Christmas racing: David Ord looks ahead to the action

But isn’t there a chance this could just be a jumps season to savour?

No, I haven’t reached for the cooking sherry just yet, that time will come mind, but as we sit here on the eve of the Christmas racing programme it’s hard to escape the fact that things are bubbling away very nicely.

Take the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase for example, a race that has bucked the recent trend by every day a horse being ruled into it rather than out.

All of a sudden, we have 14 six-day entries. It’s 4/1 the field, we have the most exciting young staying chaser in the UK locking horns with Grade One winners from Ireland and three of the best France can throw his way too.

And it’s not a stand-alone clash.

Lossiemouth v Constitution Hill in the Christmas Hurdle? Yes please – and as for Ballyburn v Sir Gino in the Wayward Lad? It might just be time for a swig of that sherry.

Clearly, they’re only potential head-to-heads at this stage and very dependent on Willie Mullins deciding to send a sprinkling of his stars across to England at a time of year when they would be very much expected to stay on home soil.

But unprecedented strength in depth means you sometimes must think outside the box, when you have so many aces to play do you really want to throw them all in at the same time on the same hand?

In Ballyburn’s case, Kempton is only really on the radar because of the HRI's decision to axe the Grade One Racing Post Novice Chase at Leopardstown’s Christmas Meeting from the calendar.

And then there’s the move by the the Jockey Club and BHA to switch the Turners at the Cheltenham Festival to a handicap.

Suddenly if you have a top-flight novice chaser on your hands and want to test your mettle at the biggest meeting of the year, it’s over two or three miles. Ballyburn, you sense, could thrive at either, but the mere fact that Mullins is even considering sending his brightest young star to the UK is a shot in the arm for the domestic festive programme.

And then you look at Ireland…

Fact To File v Galopin Des Champs round two in the Savills Chase, same with State Man and Brighterdaysahead in the Nevills Hotel Hurdle.

Gaelic Warrior is back in the Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase but has Found A Fifty and Marine Nationale to keep him honest.

There are juvenile hurdles, maiden hurdles, bumpers, you name them, chock-a-block with potential stars. The bookmaker PR reps will have their pencils sharpened in anticipation of a host of changes, horses you’ve never heard of right now could be towards the top of the markets for some of the biggest races in the calendar this time next week.

It can happen in the blink of an eye. Watch David Pipe’s aptly-named Windbeneathmywings saunter to victory in the finale at Ascot on Friday and leap to the head of the betting for the Weatherbys Champion Bumper at Cheltenham in the process.

He was secured by Professor Caroline Tisdall after winning two of his three starts in Ireland in the summer for Pat Flynn. Maybe a rare example of one slipping the net for trainers over there although you sense when it comes to Messrs Mullins and Elliott, we ain’t seen nothing yet in terms of this division.

James Owen in Newmarket trains the JCB Triumph Hurdle favourite East India Dock and it’s 10/1 the field for the Sky Bet Supreme and you can snare 12/1 about the market leader for the Turners.

Maybe Potters Charm can leap to the head of that particular market by winning the William Hill Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree on Boxing Day – but he faces a proper test, especially if Gordon Elliott elects to run either Bleu De Vassy or Romeo Coolio.

Another Anglo-Irish clash in a season that promises to be littered with them.

We wanted our sport to live more in the here and now, big horses meeting in the big races outside of March.

Tell me you’re not excited about what we could have in store? And it might just not be a Christmas treat. Energumene v Jonbon in the Clarence House looks to be looming large.

Yes, racing is riddled with challenges and headwinds that seem to get stronger with every financial report. We need strong leadership at time when those in power are struggling to recruit leaders.

But above all we need races that set the pulse racing, the fans talking, and leave those of us inside the bubble wanting more, and those taking a partial interest from outside keen to learn more.

Over the next seven days or so we could have just that.

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