Alex Hammond: Belle of the ball can Empress at Plumpton
Sky Sports Racing's Alex Hammond reflects on the festive racing programme and looks ahead to the Sussex National at Plumpton on Sunday.
Who were your heroes and villains of the Christmas racing programme?
Heroes: Potters Corner in the Welsh National. He was a hero because this was a plan a long time in the making and it was fabulous to see it come off, giving Wales a first win in their home National for 54 years.
It was a real fairy-tale result as he was also part owned by Wales rugby legend Jonathan Davies, trained by Welshman Christian Williams and ridden by riding star (& another Welshman) Jack Tudor. Tudor is just 17 years of age, but has been catching the eye with his burgeoning talent and Williams, himself a former talented jockey, had been giving his young protegee as much experience as possible in the run up to the marathon contest. There wasn’t a stone left unturned. Despite the murky conditions at Chepstow, you left the track with a warm fuzzy glow and it was a joy to be a part of such an occasion.
Faugheen also has to be awarded one of my hero medals. What a legend this horse is. Just days before his 12th birthday, he beats Samcro in a grade 1 Novice Chase at Limerick to cement his position as one of the most talented and loved horses of his generation. Can you imagine the reception were he to win at the Cheltenham Festival for a third time? He’s Sky Bet’s 13/2 favourite for the Marsh Novices’ Chase (formerly the JLT) in March and I hope he raises the roof off Prestbury Park.
Villains: Not really a villain as such, but I was disappointed to see Lostintranslation run such a below par race in the King George. As you all know, I’m a big fan of this horse, but I had a sneaky suspicion that this might not be the race for him. There was a suggestion he may have shown signs of a breathing impairment during the contest, so hopefully the Tizzard team will get to the bottom of it and I haven’t lost faith in him for the Gold Cup, for which he’s now out to 8/1 with Sky Bet.
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I guess I should have put Champ in my above ‘Villains’ list after his fall at the second last in the Dipper Novices’ Chase on New Year’s Day. Firstly because I very nearly backed the eventual winner Midnight Shadow and was cross with myself for wimping out and secondly because it’s always disappointing to see a horse fail when expectations are high. The good news is, we’ll see Champ again soon and hopefully the experience won’t be lost on the horse. He’s still 7/2 favourite for the RSA Chase and that’s his ultimate target over a trip (3 miles) that will suit him well. As for Midnight Shadow, Sue Smith’s runners in the South are always worth a second glance and I’m thrilled the stable are back in form after a slow start to the season.
Elsewhere, you couldn’t fail to be impressed with Al Boum Photo in his reappearance run in the Savills Chase at Tramore on New Year’s Day. He didn’t beat anything outstanding, but you wouldn’t have wanted him to have a gruelling race on his first run since May. It was the manner of his victory that was impressive as he jumped incredibly well and took the whole experience in his stride. I’m still with Lostintranslation for the Gold Cup, but the horse who currently wears the crown deserves to be a 5/1 shot to repeat the feat in March.
Give us one to look forward to ahead of the weekend’s action.
I’m looking forward to being at Plumpton for Sky Sports Racing on Sunday for the Sussex National and at this stage there are two horses I’m hoping to see in the line-up for this three-and-a-half mile handicap chase.
Emma Lavelle and Ben Jones proved they are a duo worth siding with when De Rasher Counter won the Ladbrokes Trophy and I see the trainer has ‘jocked up’ the young conditional rider on her Belle Empress in Sunday’s race. Jones rode this mare to win a staying chase at Exeter last time out beating a horse of Fergal O’Brien’s called Petite Power. At the time I was disappointed because I had ridden out the runner-up at O’Brien’s yard the day before and hoped he’d win. The winner has been raised 7lb for that, but as that was just her sixth start over fences, I hope there will be more to come. It was also her first start over an extreme trip, so again, improvement should be on the cards.
The other horse I’ll want on side if he runs is the Oliver Sherwood-trained Weststreet as I had napped him when he ran in the Scottish Borders National at Kelso a month ago. He was pulled up that day, but wasn’t helped when hampered by a faller and he should be capable of a bold show.
Envoi Allen is another horse I’m looking forward to seeing in action this weekend. As I’ve previously mentioned in this blog, I wouldn’t be surprised if Gordon Elliott took the Champion Hurdle route with last season’s Champion Bumper winner. He has made a fantastic start to his hurdling career with a maiden win and then a victory in the grade 1 Royal Bond last time out. He can cement his position as the best novice around in Sunday’s grade 1 at Naas and I wonder if connections would be seriously tempted to head for the Champion Hurdle if he continues to impress. He’s 6/1 for the Sky Bet Supreme and 14/1 for the Champion Hurdle with Sky Bet at the moment.