In the first of his guide to the dark horses at Cheltenham this season, Mark Howard has two to note in the JCB Triumph Hurdle.
For those clutching tasty ante-post slips for the likes of Romeo Coolio, Salvator Mundi and The New Lion, their demeanour might have changed by the time the curtain came down on another hugely successful DRF over the weekend. The Closutton pair of Final Demand and Kopek Des Bordes blew the novice markets apart with blistering displays at Leopardstown.
The high-profile pair Gerri Colombe and The Jukebox Man were both ruled out of the Festival within the last seven days and doubtless more will follow in the next five weeks.
On the flip side, there is still time for those who blotted their copybook on their latest start to redress the balance and emerge as contenders, while there are a few names to consider who have yet to make their British or Irish debuts.
The Triumph Hurdle market is dominated by the unbeaten trio of Lulamba, East India Dock and Hello Neighbour and it is highly likely the winner will come from one of the three. However, it is worth remembering Soldatino (27th February 2010), Zarkandar (26th February 2011), Pentland Hills (25th February 2019) and Burning Victory (22nd February 2020) didn’t make their British or Irish debuts over jumps until late February before following up on the final day of the Festival.
