Will a return to a right-handed track help Brain Power?

There isn’t a kick of a ball between the top horses in today's Betdaq Punchestown Champion Hurdle on official ratings. Just 3lb separates the top four and, if you throw in Vroum Vroum Mag’s 7lb mares' allowance, you have the top five all in that 3lb bracket, and the top five in the market right there.

It is interesting that Ruby Walsh has chosen to ride the mare in preference to Arctic Fire, and the other three Willie Mullins representatives. Arctic Fire looked very good in winning the County Hurdle at Cheltenham last time off a mark of 158 and carrying 11st 12lb. It was more than 50 years before that that a County Hurdle winner last carried that type of weight.

And Arctic Fire is top class. He was only beaten a length and a half by Faugheen in the 2015 Champion Hurdle, he would have gone close to beating Jezki in the Aintree Hurdle the following month had he not fallen at the final flight, and he won the Grade 1 Hatton’s Grace Hurdle later that year. He is the joint-highest rated horse in the race and, as long as he doesn’t ‘bounce’ on this, his second run back after a long break, he has a big chance.

But Ruby Walsh obviously rates Vroum Vroum Mag’s chance more highly, and that is, of course, highly significant. The Voix Du Nord mare has won 12 of her 14 races since she joined Willie Mullins. Her first defeat was when she was beaten by Apple’s Jade, by a short head, in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle last December, and her second was in the Mares’ Hurdle at Cheltenham last month, when she was beaten by the same Apple’s Jade.

She looked the likely winner that day when she hit the front as they approached the final flight, but she was just out-gunned by her old rival up the hill.

Significantly, she won this race last year, she beat Identity Thief and My Tent Or Yours into second and third places respectively. That is her only run to date at Punchestown, and she is a big player.

Irish Champion Hurdle winner Petit Mouchoir and the evergreen My Tent Or Yours are also players, and it will be fascinating to see how Labaik fares in this exalted company, if he deigns to race with them, in his first-time visor and with Davy Russell on board for the first time.

However, at this morning’s prices, Brain Power could represent the value of the race.

Sky Bet are paying four places on each-way bets in the Irish Champion Hurdle today 

Nicky Henderson’s horse could only finish third in the Grade 1 Champion Novice Hurdle at this meeting last year, he finished four and a half lengths behind Petit Mouchoir in second, but he was a 20/1 shot that day, that run was a big step up on anything that he had done before. Also, he hit the front at the second-last flight that day, which was early enough. All his impressive performances this season have been under patient rides.

He was impressive in winning a decent handicap hurdle at Sandown on Tingle Creek weekend in early December off a mark of 142. Raised 7lb for that, it looked like he was even more impressive from what we could see through the fog in landing the old Ladbroke Hurdle at Ascot in December.

The handicapper raised him to a mark of 162 after that, which put him right in among the top-rated two-mile hurdlers. He deserved to take his chance in the Champion Hurdle on that basis, but it didn’t really happen for him that day. He was keen and prominent and, while he travelled well to the second-last flight, he faded from there, and he reportedly came home without one of his shoes. 

It may not be a coincidence that that was his second run at Chetlenham, and it was the second occasion on which he has disappointed there. Actually, he has also disappointed in a bumper at Aintree. The left-handed evidence is scant, but it could be that he is at his best going right-handed. His record going left over jumps reads 00 (both at Cheltenham), while his record going right reads 121311.

We know that he can go well at Punchestown, his best run as a novice by some way was at this meeting last year. He goes well on good ground and, still just six years old and with just eight runs over hurdles under his belt, he still has potential for further progression.

With Petit Mouchoir and Ivan Grozny in the line-up, he should get the fast pace that suits him so well, and it is easy to see him travelling well for David Mullins into the home straight before being asked for his effort. He could be over-priced at the generally-available 7/1.

For more of Donn's thoughts, head to www.donnmcclean.com