We pick out a handful of eyecatching entries away from the headline Clarence House Chase clash in Britain this weekend.
MILLERS BANK – 2.05 Market Rasen, Friday
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The last time Millers Bank ran over fences he was competing in a Grade 1 at the Grand National meeting last spring so he’s got to be a fascinating contender for Market Rasen’s Unibet Middle Distance Series Veterans’ Handicap Chase this Friday.
Also entered up for the Ryanair Chase and the Stayers’ Hurdle just last week, Alex Hales’ star was last of three in a minor hurdle event back at Aintree on his seasonal return in November but is entitled to be sharper now and would have his sights lowered quite considerably if taking up this engagement.
A mark of 148 is no gimme but he was a top-class winning novice not that long ago and should have a bit of a class edge in this sort of company.
PEMBROKE – 2.25 Lingfield, Friday
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Whatever may have been troubling Dan Skelton’s string earlier in the campaign looks to have been cleared up in light of a fantastic weekend for the yard and it’ll be good to see Pembroke back in a competitive field if taking up his option to run in the Lightning Novices’ Chase, a race switched from its former home at Doncaster to day one of the Winter Million meeting at Lingfield.
Pembroke – Grade 2 placed as a novice hurdler last season before being unable to land a gamble in the County Hurdle at Cheltenham where he went off the 9/2 favourite – didn’t look to be firing on all cylinders in a couple of chase starts during October, since when he’s enjoyed a walkover at Warwick and been the only finisher at Aintree.
He’s been given a little over a month off since that race in gruelling conditions in the north west and, while a top handicap may ultimately be the principal aim once more come the spring, he looks likely to benefit from a return to two miles here, especially with a keen-going horse like Matata set to put plenty of pace into the race.
SIR GINO – 12.40 Ascot, Saturday
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It’s 4/1 the field for the JCB Triumph Hurdle at the time of writing, with two British-based horses heading the antepost market. Burdett Road is favourite but Sir Gino is close in behind at 6/1 and he’s in line for Saturday’s opening race at Ascot.
Won by the likes of Top Notch and Goshen in the recent past, this juvenile event represents the next step towards Cheltenham for French import Sir Gino, who looked in need of a bit more hurdling practice before eventually powering home to win by 14 lengths on his debut for Nicky Henderson at Kempton over Christmas.
The other four-year-old entered up at Ascot on Saturday to keep tabs on is the Willie Mullins-trained Batman Girac, whose connections have opted for a tentative look at the BetMGM Holloway’s Handicap Hurdle (he's the only juvenile in the field) over the extended two miles, three furlongs later on the card.
He’s now qualified for the Fred Winter having run twice over hurdles in France and twice more since joining Willie Mullins and there will be a few pencils being sharpened when his BHA mark is published on Tuesday.
FORTUNATE MAN – 2.05 Haydock, Saturday
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JP McManus has an abundance of talented young novices at present and there’s no doubt Sunday’s Sky Bet Moscow Flyer winner Mystical Power is among the pick of the bunch. Fortunate Man could be some way down the pecking order in the grand scheme of things but that’s not to say he can’t play a major role in the Rossington Main this weekend.
A three-mile point winner for Michael Goff, he changed hands for 210,000 euros at the Punchestown horses-in-training sale last April and although the hurdling debut run was an unmitigated disaster having unseated Jonjo junior after being hampered very early on in a Ffos Las maiden on December 12, he swiftly atoned with a stylish success at Newbury just eight days later (replay below).
It was a slow-motion finish that day but something similar looks likely if Haydock beats the weather this Saturday and, with the potential for considerable improvement to come as he gains more experience in the heat of battle, Fortunate Man is definitely a name to note wherever he turns up next.
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L’HOMME PRESSE – 3.00 Lingfield, Sunday
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An informative running of the Fleur De Lys is in store if the principals all stand their ground with Fugitif, Limerick Lace and Protektorat all bringing strong/progressive form into the race but, with all due respect to that trio and the remainder, it’ll be a case of all eyes on L’Homme Presse.
Rated 170, Venetia Williams’ nine-year-old hasn’t run for over a year with connections happy to bide their time and let the star chaser slowly come to hand following a minor setback that saw last season cut short.
He was seemingly booked for second before unseating rider in the King George at Kempton last Christmas, where his occasional jumping out to the left strongly suggested he’d appreciate the return to an anti-clockwise circuit when reappearing.
L'Homme Presse gets that here and we know he goes exceptionally well when fresh so it’s hard to see many pre-race excuses as the nine-year-old looks to book his ticket for a first crack the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
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