumper horse early last year but lost his way a little bit, a little like Up For Review. He’s schooled well and he’s working well. There’s no reason why he couldn’t win this.
Conditions of the race should suit Jarry D’Honneur and Tennis Cap in the feature but they’ll both have to improve a bit to beat Smashing.
In the penultimate race of the day, Roi Des Francs faces a tough task to get the better of Monksland.
To Navan, where the headline act — for me at least — will be Douvan’s chasing debut. He was brilliant as a novice hurdler last year, going unbeaten, and doing everything asked of him. He’s schooled well over fences, he’s ready to start. If he jumps as well in Navan as he has done at home it’ll be great. Obviously you’d love a clear round first and foremost but we’re very happy with him; we think he’s very exciting and fingers crossed he can set himself up for a Grade One at Christmas.
There’s plenty opposition but I think Douvan should be good enough if he jumps well enough.
Willie runs Potters Point in the opener for Gigginstown so Bryan Cooper will be doing the steering. Readers of this column will have probably lost more than they have won on Potters Point. He was a very good workhorse last season and happened to get beaten a couple of times before eventually wining. His work has been very strong, but I’m a little wary in that I fancied him a few times last year on his homework and he didn’t produce.
My afternoon begins on Ten Times Better for Pat Fahy. She won a maiden hurdle in Clonmel and gave the right vibes. I think she’ll be a nice price and I wouldn’t put anybody off backing her each way. She won’t be far away.
I then team up with Austin Leahy’s Loyalty Card. She won a maiden hurdle in Listowel on testing ground, seems to be a reasonable weight and stays well — she has an each-way chance in a competitive race.
I don’t have a ride in the Troytown so Childrens List, in the penultimate race of the day, is my final mount of the weekend.
He was unlucky in Galway the last day but fell at the last when going well. He seems to be working well so the only concern is the ground.
Foxrock, trained by my dad, also runs in this. He is a high-class horse who looks reasonably well treated over hurdles. You’d have to imagine he’s the best in the race.
Willie can finish a potentially fantastic weekend on a winning note. Augusta Kate, who Patrick rides, absolutely bolted up in Listowel. This has been the target for her ever since. She’s not an outstanding workhorse, she keeps a lot of her ability for the track and these are the horses you like.
She couldn’t have been any more impressive in Listowel and should be hard to beat.
Touching briefly on last weekend, it was obviously disappointing that Faugheen lost his unbeaten record to Nichols Canyon in the Morgiana Hurdle. I suppose he wasn’t as ready as we thought while Nichols Canyon was good to go.
I probably underestimated Nichols Canyon and I should have known better, but mistakes are made and these things happen.
Getting Sir Des back a wonderful achievement
This has been some week for comebacks with Sprinter Sacre bouncing back to form in the Shloer Chase at Cheltenham before Sir Des Champs made a briilliant return to action after 791 days off when winning at Thurles on Thursday.
It’s a wonderful achievement by all the team at Closutton to get Sir Des Champs back. The two girls at home who ride him out have done a wonderful job with him to get him back, to get him that fit, to keep him sound and keep the old spark and zest.
Obviously, if he was any way right, he was entitled to win at Thurles — he’d 30 lbs in hand — but it was a very good performance.
Sprinter Sacre obviously ran last year but he looks like he’s back on form. Again, the race conditions really suited. You’d a horse who theoretically was way above the opposition getting weight off them like Sir Des Champs but those races are needed to get those horses back into a winning groove.
Jump racing is funny, horses disappear off the face of the earth and all off a sudden they all seem to be reappearing.
It’s a tribute to the patience of the trainer, the staff and also the owners who are putting the money in. You’re talking two years with no return so far play to all concerned.
