Betfair Hurdle preview: Unbeaten Metier has the right profile

This will be the tenth year that Betfair has sponsored the season’s top two-mile handicap hurdle which has a long history dating back to the sixties when it began life as the Schweppes Gold Trophy. These days the race has a well-founded reputation for being won by novices, and when Al Dancer was successful in the re-arranged 2019 renewal run at Ascot, he became the sixth novice to win the race under Betfair sponsorship.

The three other renewals in those last nine years have all gone to five-year-olds, and you have to go right back to Geos in 2004, when he won what was then the Tote Gold Trophy for the second time, at the age of nine, for the last winner who wasn’t aged either five or six. Geos, incidentally, beat the ten-year-old Rooster Booster, the reigning Champion Hurdle winner, a short head on that occasion.

Geos supplied two of Nicky Henderson’s record five winners of this contest, his most recent one being the novice My Tent Or Yours in 2013. Henderson is responsible for the top weight Buzz this time who isn’t a novice but has had only six races over hurdles to date, winning three of them. He also had top weight when contesting the Betfair Exchange Trophy at Ascot just before Christmas, putting himself on the shortlist for this race when finishing second to Not So Sleepy. Coming from a long way back against the all-the-way winner, Buzz shaped well, and with further improvement seems sure to go close again, this time with conditional Kevin Brogan booked to take 5 lb off his back.

Not So Sleepy is a talent when he wants to be! Hughie Morrison’s charge wins back-to-back £100,000 Betfair Exchange Trophies at @Ascot, this time under @tjobrien12... pic.twitter.com/RD9wjvLzwl

— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) December 19, 2020

The Betfair Hurdle is a rare omission so far among Dan Skelton’s wins in the top two-mile handicap hurdles in the calendar and he has two chances to put that right with Cadzand and Faivoir, both of them novices. Cadzand made a successful handicap debut at Kempton last time when beating Christopher Wood who boosted the form by winning at Musselburgh last weekend. Cadzand is vying for favouritism, but stablemate Faivoir looks the better handicapped of the pair having picked up a 5 lb penalty for his latest success in the Rossington Main Novices’ Hurdle at Haydock. That was his second consecutive success under Bridget Andrews, and he looks the type who’ll relish an end-to-end gallop in a big field such as this.

Alan King is another trainer with two chances of winning this for the first time. The rather headstrong Edwardstone settled better than usual when winning well at Market Rasen last time, while On To Victory, who was smart on the Flat, hasn’t made an entirely smooth switch to hurdling but he too got his head in front last time in a maiden at Wincanton.

Jonjo O’Neill won this in pre-Betfair days with Get Me Out of Here in 2010 – another novice – and has a likely type with Supreme entry Soaring Glory who will be contesting his first handicap. Soaring Glory has come up against some top novices and took the scalp of the subsequently unbeaten Bravemansgame when they made their respective hurdling debuts over two miles at Chepstow in October. A fall at Wetherby probably cost him another win, but placed efforts either side of that behind Dusart at Newbury and My Drogo at Ascot have confirmed that Soaring Glory has plenty of ability, though the way we read the form he has something to find to justify his position among those at the head of the betting.

The one who makes most appeal among those vying for favouritism is Metier, unbeaten in his three starts over hurdles for Harry Fry. Having shown useful form on the Flat in Ireland with Andrew Slattery, Metier has improved with each of his runs over hurdles and was particularly impressive when completing his hat-trick in the Tolworth Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown last month where he travelled well before pulling 12 lengths clear of Shakem Up’Arry on the run-in. The runner-up is nearly a stone better off at the weights this time, but that shouldn’t be enough to turn the tables on Metier who is making rapid progress towards a planned start in the Supreme at Cheltenham.

Metier - what a prospect

🏇 Three runs for @HarryFryRacing1
🥇 Three wins
🏆 Grade One hero@unibet Tolworth Hurdle glory for Metier who routs his rivals to remain unbeaten over timber @Sean_Bowen_ @Sandownpark

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— Racing TV (@RacingTV) January 2, 2021

While Nicky Henderson might have trained the most winners of the race, Al Dancer’s trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies has struck three times since Henderson’s most recent winner and Guard Your Dreams has the right sort of profile. His latest win came in a handicap on the Tolworth card, and he’s closely matched at the weights with runner-up Friend Or Foe should they meet again. Friend Or Foe is one of three possibles for Paul Nicholls, along with Wild Max who has won his last two starts in handicaps and Thyme White who impressed on his reappearance at Chepstow but was one of the worst sufferers in a rough edition of the Gerry Feilden here in the autumn when last seen.  

Gary Moore has also trained three winners of this in the past, and has a likely type in Fifty Ball, a novice who has been put up 11 lb for a 13-length victory at Sandown last time when clearly still well ahead of his mark. Other unexposed, progressive types in the field include Henderson’s second entry Mister Coffey, Neil Mulholland’s Milkwood who was another who met trouble when third in the Gerry Feilden, and Chris Gordon’s Annual Invictus who has won his last three starts in novice company and represents a stable whose Remiluc went close at huge odds last year.

Talking of last year’s race, Metier’s stable-companion Lightly Squeeze fell at the last when looking sure to play a part in the finish, bringing down Mack The Man who held every chance at the time as well, and both of those have run well more recently, Lightly Squeeze finishing third in the Betfair Exchange Trophy and Mack The Man winning at Wincanton last time.  

Without doubt this has the makings of the best handicap hurdles of the season given how many potential improvers there are, but Metier is taken to keep his unbeaten record and justify his position as the main threat to Appreciate It in the Supreme at next month’s Festival. Buzz and Faivoir make the most appeal of those at longer odds.

Recommendation:

Back Metier to win Saturday’s Betfair Hurdle at 7/1.