The Verdict: Friday November 28
1pt win No Questions Asked in 1.50 Newbury at 6/1 (General)
1pt win Heltenham in 2.25 Newbury at 5/1 (General)
1pt win Thunder Rock in 3.35 Newbury at 12/1 (Coral, Ladbrokes, BetVictor, BetMGM)
Thunder to rumble for Bowen
Newbury's Coral Gold Cup meeting gets under way on ITV on Friday and it’s a really good card headlined by the Grade 2 Coral Long Distance Hurdle over three miles at 3.00.
Olly Murphy’s Strong Leader is the proven quality in here and he’s had a run at Wetherby, but he does have to saddle a 6lb penalty and that makes life difficult for him against the likes of Impose Toi.
It’s a tricky race to assess with a few well-established chasers reverting to hurdles for a spin, and while it might be a couple of years too late for Ahoy Senor I’m fascinated to see how he gets on with the smaller obstacles.
I’m happy to leave that race alone but I am backing a chaser-turned-hurdler in the closing Coral "Pipped-At-The-Post" Payouts Handicap Hurdle over three miles as THUNDER ROCK looks too well treated to ignore.
Like Strong Leader, he’s trained by Murphy and while he was rated 156 over fences not so long ago he gets to race off a mark of 134 over hurdles here after spending last season in the doldrums over timber.
However, Murphy explained in his stable tour on these pages he never had him right last season after a fibrillating heart issue emerged at Ascot and he’s reported to be in a better place now for his best chance at the weights in ages.
There’s a chance he might need this and that it’s a sighter for a return to fences in veterans’ company next year, but the presence of Sean Bowen in the saddle in the place of a 7lb claimer looks significant and odds of 12/1 seal the deal.
With a flat three miles around Newbury on softer ground giving him his most ideal conditions since he last saw a fence, there’s a good chance he could outclass this opposition from this mark.
The Verdict: Back THUNDER ROCK in the 3.35 Newbury
No Questions has all the answers
Earlier on the card Regent’s Stroll looks an important horse for Paul Nicholls as he makes his chasing debut in the Grade 2 Coral John Francome Novices’ Chase over 2m4f.
He’s obviously a top chasing prospect after running well in second in the Grade 1 Mersey Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree last spring but this could be tough for his fencing debut given he’s the only one without chasing experience in the six-runner field.
I’d rather back Ben Pauling’s NO QUESTIONS ASKED at 6/1 as he looked a natural over fences on chasing debut at Ascot on November 1 and that looks the best chasing form in the field.
He jumped beautifully bar a jink to his left over the last and he looks a much-improved horse for the bigger obstacles, Ascot still a tough place for a chasing debutant so it was an eye-catching first go with those fences in mind.
His late sire, Ask, has been well represented by The Jukebox Man and Thistle Ask already this season and this fellow has the potential to go far in the sphere himself judging by the way he jumped on debut.
Pauling has won this race a couple of times with stable stars Willoughby Court and the aforementioned The Jukebox Man, so the very fact he points this horse here is an indication of his prominence amongst the yard’s novice chasers.
He won’t mind the better ground on the chase course and odds of 6/1 look very fair.
The Verdict: Back NO QUESTIONS ASKED in the 1.50 Newbury
Heltenham hints are all there
Finally, now he’s dropped to a mark in the mid-130s it’s time to back Dan Skelton’s HELTENHAM again in the 'Join Coral Bet 10 Get 50' Handicap Chase at 2.25.
This horse’s last three wins have come off ratings of 130, 136 and 134, and after a spell in the 140s he’s back to 136 again and looking primed to strike at his beloved Newbury.
The eight-year-old is three from four over this course and distance and it looks significant that Harry Skelton replaces Charlie Todd in the saddle after three quick runs at the start of the campaign.
He’s a horse that takes his racing well with all of his wins coming off short breaks and it’s just 13 days since he ran okay in third at Wetherby.
Since then he’s had wind surgery, but it must’ve been one of the less significant procedures as it’s highly unusual for a horse to run so quickly after having their wind done.
It suggests that Skelton can’t wait to run him and this does look a great opportunity for him at his favourite track with his rivals looking less well treated on all known form.
The Verdict: Back HELTENHAM in the 2.25 Newbury
Preview posted at 1530 GMT on 27/11/25
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