Alex Hammond is back with her latest blog as she reflects on Del Mar and Flemington before turning her attention to domestic matters.
What was your favourite moment from the Breeders' Cup?
Absolutely no contest here. It was the win of Ethical Diamond in the Turf, and I managed to stay awake to watch it live. When they were down at the start, I thought the horse was looking magnificent and now wished I’d had a couple of pounds on him each-way.
Dylan Brown McMonagle gave the horse a wonderful ride from stall 14 and for Willie Mullins to win a Breeders’ Cup race is the sort of storyline you wouldn’t write in a book lest it seem farfetched. What he continues to achieve as a trainer is phenomenal, and this was pure Hollywood.
Did you set the alarm to watch the Melbourne Cup?
I didn’t, and that’s because I’m usually awake by 4am after years of early alarms for my shifts at Sky Sports News (1.30am for those that are curious). However, as the law of sod would dictate, I didn’t wake up until it was done and dusted and watched it back around 5am.
What a result for Jamie Melham (nee Kah). She joins Michelle Payne in the history books as a female winning rider of the great race, and it’s result like this that make for positive change.
Joseph O’Brien almost pulled it off again with a superb run from 40/1 shot Goodie Two Shoes in second. The mare was running over fences in the spring. Quite extraordinary.
The jumps season is in full swing now with the Haldon Gold Cup taking place at Exeter on Friday - how do you see that race shaping up?
With rain finally arriving we should have some good safe ground for these chasers but still some way from proper winter ground. That’s often the case for this race though.
Team Tizzard have successfully targeted this race in recent years and last year’s winner JPR One is in there again and that sort of ground is no issue for him. He may be vulnerable to younger legs with five-year-old Kalif Du Berlais in opposition. As this is a handicap the Paul Nicholls-trained Grade 1 winner has top weight to carry but with improvement to come is the one they must beat. He looks exciting.
He's not the only improver though with the Dan Skelton trained Thistle Ask on an upward trajectory. He’s turned out quickly having won well at Wetherby at the weekend and this is a different ball game for the eight year old, who is having just his third start for the trainer having been bought for just £11,000 in the spring.
I’m a fan of Martator and whilst his form tailed off in the spring, he’s well handicapped as a result and trainer Venetia Williams is off and running for the season after winning the Charlie Hall Chase on Saturday. At the prices, he’s the one I’d like to have on my side.
As always, the race has produced a small field, but the quality and competitiveness isn’t in doubt and it should be a good watch.
Can you give us a jumper to watch out for this weekend please?
Can I give you one to watch for the season instead? I was really taken by the chase debut of Jax Junior at Uttoxeter on Friday. He finished runner-up to Lump Sum in the two mile Beginners’ Chase and jumped incredibly efficiently all the way round. He only came under pressure when the classy winner came by two furlongs from home and when trainer Lucy Wadham steps this horse back up to two and a half miles he’ll thrive. Stick him in your tracker.
Finally, the UK turf Flat season comes to a close at Doncaster on Saturday, who can help us go out with a bang?
Could we see history repeating itself with the latest member of the Moore racing dynasty riding winners for Richard Hannon? His father, Ryan, was based with Hannon Senior as an apprentice and Hannon Junior has jocked up Toby on Talis Evolvere in the opening Apprentice Handicap. That’s just something to note rather than a racing certainty, however.
The horse that I hope can give us a good run for our money is Montassib in the Wentworth Stakes. He takes a significant drop in class having run in the Champions Sprint at Ascot last month and he shouldn’t be fazed by underfoot conditions. He’s lightly raced this season with this being run number three, so is fresher than most, and runs over a course and distance he has been successful over before. He’ll be favourite but I hope he justifies that.
The final race on the card is the November Handicap where Lord Melbourne is taking aim at something that has never been achieved before. No horse has won the race more than once and having won it last year it looks like he has been targeted at the race once again. Trainer Ralph Beckett has hit form as the turf season begins to peter out but he’s chucking plenty at this race with this horse, Master Vinter and Perfect Your Craft all prominent in the market for this extremely competitive handicap.
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