Horses to follow this week away from the bright lights of Cheltenham

By David Massey

Horse Racing

Mon December 08, 2025 · 5h ago

It may be the two-day December meeting at Cheltenham this week but David Massey has his eyes on a few lesser-known names in action elsewhere.

Well, what a week that was.

You’ll remember me saying this time last week that we were on our way to London to give Vicki some support as she was up for the Emerging Talent award, and that she made herself the outsider of four? Well, that time honoured system of backing the outsider of three or four struck again as Vicki came good and only went and won it!

Needless to say our table went mad - and again when Laura Joy, also on our table, won her award for Specialist Writer Of The Year. I couldn’t be any happier for Vicki, she deserves her half of the award... what do you mean? Laughably, later in the pub, I was asked why I wasn’t up for Emerging Talent.

Friends, the only thing I emerge from these days is the chiropractors after another tough day on my feet at Uttoxeter. I tell you what, the morning after I was a tad rough. I thought, when I woke around 7am, that I’d got away with one but sat at the breakfast table in the hotel an hour later, it became blindingly apparent that I hadn’t. I keep forgetting I’m 56 not 26, and can’t take the ale like I used to. What a lightweight I’ve become.

Vicki was asked by Nick Luck “what next?” Well, I can tell you that, very high on her (and mine) agendas is to get racehorses to parade in the paddock in racecard order. In an age when we’re looking for quick (and inexpensive) wins, which racecourse will be the first to come forward and make a bit of history? Not just one or two races, let’s make this a given at our tracks for all races, be it a four-runner novice or a twenty-four runner handicap.

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Onto this week. It’s a local racing week, in the main, bar Monday where I’ve no doubt I’ll be taking Mrs M out for a bit of lunch somewhere. Normally, that’s by way of an apology for being away for the weekend but not on this occasion, the good lady enjoyed herself at Sandown on Saturday so hopefully it’ll be because we’ve both had a winning weekend.

Tuesday sees my first trip of the week and it’s a local one at Uttoxeter. I probably don’t go to Uttoxeter as much as I should, given its proximity; I used to love going as a kid, I learnt a very valuable lesson as a 15yo schoolboy that went to Uttoxeter on the bus to back one of Bill Clay’s I’d been told by the local butcher would win; it didn’t, and I hadn’t enough money for the last bus home. It rained. Heavily. I walked the best part of seven miles before my outstretched thumb did the job.

Anyway, the card. I’m expecting borderline heavy ground for this - already soft with another 10-15mm to come. The first is a three-runner affair in which Fingal Bridge will be well fancied, but I thought Phantomofthepoints was somewhat in need of the run at Haydock and performed better than I thought he might; he’s the one with the proven stamina and I think he might just run the finish out of Fingal Bridge.

North Parade (1:30) can’t have it testing enough, three of his four wins coming in soft and heavy ground and like so many from the Joel Parkinson/Sue Smith team, he’ll come on a bundle for his first start of the season at Newcastle. He went very close around this time last year off a similar mark, and the yard continue to have a great season.

Sole Solution would be the automatic pick for the chase at 2:30 under normal Venetia rules; hurdler going chasing, first time up, but unless there’s been a dramatic turnaround in her fortunes I’d be struggling to back anything from the yard with confidence. Maybe Autonomous Cloud, who was in need of his first start of the year at Cheltenham could be the answer, but it’s not a race to tackle with confidence.

Keep an eye on Love Me in the next at 3:00, that wasn’t a bad first effort for Jo Davis at Leicester three weeks ago; he needs to step forward again, but that’s far from impossible. I fancy a double for the Parkinson/Smith axis as It’s Daisy appears to be refinding form as she gets fitter too, and this course winner won’t have any problems handling conditions in the lucky last.

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More rain to come at Leicester

The choice Wednesday is Leicester or the sofa; I rather worry the weather might decide that it’s going to be the latter, with another 20mm to come on already heavy ground on the hurdles course, but we shall see.

Patience is starting to run a tad thin with Mythe Bridge (12:45) ; he didn’t do any worse when third at Rasen last time, but he didn’t do any better either. Maybe he needed it, as he’d been off since April. One last chance. The exciting Bobbi With An I could make her chase debut in the 1:45; if she’s not better than a mark of 106 over fences I’ll eat my racecard. Although I still have half an eye on Irish Chorus in the same contest... let’s see who turns up.

And a lovely 0-100 handicap hurdle to finish off with; Celine Man at the foot of the handicap keeps catching my eye with his entries, but it’s Welcheston Warrior that’s the one on the tracker. Not disgraced in novice hurdles (particularly his midfield finish behind The Kemble Brewery at Worcester, a very strong race as it turned out) he just needed that first start of the year here when third to Jewel Eyed Judy, beaten five lengths in third.

Like all of Clive Boultbee-Brooks' horses, he’ll come on a bundle for his first run of the year, and being proven in Leicester’s heavy ground is never a bad thing.

Diva Luna jumps the last en route to glory at Cheltenham

Warwick on Thursday might be a bit short on runners, although there’s a chance we might get two divisions of the novice hurdle at 12:55, which might be no bad thing. Modern Man and (particularly) Crackling Fire caught the eye in the paddock at Chepstow last month and it’ll be interesting to see how they get on.

Diva Luna is, of course, the pick in the Lady Godiva at 1:55 - she looked an absolute natural on her chase debut at Bangor, and Ben Pauling was at pains after to point out she was far from fully fit. I hope she’s as good again, I really think she’s one of the most exciting mares to go chasing for a while.

I’m back on the CBB (as we’ll now abbreviate Clive Boultbee-Brooks from this point forward) bandwagon with Libre De Choeur in the 2:25 and if Cheap Sandwiches is as quick as his canine namesake he’s a good thing in the bumper!

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