Ruby Walsh has been sharing his thoughts on the Cheltenhan novice hurdles on the Paddy Power From The Horse’s Mouth- Cheltenham Countdown podcast.
Hosted by Patrick Kennelly he is joined by Rory Delargy and Paddy Power trader and formbook guru Frank Hickey to go through the races.
Here are Ruby's thoughts from the Podcast:
Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle
Sir Gerhard would become only the second horse to do the Champion Bumper- Supreme Novices’ Hurdle double since Champagne Fever – any reason why Ruby?
No – Briar Hill ran in the Albert Bartlett, Missed That ran in the Arkle, I’m trying to think Joe Cullen don’t know what he did, Wither Or Which wasn’t a great jumper, Alexander Banquet ran in the Ballymore, that there’s just the ones I can think of off the top of my head so the question there is how many try more so than how many have done it. Champagne Fever did it, Sir Gerhard very fast horse, I was impressed with him in Leopardstown, didn’t like the way he hung left maybe after jumping the last hurdle, but Patrick said he did hang to his left at Punchestown.
If anything he hung right maybe with Rachael Blackmore in the closing stages of the Weatherbys Champion Bumper. But I love the way he jumped, I did have the privilege of riding him in work and schooling him one morning and he’s a wonderful jumper. I think he’s a very good horse and I’d say he’s drifted because of Dysart Dynamo and people possibly thinking he could run in the Ballymore, that’s maybe why he’s sort of friendless in the Supreme, but the Dublin Racing Festival will tell a lot.
Did Willie Mullins say at the start of the season he saw Sir Gerhard as a potential stayer?
He could of, I didn’t hear him saying it, Gary O’Brien was asking him yesterday in Thurles why he ran Allaho in the Horse & Jockey Chase having said possibly he’d go straight to the John Durkan and Willie was looking at him and thinking ‘did I say that?’ So look maybe he said that about Sir Gerhard but he looks a pretty quick horse to me and to me he showed an incredible turn of foot two-thirds of the way down the hill in Cheltenham last year, going to the wings of the last hurdle he just opened up and left them standing still. People thought the others let him away after getting a soft lead but he opened up in a matter of strides and put decent horses to the sword and then nearly ran out of steam. Willie knows his horses best, maybe he is a stayer, but I’ve ridden him work and I think he’s not short of speed.
Dysart Dynamo’s free-going style of running is tailormade for the Supreme?
It can be, it depends on what follows you, what the opposition is and what else is in the race? So pigeonholing a style to a race because one or two horses may have done it in the past, but there was plenty of pace in Al Ferof and Nolan’s Supreme Novices’ Hurdle – they’re only the two I rode and they came from the next parish. Sausalito Bay burnt them all off, Champagne Fever did, Vautour did, Douvan came from off the pace, Altior came from behind Min, Labaik came from behind Melon, there’s more than one way of winning any race.
So yeah you could argue Dysart Dynamo’s style of running would suit the Supreme, but I would also say Dysart Dynamo’s style of running will suit Constitution Hill, Jonbon & Sir Gerhard. So if you’re looking at something tactically just don’t assume yeah the front runner, he’s the one, let’s all lump on him. He is a keen-going horse, is he any keener than Yorkhill, I wouldn’t think so and he ran in the Ballymore so it will be interesting to see what Willie does.
Ruby’s pecking order between Sir Gerhard and Dysart Dynamo?
I’ve never ridden Dysart Dynamo, he’s achieved more on the track, he’s ran twice, won twice. He won at Cork and backed it up with a blow away performance in Punchestown last week. We’ve only seen Sir Gerhard once over hurdles so to me you’re not comparing like with like just yet. Ask me after Sir Gerhard runs in the Dublin Racing Festival.
Jonbon?
I think the hustle and bustle for him is going to be fraught, put the saddle on him 65, 70,000 people in Cheltenham who haven’t been there in two years are going to be as upbeat and anxious and nervous as the riders or trainers or owners maybe. The crowd are going to be in the same boat this year, the place is going to be like a rock concert before the Supreme, so for me that’s where the hustle and bustle is for Jonbon.
Getting him out of the parade ring, down the chute, the noise of the people, people hanging over the railing, bookmakers, canter up, canter back down, maybe they’ll still keep going directly to the start but it nearly cost Klassical Dream the race and I think if you’re a fan of Jonbon’s, for me I wouldn’t be backing him until he was walking out on to the track to go to the start. I think even watching him at Newbury on his first start, when he broke from a walk into a canter to go to the start, he was a completely different horse. When he got back into a walk at the start he was quite agiatated, once he’s galloping he’s like a different animal, he completely relaxes which is a plus.
Anything else at a price?
At prices for me I don’t know where he’s going to go, but I thought Three Stripe Life was a little unlucky at Christmas, made a mistake at the second last hurdle and got caught in a pocket. I think he’s a big price at 25-1, I mean but if you’ve got three or four fancied ones in a race, chances are two of them are going to blow out and it leaves the door open for something else to nab the third. I just think he’s at a big price, Mighty Potter’s a good horse at a big price, something is going to get amongst the big four and it’s figuring out which one of these but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was either of the Elliott horses.
Selection?
I think just purely at prices and it might be another void bet in two weeks’ time, but I would say Sir Gerhard has drifted for no reason and I think the 8/1 is too big a price for him.
Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle
Would Whatdeawant be a definite for this given who owns him?
Yeah he making that comparison you would say yeah, having watched the way he stays and the way he races, you could very easily argue he wants a bit further. You’d hope that he underperformed at Naas because he never showed up, well he did but he ran disappointing. Got going late to win his maiden hurdle in Navan, look it is a wide open contest.
I thought Journey With Me was very good at Leopardstown beating Minella Crooner and Kilcruit and obviously Minella Crooner has franked that form with a facile victory at Punchestown in a maiden hurdle so. He took my eye, Stage Star I just don’t know, the Challow, Challow winners just have a poor record at Cheltenham from my recollection anyway. I wonder if you took a furlong or two off the Challow, might that make it an easier race to win and go on from?
Hillcrest is a big horse?
Huge absolutely huge, huge, I’d say they want to stop standing him on the hill, I’d say Henry just put him on a level patch like! No [it’s not a hindrance] providing he can use his feet and his feet work as big as his brain is working. No, size actually should be a help in that it will help him to carry weight, disperse it around his body and might find it easier than a smaller horse to lug 11st 12lb or 12st or whatever. That’s the theory behind a big horse, providing his feet move as quick as his brain is thinking, it’s definitely not a hindrance.
Selection?
I think Journey With Me is definitely a runner and what price is Walking On Air? 10-1, I think he’s value too because he’s definitely going to go here.
Paddy Power - Cheltenham novice hurdle specials
Gordon Elliott to win the Albert Bartlett was 5/4 now 6/4
Constitution Hill to win the Supreme was 2 now 5/2
Journey With Me to win the Ballymore was 8 now 10
Hollow Games to win the Albert Bartlett was 6 now 7
Irish-trained horses to win the Supreme, Ballymore & Albert Bartlett was 3 now 4
These specials can be found here: https://www.paddypower.com/horse-racing?tab=specials
Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle
Is it now the case you don’t have to be super experienced to win this?
Yeah it’s heading back that way, the other side of that coin is that Monkfish went on to win the RSA and Minella Indo’s gone on to win a Gold Cup so they’re pretty good horses, very good horses actually so when you look at their profile they probably buck the trend because of their natural ability more so than the trend has gone.
So it’ll be interesting this year – to me Gordon seems to hold the key here - Ginto, Hollow Games, Gerri Colombe, Gerri Colombe was workmanlike in Thurles yesterday, but he got the job done. But it’s Ginto and Hollow Games, it’s which one’s Gordon is going to run and where they’re going to go I think is key in this.
Minella Cocooner and a selection?
He won a two and a half mile maiden hurdle at Navan and got beaten on his first start at Cork. He obviously improved for that run, but you’ll probably see him at the Dublin Racing Festival and judge him then. He has to step forward I think – I know he won his maiden hurdle a long way, but it looked like a two horse race to tell you the truth. It’ll be interesting to see – I thought Minella Crooner that chased home Journey With Me at Leopardstown and won at Punchestown since, I thought he was an interesting one for Gordon as well. Now it will be interesting what they do with the Bective Stud horses – whilst Hollow Games looks like he wants it, I caught Jack Kennedy’s comments when he got off Ginto at Naas, it seemed to suggest he thought he should be going up in trip as well. Look it’s what I said at the beginning, Gordon Elliott holds the key here and it’s what he is going to run. Probably thinking about it logically they’ll split Hollow Games and Ginto – one two and a half, one three miles, that would put Hollow Games in here and he’d probably be the one I’d say.