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Williams' Weekly Review
By Darrell Williams
Last updated: 08:56 Monday, January 5, 2009
Darrell Williams' Weekend Review
Before the cold spell started to bite – putting paid to Sandown’s Tolworth Hurdle card on Saturday – Sublimity gained his first victory since his Champion Hurdle success of 2007 when taking a fascinating December Hurdle on the final day of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival. Put forward as ‘one to keep on the right side of’ in this column after his narrow defeat to Punjabi in the Fighting Fifth last month – who would arguably have won the Christmas Hurdle if not coming down late on – and so confirming the useful status of the form. While the moderate gallop would not have suited Brave Inca, who should still be noted if trying 3m, the winner of the race has generally enjoyed considerable future success later in the season. Indeed of the nine recent winners to contest the AIG Champion Hurdle, five have won with three finishing in the frame; while Brave Inca, the victor himself in 2005, went on to also win the Champion Hurdle itself, as did Istabraq three times! Sublimity needs good ground ideally, but remains one to follow. Runner-up Won In The Dark, a winner at the Punchestown Festival as a juvenile last spring, is also more at home under slightly quicker conditions, although the record of past runners-up in subsequent starts is poor.
Across at Newbury on the same day Diamond Harry continued to amaze, taking his unbeaten tally to five with a victory in the Challow Hurdle that seemingly didn’t require him to engage top gear! It will take a good one to beat him in the Ballymore Properties Hurdle in a race that has ultimately produced some decent sorts, with 2006 winner Denman, runner-up in same Cheltenham race, the prime example.
Gone To Lunch’s effortlessly easy win on the same card in the Mandarin, now a Graduation Chase, was hopefully not unbacked by readers of this column after he was put up as one to follow last month. While standing by my nomination for him as an each-way pick for the newly titled RSA Chase, it wouldn’t surprise me if he eventually ended up in the 4 miler given his endless stamina.
Whatever you do, keep a close eye on the Dipper Chase, won by Calgary Bay at Cheltenham on New Years Day. The source of a plethora of future winners if past runnings are any guide and won by My Will, The Listener and My Way De Solzen in recent years, the winner however might by pass a return to Cheltenham, given his preference for 2 1/2m and could instead head to Aintree. Whatever his eventual fate, and that of runner-up Kicks For Free, who was giving him 4lb, and the third Tartak, who had previously chased home Gone To Lunch, and looks a likely runner in the Jewson Novices Hurdle, the strong gallop suggests it will once again be a race to follow.
Mikael D’Haguenet confirmed the promise of his impressive defeat of Pandorama by easily winning the Novice Hurdle at Naas on Sunday and is another top class young hurdler in the Willie Mullins yard. However, don’t be fooled into backing him for the Ballymore Properties Hurdle as he will miss Cheltenham if the ground is quick, and Mullins already has Hurricane Fly for that race anyway, who may also be the trainer’s preferred runner in the Deloitte Hurdle in early February.
Recommended Bets - Sublimity 1/2pt e/w Champion Hurdle
Recommended Bets - Diamond Harry 2 pts win Ballymore Properties Hurdle