Novice hurdlers: How do they stand ahead of Dublin Racing Festival and Cheltenham

CALDWELL POTTER (Gordon Elliott) – Timeform rating: 147p

Two Gordon Elliott-trained Grade 1 winners head the pile in the novice hurdle division as things stand and Caldwell Potter is clear number one based on his ready defeat of Predators Gold and Down Memory Lane in the Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown.

That tends to be the big early-season target for all the best two-mile novices in Ireland, although Appreciate It is the only horse to have won that race before landing the Sky Bet Supreme in the same season during the past decade.

This year’s edition was run in terrible conditions (officially heavy) which seemed to blunt the natural speed of a few rivals and saw four of them pulled-up. Caldwell Potter hit the front with two to jump and kept up the gallop after a good leap at the penultimate flight. He was tired and rather bundled the last but, despite that, showed plenty of guts to pull six and a half lengths clear, with the rest almost 40 lengths adrift.

He’d want plenty of rain if sticking to the minimum distance but looks bound to be a force however he’s campaigned, and he has the look of a future three-mile chaser – potentially an exceptionally good one. Next up, the Tattersalls-backed Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown’s Dublin Racing Festival, a race that looks bound to answer many of the questions raised in this piece.

FARREN GLORY (Gordon Elliott) – Timeform rating: 145p

Caldwell Potter’s stablemate Farren Glory achieved his top-class triumph the other side of Christmas, sticking to the task admirably to win the Royal Bond Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse.

That’s often one of the weaker – and more muddling – Grade 1 events in Ireland but the runner-up has done his bit for the form with a subsequent defeat of the well-regarded Mirazur West in a traditionally hot maiden at Leopardstown so third home An Tobar letting the side down with a moderate effort at Limerick shouldn’t take anything away from Farren Glory, who may also be stepped up in trip before too long, according to his trainer.

Stamina certainly seemed to be what got him home in front at Fairyhouse, the seven-year-old muscling his way out of a tricky pocket two out to ultimately get up in the final 100 yards or so.

His subsequent fall in the race formerly known as the Tolworth (now run at Aintree, replay below) when just taking up the running two-out looked a bit unfortunate (novicey), and it would be reasonable to suggest he’d at least have gone very close to winning. He’s also engaged in the big two-mile event at the DRF early next month but Elliott could be tempted to look elsewhere if Caldwell Potter goes for that.

JANGO BAI (Nicky Henderson)– Timeform rating: 144p

Jango Baie was the chief beneficiary of Farren Glory’s penultimate-flight departure at Aintree on Boxing Day, knuckling down to see off Favour And Fortune by two and three-quarter lengths. The fact he was pitched in at Grade 1 level merely after winning a novice event at Ascot by a nose shows the regard in which he’s clearly held at Seven Barrows and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he were to go on improving as he gains more experience.

The fact he settled much better at Aintree (than the time before) bodes well in that regard and one would imagine a true end-to-end gallop in a top race is going to suit him perfectly. Whether he ideally need plenty of give in the ground to be seen at his very best remains to be seen but he’ll presumably have another run before big spring targets are mapped out.

He should stay two and a half miles this year without any issue but will need to switch off in the early stages again when the time comes over a longer trip.

BALLYBURN (Willie Mullins) – Timeform rating: 143p

Willie Mullins seemed reasonably confident that Ballyburn was one of his very brightest novice hurdle prospects right at the start of the season and while the odds-on defeat first time up in a Fairyhouse maiden might have resulted in a few onlookers jump to conclusions, the horse appeared to do precisely what had been expected of him on debut when storming to a 25-length maiden win at Leopardstown over Christmas.

Ballyburn was kept relatively low-key during his bumper campaign but didn’t put a foot wrong with a couple of easy wins at Punchestown last February and April, and he looks destined for all the suitably major prizes from this point on.

The manner of his recent hurdling success was in part put down to the step up to an intermediate trip and he’ll almost certainly stay three miles in time if the question is ever put to him, but there seems to be bundles of pace in evidence too - the big question now is which race he’ll go for at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Mullins has the horse entered over two miles on the Sunday and two miles and six furlongs on the opening afternoon, and the truth is he could potentially win either one given his inherent class. The trainer has chopped and changed with trip for his top novices plenty of times in the past but Ballyburn does look more likely for the Nathaniel Lacy & Partners (2m6f), in which case he'll probably go off a very skinny price for the Ballymore (new sponsors required of course) over fractionally shorter come Cheltenham. He's 4/1 for the Festival as things stand.

MYSTICAL POWER (Willie Mullins) – Timeform rating: 143p

Mystical Power shot to the head of the market for the Sky Bet Supreme Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham after winning four-runner Grade 2 Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle at Punchestown, race that has produced some of the best young horses from his Closutton stable over the years including subsequent Ballymore winner Impaire Et Passe last year.

Overcame a long absence at Punchestown, having won a novice event at the Galway Festival last summer, and his hurdling appeared to get better the longer the race went on having been a bit keen and scratchy in the jumping department early on.

Could still be a bit rough around the edges but strong suggestion that connections are hoping to run him again before Cheltenham and it’ll take a smart performance to lower his famous colours wherever he rocks up next (another entered at the DRF).

CAPTAIN TEAGUE (Paul Nicholls) – Timeform rating: 141p

The only British-trained runner inside the first 11 home in last year's Champion Bumper at Cheltenham, Captain Teague has really delivered on the immense promise shown on the NH Flat scene throughout last season and the only blip came when beaten into second under a penalty on Cheltenham’s relatively sharp Old Course during the November Meeting.

Captain Teague has won the Persian War at Chepstow and the Challow at Newbury either side of that admirable effort in second, and there’s every reason to expect he’ll be among the best of the Brits at level weights come the major spring Festivals too, all the more so if the ground is on the soft side.

His best chance of winning at Cheltenham may be stepping up to three miles on the more galloping New Course in Friday's Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle as he could clearly lack the requisite pace over shorter on the Old Course.

FAVOUR AND FORTUNE (Alan King) – Timeform rating: 141p

It's got to be a good thing to see Alan King with another promising young horse in his midst and for those of us who grew up in the north west of England, the silks of the late Trevor Hemmings tend to strike a chord regardless who the trainer is.

Favour And Fortune doesn’t look a top-class winner in waiting, frankly, and he was seemingly found out when pitched into such company in the Champion Bumper at last year’s Festival, but he's 2-3 over obstacles so far this season and went down by less than three lengths when second to Jango Baie at Aintree over Christmas.

The prospect of a decent racing surface come the spring will also give connections hope he can improve on what he's done to this point and he's still only six with loads of potential for further progress before having his attention switched to novice chasing in the autumn.

He's reportedly going straight to the Sky Bet Supreme, for which he can be backed at 33/1 with the sponsors which doesn't look wildly out of line.

PREDATORS GOLD (Willie Mullins) – Timeform rating: 141p

Predators Gold looks a Mullins novice with a significant future and while his first sighter of Grade 1 competition saw him comfortably held by Caldwell Potter at Leopardstown, the staying power on display that day kept him in the hunt for a long way before crying enough, and it’ll no doubt stand the horse in good stead going forward.

For a five-year-old with so little previous experience to put up the performance he did over Christmas underlined the fact he’s going to be a major force, particularly when the mud is flying, and the big one over two and three-quarter miles at the DRF looks made for him.

Stablemate Ballyburn may have other ideas - and far too much toe if ground conditions are typically quick there – but whatever unfolds at Leopardstown and Cheltenham, Predators Gold should be kept in mind for Punchestown, where he looked so impressive in winning both his bumper and maiden hurdle prior to the last run.

HIGH CLASS HERO (Willie Mullins) – Timeform rating: 140p

Having won a bumper and three hurdle races for Willie Mullins between June and October, there’s surprisingly little being written and said about High Class Hero but his numbers appear to stack up pretty well and he's already towards the head of the market for the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle (12/1 generally).

The horse he beat seven lengths (The Big Doyen) in a Listed event at Limerick last time out was among those pulled-up behind Caldwell Potter and Predators Gold at Leopardstown over Christmas but he'd previously finished just half a length behind Captain Teague at Cheltenham so there is some substance to his early-season form and he's presumably been given a mid-winter break having been on the go in summer.

Spring ground won’t be an issue for this son of Sulamani (it was heavy for his most recent victory so he’s proven on anything) and he also had three starts in point-to-points for Matthew Flynn before joining Mullins.

Bags of experience is rarely a bad thing in a race like the Albert Bartlett and he looks like another heading that way if all goes to plan in this Saturday’s W.T. O’Grady Memorial Irish EBF Novice Hurdle at Thurles, a race won by subsequent Cheltenham hero Monkfish (also Mullins) in 2020.

JETARA (Jessica Harrington) – Timeform rating: 140

Hailing from the famous ‘J’ line which includes Jezki, Jenari and Jetson, Jetara has done her superb family proud with five victories all told, last month’s seven and a half-length victory in a Grade 3 mares' event at Leopardstown earning her a place among Timeform's top 10 novice hurdlers this season.

She was campaigned quite cleverly after bumping into High Definition in a maiden hurdle at Leopardstown last Christmas, mixing in strong company and leaving connections safe in the knowledge she'd remain a novice for another full season if it didn't quite work out for her.

Second in a good race at Fairyhouse before a mid-pack finish behind You Wear It Well at Cheltenham and then pulled-up back at the same Irish track over Easter, that's precisely how it's panned out for Jessica Harrington’s horse and she’s put her relative wealth of experience to great use this winter.

Her jumping was particularly neat when seeing off Mullins-trained duo Pink In The Park and Risk Belle last time out and she’ll in all likelihood be back at Leopardstown for the Nathaniel Lacy & Partners race over two and three-quarter miles. She’ll be dangerous there getting 7lb but could lose and still emerge with her reputation intact, if not enhanced given the likely strength of that event.

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