Limini looks a star in the making
At Cheltenham today, Mullins unveils yet another possible star in that category in the shape of Limini, who is a confident nap choice to land the inaugural running of the Grade 2 Trull House Stud Mares’ Novices Hurdle.
Successful three times on the flat in her native France, the daughter of Peintre Celebre has won both her outings over flights in Ireland.
Truth to tell there was little earth shattering in her initial outing when beating the relatively modest Sandymount Duke by half a length at Punchestown in May.
Typical of the extraordinarily shrewd Mullins, though, she was then put away and afforded lots of time to mature.
The ground when she won at Punchestown was good and heavy on her reappearance at Fairyhouse at the end of January. It was difficult to know what to expect from Limini at Fairyhouse and she proved very uneasy in the market.
But her performance on the track was breathtaking, as she pulverised a decent field to beat the smart Cashelard Lady by 11 lengths, a margin that could have been greatly increased had her rider, Danny Mullins, so wished.
Two days ago both Annie Power and Vroum Vroum Mag were quite brilliant and one anticipates a similar display by Limini now.
Vautour set for take off in Ryanair
On Tuesday morning Vautour’s owner, Rich Ricci, shocked the racing world when revealing that his superb seven-year-old would miss Friday’s Gold Cup and instead head for this afternoon’s Ryanair Chase.
We will leave the merits of that decision for another day, but what it all means is that Vautour is running in the race that seriously suits him the most.
Travelling left-handed, over two miles and five furlongs, on a sound surface, are the ideal ingredients for Vautour to produce his best. Ricci said that the horse has not exactly been pulling up trees at home and it will be fascinating to see how strong, or weak, he proves to be, especially on the exchanges.
What we do know for sure is that if the Vautour that won the JLT Novices’ Chase here a year ago arrives then there can only be one result.
Alpha Des Obeaux looks the value without the favourite
Thistlecrack has looked a machine this season and Colin Tizzard’s charge is hard to oppose in the Ryanair World Hurdle.
The eight-year-old won in a canter at Newbury in November and again at Ascot in December and then at Cheltenham in January to put to bed the notion that he doesn’t handle the track.
This was a smashing display, as he powered up the hill for Tom Scudamore to beat Ptit Zig by twelve lengths.
Thistlecrack, however, looks sure to go off at tight enough odds and a more lucrative bet might be Alpha Des Obeaux without the favourite.
That particular wager was available as high as 3-1 yesterday and they seemed fair odds about one likely to relish the drying surface.
Truth to tell, Mouse Morris’ charge has been largely a nearly horse for a while now, but is only six and still has lots of time on his side.
After disappointing behind Prince Of Scars at Leopardstown at Christmas, Alpha Des Obeaux came right back to form at Gowran Park a couple of weeks later.
On unsuitably heavy ground, he finally began to show what was hidden under the bonnet to beat At Fishers Cross by 11 lengths.
He is capable of putting it up to Thistlecrack, having been within a length him at Aintree in April when falling at the final flight.
But there is no getting away from the fact that Thistlecrack has been awesome this campaign and investing in the without market seems the wise way to go.
Willie Mullins’ Black Hercules is fancied to give us a big run in the JLT Novices’ Chase, having been re-routed here from Tuesday’s four-mile National Hunt Chase.
The Heron Island gelding has taken reasonably well to fences, scoring quite nicely at Navan and Warwick.
Those two efforts, however, were followed by a blip when Black Hercules fell at Navan at the last, with the contest in safe keeping.
He was cruising heading to that final obstacle, but crumbled on landing, leaving stable companion, Measureofmydreams, in for a fortuitous victory.
Measureofmydreams did not let the form down when running a cracker to take third behind Minella Rocco in the four-miler on Tuesday.
In any case it is obviously not the ideal way to head for a festival of this magnitude, but overall Black Hercules is a safe jumper.
He was very free and keen at Navan and Mullins soon reasoned that his chances of staying four-miles, should such behaviour be replicated, were remote.
He also resisted the temptation to run Black Hercules in yesterday’s three-mile RSA Chase and, hopefully, aiming him here will now prove to be a master stroke.
Limini 4.50 Cheltenham
Alpha Des Obeaux (without Thistlecrack) 3.30 Cheltenham
Black Hercules 1.30 Cheltenham
