Ratings Update: King George clues aplenty

Chasers

On a weekend which offered plenty of clues for the King George in a month’s time, it was Gaelic Warrior (173 from 169) who made the strongest case with a thrilling neck defeat of stablemate Fact To File (174 from 173) in the John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase. The pair were two of Willie Mullins’ six in the line-up, and in finishing a long way clear of the rest in a race where the order changed little, it was clear that there was a stark difference in readiness between the first two and the remainder of the field who finished at wide intervals, among them Gold Cup winner Inothewayurthinkin who was a remote fifth. The fact that this was just a starting point for the season ahead for several in the field guards against taking the bare result at face value, but it still took a career-best from Gaelic Warrior to get the better of last year’s winner.

Gaelic Warrior was helped by being able to poach a lead of a dozen lengths by halfway, but Fact To File had pegged him back going to the last before Gaelic Warrior showed a battling side that hasn’t always been required to edge back in front. The winner will go to Kempton now, while Fact To File, who ran right up to his best, will presumably remain at short of three miles on the way to a defence of his Ryanair Chase crown in the spring.

Two more leading King George contenders emerged on Saturday from a couple of second-season chasers who made impressive starts to their campaigns. Jango Baie (167p from 158) managed to win the Arkle last season, but he’ll stay three miles as he kept on well at the end of the 1965 Chase at Ascot to give a nine-length beating to Gidleigh Park (157+ from 155p). Returning from a breathing operation over the summer, Jango Baie showed plenty of improvement and, still only six, there’s likely to be more to come. Neither Pic d’Orhy, going for a hat-trick of wins in the race, nor last year’s King George runner-up Il Est Francais who shaped as if amiss, gave their running, but there was plenty to like about Gidleigh Park’s effort, with his jumping likely to stand him in good stead going forward.

At Haydock, The Jukebox Man (159p from 153p) put himself in line for a return to Kempton after injury had kept him off the track since his win there in the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase last Boxing Day. He stretched his unbeaten record over fences to three, making all with a superb round of jumping and having plenty in hand at the finish, value for more like a five-length win over Grand National fourth Iroko (156+ from 152+) who was essentially ridden with an eye to the future and flattered by his proximity to the winner who remains potentially top class.

The main event at Haydock was the Betfair Chase, though it lacked strength in depth, reflecting the current shortage of top-class home-trained chasers, while it’s not a race that Willie Mullins has taken much interest in over the years. Last year’s first two fought out the finish again, but with conditions much less testing than twelve months ago, Grey Dawning (166 from 163) was able to turn the tables on veteran rival Royale Pagaille (161 from 162) who was bidding to complete a Betfair Chase hat-trick. Typically jumping well under a patient ride, the likeable Grey Dawning deserves a crack at the Cheltenham Gold Cup, though he was three lengths behind Gaelic Warrior in the Bowl Chase at Aintree in the spring.

Grey Dawning’s trainer Dan Skelton landed another valuable prize when Calico (152 from 148) followed up last month’s Cheltenham success with victory in the Hurst Park Handicap Chase at Ascot, epitomising his stable’s superb first half of the season, though he’ll find life tougher again from a BHA mark in the 150s.

Earlier in the week, two leading Arkle contenders successfully launched their chasing careers. Supreme Novices’ winner Kopek des Bordes (150p) impressed at Navan, his jumping a bit ‘guessy’ at times but largely more assured than was often the case over hurdles, with the prospect of better to come with experience. He cruised clear to win by 13 lengths after travelling typically strongly and will head for a Grade 1 novice at Leopardstown after Christmas. Four-year-old Lulamba (145P), a leading juvenile hurdler last term, looks sure to take high rank in the division too after easing clear for a ten-length success at Exeter on his first start over fences, with the Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase, won by many of Nicky Henderson’s top novices in the past, next up.

Navan’s card, which had been postponed 48 hours from the previous Saturday when the track was waterlogged, also featured the Fortria Chase where Found A Fifty (163 from 161), with the benefit of a recent run, proved at least as good as ever in landing the race for the second year running, having five lengths to spare over the mare Dinoblue (remains 155) who shaped better than the bare result after doing well to recover from a bad early error.

Hurdlers

There might have been some higher-profile hurdles over the weekend, but the big improver over the smaller obstacles was Kabral du Mathan (152 from 142) in the handicap at Haydock over nearly 2m3f. Beaten a neck in the Scottish Champion Hurdle when last seen, he’d left Paul Nicholls and had had a breathing operation since then, and put up a smart performance on his first start for Dan Skelton, quickening clear after jumping into the lead three out and going on to win by a dozen lengths. He heads for the Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day and a repeat of this form would be good enough to win most renewals of that Grade 2.

Punchestown’s Morgiana Hurdle proved an easy opportunity for very smart mare Lossiemouth (remains 158) to take her record to 12 wins from 14 completed starts, setting a sound gallop and easily pulling clear of her three inferior rivals from two out to win by 19 lengths. In the absence through injury of stablemate State Man, a dual Morgiana winner himself, Lossiemouth lays down a marker for the Champion Hurdle before another of Willie Mullins’ contenders for that race, Anzadam, is due to take on Constitution Hill and The New Lion in the Fighting Fifth next weekend, after which Cheltenham plans may become clearer.

Lossiemouth had beaten another prolific mare, Wodhooh, to win the Aintree Hurdle in the spring, and the latter also made a successful return to action on Saturday in the Ascot Hurdle without having to run up to her rating of 149. Wodhooh has been very well placed to win eight of her nine starts and this should be a good platform on which to build for tougher assignments ahead. Placed horses Celtic Dino (ran up to best of 145) and Potters Charm (142 from 140) emerged with credit, and both could be rivals for Kabral du Mathan in the Relkeel.