THE Grade 2 Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase will get a prime-time slot on the Friday of Cheltenham this year with the race moved to 2.40pm, after the County Hurdle.
A total of 19 mares were entered this week with 12 Irish-trained and nine of them either from the Gavin Cromwell or Willie Mullins’ yards. The last three winners have sported the J.P. McManus silks.
Last year’s one-two Dinoblue and Limerick Lace are to the fore again. Dinoblue went down by three-quarters of a length to her rival in the second McManus colours when favourite last year, with Allegorie De Vassy over six lengths back in fourth.
Dinoblue then gave Allegorie De Vassy 8lb and a neck beating at Naas on Sunday.
Gavin Cromwell has two new players who looks sure to take a big hand in the finish. They are the third McManus fancy Bioluminescence, second to Dancing City under unfavourable terms in a decent Naas Grade 3 contest and Only By Night, unbeaten in her three runs this season, including a Grade 2 and an Exeter listed contest last weekend.
British entry
Best of British appear to be Panic Attack (Dan Skelton) second over hurdles at the weekend, Royale Margaux (Tom Symonds) and last week’s winner Telepathique.
Royale Margaux has been campaigned over hurdles this season winning Warwick’s Listed Mares’ Hurdle at the weekend but has lots of experience over fences, running nine times over the larger obstacles the previous seasons, but without success.
The Lucy Wadham-trained Telepathique, a daughter of Telescope, put up an impressive performance to beat the Cromwell-trained Brides Hill at Huntingdon last week. That was her fourth win of the campaign, she stays and jumps well and she looks best of British.
Best odds: 9/4 Dinoblue, 3 Bioluminescence, 5 Only By Night, 7 Allegorie De Vassy, Limerick Lace, 14 Telepathique, Spindleberry, 25 Zenta, 33 Shecouldbeanything
Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle
This Grade 2 race hasn’t been the most punter-friendly in recent years. Willie Mullins won the first three runnings with short-priced favourites but then he threw a spanner in the works with Eglantine Du Seuil at 50/1 in 2019. Since then, it’s not been kind to favourites with short-priced defeats for Brighterdaysahead (5/6) last season, Luccia (6/4 favourite) and Dinoblue (11/8 favourite) in recent years.
This year’s race has attracted 46 entries, 27 of them Irish-trained. Willie Mullins has 10 entries.
Mullins and Cromwell appear to be setting the standard here again with Sixandahalf and Maughreen to the head of the market, while Tareze impressed for Henry de Bromhead at the weekend, the trainer winning this in 2021 with Telmesomethinggirl (5/1). She looks big at 20s.
Recent winners Aurora Vega, Karoline Banbou and Magic McColgan give Closutton a strong hand. Qualimita, third in the Listed Irish Stallion Farms EBF Paddy And Maureen Mullins Mares Handicap Hurdle at the DRF, looks the number one Gordon Elliott prospect, needing to recoup some of that €500,000 price tag.
Galileo Dame for Joseph O’Brien is the only four-year-old but brings a good level of form on her two runs and has bookies somewhat confused, with prices ranging from 8s to 16/1.
Paul Nicholls appears to have two lively prospects in Jubilee Alpha and Just A Rose.
Also of interest are two that have yet to run for Willie Mullins, both in the J.P. McManus ownership - Kom Tu Voudras, an unraced daughter of Majborough’s sire Martinborough and Venusienne, a daughter of Authorized, who was second in an Auteuil listed contest in September.
Best odds: 3 Sixandahalf, Maughreen, 8 Karoline Banbou, 10 Jubilee Alpha, 12 Aurora Vega, 12 Just A Rose, 14 Galileo Dame, 20 Kom Tu Voudras, Air Of Entitlement, Tareze, 33 Baby Kate, Qualimita
Impervious ruled out of Festival appearance
COLM Murphy’s star mare Impervious, the winner in 2023 of the Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Mares Chase, has been ruled out of the Cheltenham Festival following a further setback.
The nine-year-old is unbeaten over fences but has not been seen on a racecourse since comfortably winning the Mares Chase at the Punchestown Festival in April 2023.
That came just a month after she had won the equivalent race at the Cheltenham Festival.
Impervious is five from five over the larger obstacles and Murphy had hoped to get her back on track.
Murphy said this week: “Unfortunately, we’ve had a little bit of a setback two days ago. She’s not going to make Cheltenham. She’s gone home (to owner J.P. McManus) at the moment.
“There is no plan with her now. She is going to be reassessed by the vets and it will be a case of what they say.
“It’s been one little setback with her after another unfortunately. We didn’t get a clear run at her, so that route to Cheltenham is off.
THE Arkle was the biggest sufferer in Festival scratchings last week following the news of Sir Gino’s significant setback to his career. He is the second big loss to the British challenge in the novice chase department following the previous week’s reports of The Jukebox Man having to miss the Brown Advisory.
Aintree aim
Willie Mullins had previously mentioned that Impaire Et Passe would miss the Festival due to the loss of the middle distance novice in the Turners and the champion trainer has removed last year’s Aintree Grade 1 winner from the two novice chases with stable companion Ile Atlantique now also a Festival novice chase absentee. Fifteen runners remain in the Arkle with Ballyburn still there, as is the best novice mare of the season, Only By Night.
10 remain
A month away from the Champion Hurdle, 10 runners remain in the hurdle championship.
Those removed from the Champion Hurdle were the injured Anzadam, along with Kitzbuhel, Nemean Lion, Sir Gino and Kargese.
Dan Skelton’s Kateira has been taken out of the Mares Hurdle and the Stayers.
Last year’s Champion Bumper winner Jasmin De Vaux was taken out of the Turners leaving the Albert Bartlett as his only option while other Mullins runners missing the Wednesday opener were Irancy, Karafon, Karniquet. The Mullins stable also removed Final Demand, Kaid D’Authie, Karafon and Redemption Day from the Supreme.
The French-trained Stencil was an eyecatcher at the Cheltenham trials meeting and he remains the Fred Winter favourite as he was removed from the Triumph Hurdle. Chapeau De Soleil, Mistergif and Inthepocket were also taken out of the Brown Advisory Novices Chase.