We ended an eventful week with a double on Saturday which took our score for the season to 109
Seriously testing conditions at Cheltenham after heavy rain didn’t play to our strengths but Monmiral excelled in winning the Pertemps Final. He has always had loads of ability but didn’t take to chasing and needed the run at Chepstow when he qualified for the Pertemps by finishing fourth. I thought he had a sporting chance of finishing in the money but didn’t really expect him to win like he did. He will head to Aintree next.
Ginny’s Destiny ran a blinder in finishing a close second to Grey Dawning in the Turners and should stay three miles in time. He is another pencilled in for our Aintree team.
Bravemansgame hated the ground at Cheltenham. I withdrew him there two years ago in similar conditions and it was clear from an early stage in the Gold Cup on Friday that he wasn’t handling the ground. He could also go to Aintree if the ground is suitable or I could keep him for the Oaksey Chase at Sandown on the final day of the season.
Stay Away Fay pulled off a shoe in the Brown Advisory Chase and I suspect he didn’t like the track in that ground. He scoped dirty later that day but that might well have been because he’d been galloping around Cheltenham in the mud. Forty eight hours later his trachea wash was 100%. I will be giving him an entry in the Scottish Grand National. Next season I’ll be aiming Stay Away Fay at something like the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury rather than thinking that he is a Gold Cup horse. He just lacks a gear and could develop into a National horse.
We have lots to run before the end of the season and drier ground would definitely help as you saw at Kempton on Saturday. Horses like Outlaw Peter and Irish Hill have been struggling on bad ground all winter and obviously appreciated the better conditions there.
We don’t have too many to run this week because I’m prepared to wait until the ground starts to dry up. But Larchmont Lass deserves a shot at the mares’ final at Newbury on Saturday where Regent’s Stroll goes in the £100,000 Goffs Bumper.
After Saturday’s Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter and after chatting with Gordon and Su Hall it has been decided to retire Trucker’s Lodge. He has been fantastic horse, he won the race in 2020 and ran in it 5 times. He will have a great retirement and deserves it.
Interest in the trainer’s championship has sparked into life now that my former assistant Dan Skelton tops the table. If he beats me I’ll be proud of him and the first to shake his hand. Dan is competitive like me, he will not give up until the final day and neither will I, so it should be fun.
Please be sure to check out my Betfair column for my Saturday runners which goes live the previous day.
