Sky Sports Racing's Alex Hammond returns with her latest racing blog covering Sandown, Cheltenham, Sha Tin and Doncaster.
1. What was your main takeaway from last weekend’s action?
So many performances to choose from on an informative weekend. The pin finally falls on Il Etait Temps though given the way the Champion Chase is shaping up. He’s 11/4 favourite with Sky Bet and justifiably so. He’s matured into a smart two-mile chaser and despite his lack of size, he jumps efficiently and is better over fences than hurdles. He finished strongly, hit the highest top speed in the race, and beat Jonbon easily. He’s certainly won jockey Paul Townend round and the Dublin Racing Festival is next on his agenda.
2. Do you have a fancy for the December Gold Cup at Cheltenham?
There’s no appreciable rain forecast at Cheltenham, which at the time of writing (Wednesday) is soft, good to soft in places so we don’t need to look for mudlarks here. Vincenzo will suit those conditions for in-form trainer Sam Thomas, and my old friend Martator won’t mind them either. The latter represents Venetia Williams, and you get the impression the floodgates are about to open for that stable after a quiet start to the season. The ground is an unknown factor for Joseph O’Brien’s new recruit Kim Roque, but he could be well handicapped if handling faster ground than he’s used to. Will The Wise is one to keep on side, but I’m concerned that trainer Gavin Cromwell is still out of form. The Pertemps Final sixth has more to give over fences and with the stable back amongst the winner recently could be worth chancing. He’s 8/1 with Sky Bet. Martator just gets the value vote as he’s an each-way price at 14/1.
3. Who else are you looking forward to seeing at Cheltenham?
In the spirit of the Venetia Williams horses being about to take off Zertakt could go well in the novices’ limited handicap chase at 12.40. He looks fairly handicapped and ran well at Newcastle on his seasonal reappearance. Another stable that should burst into life after a quiet spell is that of Jonjo and AJ O’Neill and their only entry at Cheltenham is Highlands Legacy. This horse is the model of consistency and whilst this is a step up in class, he could go well in the two-mile handicap chase at 2.25. Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore are sending Conman John down to Cheltenham for the Grade 2 novices’ hurdle (3.00), and he looks an exciting young prospect. He won here on the Old Course last time out and can hopefully continue his winning run here on the New Course, which should suit as he looks a real stayer.
4. There’s some top-quality action at Sha Tin in the HKIR this weekend, who can make the headlines?
The headline horse at Sha Tin is the sprint sensation, Ka Ying Rising. This horse is a Hong Kong hero and the world’s highest rated sprinter. He’s also a serious money spinner having won over £10 million pounds in prize money, boosted by his win in the valuable Everest at Randwick (Australia) on his penultimate start. I interviewed his jockey Zac Purton during the week and confidence was understandably high. He has got bigger and stronger since his trip to Australia, where Purton felt the horse wasn’t at his best. I also tried to persuade him that a trip to Royal Ascot was the way forward next summer, but sadly they are having none of that talk!
Romantic Warrior in the Hong Kong Cup is another horse that will make the news if he wins this race for the fourth time. That seems likely as he’s Sky Bet’s 1/7 favourite. Voyage Bubble is another star performer that Zac Purton can look forward to getting the leg up on as he goes for a second win in the Mile. He’s a 3/1 shot. The Vase has the most European feel to it, and it would be foolish to overlook last year’s winner Giavellotto once again. It’s a tough race though with Sosie, Al Riffa, Goliath, and Los Angeles some of those in opposition. Japanese runner Urban Chic is also one to watch in that. It will be well worth foregoing a lie in on Sunday to watch these races as they are world class.
5. What other racing are you looking forward to this weekend?
On Saturday there is decent racing up and down the country and at Doncaster the Pennine Handicap Chase at 2.05 looks like it’s shaping up to be a competitive contest. Alcedo seemed to appreciate the application of cheekpieces when he won at Newcastle last time out and as he hails from the resurgent Venetia Williams stable is one to keep on side. He must prove his effectiveness over this three-mile trip though. I’m convinced there’s more to come from Herakles Westwood and his trainer Warren Greatrex has his team in sensational form. Hurricane Bay is also on my radar for trainer Lucy Wadham after his promising seasonal return over course and distance last time out on his first start after a wind operation. His record at Doncaster is strong.
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