Ten chasers to follow for the National Hunt season

As the National Hunt season swings into gear, Colm Greaves selects ten chasers that might warm the cold, locked down winter

Sat, 10 Oct, 2020 - 08:00

Colm Greaves

Champ, Nicky Henderson

Cheltenham was an anxious place to be last spring. The seriousness of Covid-19 seemed to drop on the attendance with the first race flag and by day two the fretful crowd had already begun to thin a little.

The extraordinary performance of Champ in the RSA Chase provided a welcome distraction. Nicky Henderson’s good novice looked well beaten when eight lengths behind at the last as Minella Indo and Allaho powered on. But Champ dug deep, they weakened late, and he had caught and passed them in the shadow of the post.

The performance screamed ‘Gold Cup’ and if he tidies up his jumping Champ will be a serious contender.

Ante-post recommendation: Cheltenham Gold Cup 12-1

Simply The Betts, Harry Whittington

The seven-year-old is at a fork in the road. To the left lies the path to improvement and top-grade chases. Turn right and he could be marooned forever with heavyweights in handicaps and a perpetual sitting duck for carefully prepared improvers.

At this stage, last season’s continuous upgrade when he won four from five looks more likely, including a game win in a hot looking novice handicap chase at the festival. Whatever happens, he’ll remain in the record books as the final winner of that race as it will be replaced on next year’s programme by a mares’ chase.

However, he looks far from finished as a Festival force.

Ryanair Chase: 25-1

Laurina, Paul Nicholls

Speaking of that new mares’ novice chase, Paul Nicholls is happy with the development, saying this week that “there will certainly be plenty of good mares in both Britain and Ireland to contest it and I hope to have a good candidate in Laurina”.

Laurina was one of a dozen horses relocated by owner Jared Sullivan from Willie Mullins’ during the summer despite winning plenty of Grade Ones for the Carlow trainer. She was all wrong last spring and if she puts her problems behind her, she’ll be a dominant force in mares’ chases in Britain this winter.

Mares’ Chase: 33-1

Real Steel, Paul Nicholls

Another Sullivan migrant to Nicholls is Real Steel. During his spell with Mullins, the French bred seven-year-old always seemed to be on the brink of greatness but never quite got there.

He really caught the eye in the most recent Gold Cup when he was cantering at the second last but it was another false dawn and by the next fence his petrol had run out.

Three miles on an easier track looks the job for Real Steel and he could be a serious impediment to his treble-seeking stablemate Clan Des Obeaux in the King George at Christmas.

King George: 25-1

Presenting Percy, Gordon Elliott

NEW SURROUNDINGS: Having moved to Gordon Elliott’s, Presenting Percy, right, could bounce back to his best form. Picture: Healy Racing

When Real Steel was cantering at that second last, Presenting Percy was falling.

Always a popular chaser due to his ‘small man’ trainer it seems incongruous, but despite two Cheltenham wins, Percy’s career remains slightly unfulfilled.

The nine-year-old was another to play summertime musical chairs when owner, Philip Reynolds moved him from the quirky small Galway yard of Pat Kelly to the mainstream machine that is Gordon Elliott. This would have been an agonising decision for Reynolds but this last throw of the dice could earn Presenting Percy a seat on Elliott’s Aintree Express alongside Tiger Roll.

Grand National: 33-1

Defi Du Seuil, Philip Hobbs

Still only seven, Defi Du Seuil seems to have around forever. An unbeaten juvenile hurdler he then lost his way for a year and switched to fences earlier than planned.

This proved a happy accident and he won a competitive JLT Novices’ Chase from the high-class Lostintranslation at the 2019 Festival.

His upward trajectory continued last season when he won four on the bounce on his way to the Champion Chase where he finished a lethargic fourth of five.

This was far from his real form and with the two-mile division as clear as mud Defi should land several big pots during the coming season.

Champion Chase: 14-1

Walk Away, Henry De Bromhead

Trying to spot an unexposed, well handicapped young chaser is as easy as lifting mercury with a fork. One that just might fit the profile is Walk Away who makes his seasonal debut in the lucrative Munster National at Limerick tomorrow, running off 136 which gets him in on a handy looking 10-7.

Although he hasn’t won over fences he has run up against the likes of Faugheen and Champ so he is clearly held in high regard by connections. He was trounced into third behind Allaho in January but was not too far behind the subsequent Cheltenham winner Milan Native who is now rated 149. A horse for the tracker.

Munster National (Limerick, tomorrow)

Copperhead, Colin Tizzard

Copperhead developed into a decent novice chaser last season and was well backed for the RSA but fell when beaten.

He won three good races in the lead up and ended among the top-rated novices, just eight pounds behind Champ.

Before his Festival mishap Copperhead had looked a dependable jumper as he proved with a 17-length demolition job on the talented Two For Gold in the Reynoldstown Chase at Ascot in February.

His logical early season target could be the Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury in November, a race that often springboards second season chasers on to greater things.

Ladbrokes Trophy 16-1

Latest Exhibition, Paul Nolan

SO CLOSE: Latest Exhibition, left, was just touched off by Monkfish in the Albert Barlett but he remains a huge talent. Picture: Healy Racing

Paul Nolan came fully back in from the cold when Latest Exhibition won the Grade One novice hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival in February.

Every inch a chaser, he looks to have all the attributes to reach the top in this division. He looked the winner at the bottom of hill in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle on the Friday at Cheltenham but was mugged on the line by the talented Monkfish.

Directly behind him were Fury Road and Thyme Hill, two high-class stayers.

Presuming he jumps a fence well he will be hard to beat in either the RSA or perhaps even the longer National Hunt Chase this spring.

National Hunt Chase 16/1

Marown, Nicky Richards

The green and yellow quarters and white sleeved colours of three-time National winning owner Trevor Hemmings (Hedgehunter, Many Clouds, Ballabriggs) have been a staple of British jump racing for decades, particularly at Northern racetracks. Sadly, Hemmings has decided to cut back his massive string of horses and is currently separating wheat from chaff. Marown might be among the last of the wheat. Unbeaten in three inconsequential races at Ayr and Newcastle the six-year-old son of Milan is likely to be sent chasing by Nicky Richards this season and has the profile and ability to run up a sequence from his base up in Cumbria.

No known target yet.