Nicholls’ Empire to rule in Gerry Feilden

ALTHOUGH Irish Examiner columnist Ruby Walsh is not convinced of the credentials of Aiteen Thirtythree in this afternoon’s Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury, it has the look of a real plot by trainer Paul Nicholls.

Having twice won the race as a jockey (Broadheath in 1986 and Playschool in 1987) and three times as a trainer (Strong Flow in 2003 and Denman in 2007 and 2009), `there are few who know as well as Nicholls what is needed to land the prestigious prize.

Aiteen Thirtythree is a lightly raced gelding, who made his seasonal debut in a three-horse race won by Somersby at Kempton. The winner didn’t let the form down when finishing an honourable second behind another Ditcheat inmate, Master Minded, on his next outing. On that occasion, Aiteen Thirtythree was severely disadvantaged by the conditions of the Graduation Chase, having to run off level weights with a horse officially rated a stone superior. With Nicholls reporting that the reason for the run was to take the freshness out of his horse, it looks a pretty smart move by the champion trainer.