Tony Keenan looks ahead to the racing from Leopardstown and he has a 9/1 bet on the card.
Irish racing tips: Thursday December 16
0.5 point e.w Broomfield Bijou in 2.55 Leopardstown at 9/1 (Bet365 - 1/5 1,2,3,4)
Leopardstown’s St. Stephen’s Day card has a thinner look than years past, and it is hard to escape the feeling that Horse Racing Ireland cut the wrong race in removing the two-mile Grade 1 novice chase from this card; for this year at least, it would have included Ballyburn who instead goes to Kempton while a couple of Gordon Elliott novices that could have run here went for the Henry VIII at Sandown instead.
In its place is the Racing Post Long Distance Novice Chase at 2:20, switched from its old slot on December 29th, and it is a race that makes little betting appeal with three Elliott runners taking on an outsider. Croke Park looked flattered by race position in his Drinmore win and has also bled recently so seemed one to take on initially, but he has drifted since betting opened.
Perhaps the most interesting betting race on the Leopardstown card is the Racing Post Handicap Chase at 2:55. The form of the Listed handicap chase over the same trip at the Hatton’s Grace meeting is well-represented by The Folkes Tiara and The King Of Prs, while there are a couple of JP McManus-owned handicap debutantes that appear to have been brought along with this sort of race in mind.
San Salvador is an interesting runner if his jumping can hold up, doing well to finish fourth in a Grade 2 last time at Cheltenham despite numerous errors, but the one for me at the prices is another novice, BROOMFIELD BIJOU.
She too ran at the Hatton’s Grace meeting but over an intermediate trip that stretched her in a mares-only handicap chase, and her stamina was further tested by a very strong gallop. Her form around two miles is much better – her figures around that trip read:53211212 – and this looks a much more suitable race for one that has taken well to fences.
Elsewhere on the Leopardstown card, there are some exciting bumper horses making their hurdling debuts in Kopek Des Bordes, Redemption Day and William Munny, but the meeting held little betting interest for me, though having looked at some races at Limerick and Down Royal, I am not sure I found much more solid.
The trainer of Fleur In The Park are adamant that he is a stayer, and he is up in trip for the Lyons Of Limerick Jaguar Land Rover Novice Hurdle at 1:33; I see him as a fast horse that might be best at two miles and while he went close over two-and-a-half last time, that was when granted the softest of leads. We might find out who is correct today!
The maiden hurdle won by Goraibhmaithagat at Navan on December 7th looked a strong race of its type, coming out well on the Timeform timefigures with interesting horses involved in the finish, and the form of the race is well-represented today, not least with the runner-up Autoportrait in the 12:58 at Limerick, the Signplus Maiden Hurdle.
He faces a few unknown quantities but looks good enough to win a maiden hurdle in the near term and there should be improvement for the run last time, his first in 431 days.
At Down Royal, Ivybrook looked an interesting runner in the I.N.H. Stallion Owners EBF Maiden Hurdle at 11:40, having run well here in November and been hampered by a loose horse last time at Fairyhouse. He has been put in quite short, however, and does have stamina to prove so is passed over at the prices.
Preview posted at 0905 GMT on 26/12/24
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