13:30 – Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1) – Hermes Allen
PAUL Nicholls’ runner was the long time ante-post favourite for this race, until Willie Mullins’ Impaire Et Passe ran out an impressive winner of the grade two Moscow Flyer in January. Hermes Allen impressively won the trial for this race in November, showing very slick jumping on good ground and thoroughly saw out the half-mile uphill finish. He also followed this up by winning the grade one Challow Hurdle when he was last seen in December. The conditions there were soft and very testing on stamina. Again, he passed this test with flying colours and beat the likes of Marble Sands, Crambo and You Wear It Well who all went on to success in graded or listed events. His form against British rivals is unquestionably brilliant but now he will have to face the best of the Irish. His versatility, stamina and ability to gain lengths over hurdles should make him deceivingly hard to reach for some of the classy Irish contenders whatever the conditions are on the day. Nicholls has said he perhaps would have preferred better ground in the Challow run but his class came through and said he has a good chance.
14:10 – Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) – Sir Gerhard
THIS race looks wide open on paper and it is possible one of the other runners could take advantage of the fact this horse is lacking prep runs over fences. This horse is surely the one with the highest ceiling in this field. He was the Champion Bumper winner in 2021 and Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle winner last season, showing prolific festival form. Willie Mullins has only been able to get one run into this horse over fences this season due to injury and he was a doubt for Cheltenham in December. He looked just as athletic as before on seasonal debut in late January, but his jumping was a worry, specifically early on. Mullins has suggested longer trip than usual of three miles will be run at a slightly slower pace and will make the jumping easier. He is capable of improving a horse off the track and the horse’s ability and stamina should see him overcome this field when stepping up in distance. Gerri Colombe is unbeaten in eight starts and has two grade one chases to his name as a novice, so it is easy to see why he leads the market. He did make hard work of things last time at Sandown and that form isn’t the strongest with those in behind unsuccessful at graded level over fences. The likes of Thyme Hill and The Real Whacker should be in the picture and will likely capitalise if Sir Gerhard’s jumping hasn’t improved.
15:30 – Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase (Grade 1) – Edwardstone
LAST year’s Arkle winner rarely runs a bad race and kicked off the season by winning the grade one Tingle Creek at Sandown ahead of multiple grade one winners. These included the defending champion Greaneteen, an out of sorts Shishkin, who is now a strong favourite for the Ryanair Chase and Gentleman De Mee who won the Dublin Chase last month. Edwardstone then unseated his rider in the Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton in December, before coming a close second in the Clarence House Chase in January. The grade one contest was rescheduled for the January meeting at Cheltenham, due to frozen ground at Ascot and it produced interesting course form. The reigning champion chaser Energumene finished six lengths behind this horse and the winner was a game Editeur Du Gite who made most of the running. Editeur Du Gite used a lot of effort in the run and his battling qualities were what helped him fend off Edwardstone who had the speed to win had the race been a few metres longer. Alan King’s runner comes here with confirmed form ahead of multiple top class horses and has built valuable experience during his first season as a novice. If he reproduces a performance like the one that saw him claim the Tingle Creek, Edwardstone will be hard to beat.
16:10 – Glenfarclas Chase (Cross Country Chase) – Delta Work
THIS pick may depend on the ground, with this horse likely to benefit from soft-heavy going. Gordon Elliott dominated this race last season where fan favourite and dual Grand National winner Tiger Roll was hoping for the perfect swan song. Delta Work spoiled the party with a gutsy performance to see off a prolific Cheltenham Festival winner and a special horse. He followed that victory with a third place finish in the Grand National the following month. At the January meeting here on the same course, Back On The Lash won by just over four lengths ahead of this horse in third. On that occasion Delta Work was a stone and 9lbs worse off in the weights than the eventual winner, with an abundance of horses finishing behind who also run here. His most recent run at Navan was very disappointing but it was over hurdles which may have worked against this horse and Blazing Khal was an impressive winner. It is important to mention the main threat is Galvin who is stepping down from graded company and is a standout name in this field. However, last season’s Gold Cup fourth has been underwhelming in his last two starts but isn’t without a chance because he is facing lower rated horses while carrying the same weight. Davy Russell takes the ride and the ground is widely believed to be changing in his favour, but as long as the ground description remains soft this race leans towards Delta Work who has shown better form.
17:30 – Weatherbys Champion Bumper (Standard Open NH Flat Race) (Grade 1) – Fun Fun Fun
IN recent years Willie Mullins has had frightening strength in depth at his disposal, especially with regards to bumpers. This horse gets the pick here mainly due to winning a grade two bumper at Leopardstown last month. The prize money guaranteed that this horse would face a field that boasted some winners. One of these was Lily Du Berlais who won a listed event in February last year where she finished ahead of Liberty Dance, who went on to win a listed novice hurdle. Fun Fun Fun beat her rival by nine lengths, making it a good piece of form that catches the eye in a bumper like this. Stablemate It’s For Me won impressively at Navan in January but there wasn’t an abundance of eventual winners in the race. The current favourite, Dream To Share, won a grade two last month, emphatically beating Fact To File in the process. He is a good horse who could easily win, but Fun Fun Fun will carry 7lbs less than most of her rivals due to the mares’ allowance.
Hawkinsport 