An outstanding card at Leopardstown this afternoon sees three consecutive Grade 1 races on the menu for racegoers to enjoy, and although the sight of three small fields will dismay some (five runners in all three), it’s very much a case of quality not quantity.
With some short prices recommended I’ll be playing up the following selections in multiples:
The Future Champions Novice Hurdle (12.50pm) over two miles kicks off our coverage on RTE, and on paper it looks a straight match between Willie Mullins (two winners at Leopardstown yesterday) Zaidpour and Shark Hanlon’s (won the bumper yesterday) unbeaten Hidden Cyclone.
Both have won their last two races without being extended, but the bookmakers clearly favour Zaidpour and rightly so in my opinion; of the pair he may display the greater tendency to act on this testing ground, plus he benefits from a 3lb weight allowance as the only four year old in the line up.
The only doubt would be how he has recovered from his romp in the Royal Bond at Fairyhouse, but all being well (and Mullins was exuding confidence when interviewed yesterday) he can get us up and running with a winner.
Next up at 1.20pm we see Ireland’s best three two mile chasers go head to head in the Paddy Power Dial-A-Bet Chase, and having beaten chief market Golden Silver rival a length and a quarter at Navan last month for me it simply has to be 2010 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Big Zeb.
Barry Geraghty has opted to stay in Ireland to ride him rather than head to Newbury to ride Punchestowns, and as a course and distance winner who has won on heavy ground in this calendar year he looks very hard to beat despite the level of opposition.
The 13-8 with Paddy Power or William Hill looks well worth tucking in to.
In the Festival Hurdle over two miles at 1.55pm you get the impression the only way Solwhit’s connections can get one over Hurricane Fly in his current vein of form is with a tazar gun craftily deployed near the final hurdle – Willie Mullins stable star couldn’t have been more impressive in seeing off his great rival in the Hatton’s Grace earlier in the month.
Those of you with longer memories will recall Punchestown back in April when Hurricane Fly got the better of Solwhit once more in the Rabobank Champion Hurdle.
In short it should become 3-0 to Hurricane Fly shortly before 2pm. He’s biggest at 4-6 with Totesport.
We’ll need a fourth selection, and that arrives courtesy of a very strong word for Nicky Henderson’s Irish import Accordingtojodie, an Accordion four year old who’s very strongly tipped up to win the concluding bumper at Newbury (3.50pm).
The winner of his only career start to date, at Galway in August when with Tom Mullins, our man with his snout in the trough at Seven Barrows says get on. That’ll do for me.
Good luck!
Wednesday’s best bet – win yankee on the following selections plus win singles on Big Zeb and Accordingtojodie:
12.50 Leopardstown – paddpowerpoker.com Future Champions Novice Hurdle – 5 Zaidpour (win) @ 2/5 (Paddy Power or Boylesports)
1.20 Leopardstown – Paddy Power Dial-A-Bet Chase – 1 Big Zeb (win) @ 13/8 (William Hill)
1.55 Leopardstown – paddypower.com Iphone App Festival Hurdle – 1 Hurricane Fly (win) @ 4/6 (Totesport)
3.50 Newbury – Help Heros – Help Horses Charity Standard Open NH Flat Race – 1 Accordingtojodie (win) @ 11/10 (Bet365 or Victor Chandler)
