Weld aims to make Name at Sandown
Hannon has won the Group Two race an incredible six times in the last eight renewals, including the last four in a row through Major Cadeaux, Paco Boy (twice) and Dick Turpin.
This time around he will saddle Dubawi Gold and Libranno, but they will face a serious examination from Weld’s long-serving representative, who is a big favourite of his jockey Pat Smullen having ridden him in all but one of his 30 starts.
A multiple scorer at Listed and Group Three level, it has been an ambition of Weld to get the seven-year-old entire an elusive Group One win as he has been placed in that class on six occasions.
“He’s obviously in good form having won his first run of the season at Leopardstown the other day,” said Smullen.
“He’s been a model of consistency and he has won 15 races, with 14 of them at stakes level. That takes some doing.
“I know he’s a seven-year-old but he seems as good as ever fitness-wise and I’d say he’ll improve for the run in what looks a very competitive race.”
Hannon’s two runners have slight questions to answer
“Libranno has been such a star for Oliver McDowell, winning two Group Twos as a juvenile and two Group Threes last year, and he seems better than ever,” he told his website.
“He is so versatile and was only beaten three lengths in the July Cup, and he looked to enjoy the ease in the ground when he won the Criterion Stakes at Newmarket over seven furlongs.
“However, this will be proper soft ground and he also needs to get the mile, so we are going into the unknown.
“We know that Dubawi Gold stays the mile as he was runner-up in two Guineas last year, but he needs to bounce back from an unpleasant experience in Dubai, where he lashed out in the stalls and caught his hind legs.
“It could have been a lot worse, but he has come back fine and we hope that he will get back on track.”
Sandown’s big meeting today and tomorrow that traditionally ends the National Hunt season is in no obvious danger.
Clerk of the course Andrew Cooper said: “We’ve got no issue at present. “The ground on the Flat course is heavy and on the jumps courses a mixture of soft and good to soft.”
The news was not good for Leicester who were due to stage one of their biggest meetings tomorrow.
Clerk of the course Jimmy Stevenson inspected the venue just before 8am and was forced to admit defeat.
Beverley’s meeting yesterday was lost after a scheduled 9am inspection was put back to 11am.
Ripon’s meeting tomorrow is also in some doubt with an 11.30am inspection called for today.
