THE Unibet Jump Season Opener at Chepstow this Friday and Saturday signals the start of the winter jumps season with a string of top trainers having runners at this important two-day meeting.

In my Ten To Follow for the 2024 and 2025 season I haven’t included any Irish trainers this time around and will mark up some Irish horses in a separate piece.

This Ten to Follow isn’t about only marking up horses who will only run at the big meetings and as you will see from the selections highlighted there will be a broad range of racedays and racecourses featured.

Looking forward to a successful season with my Ten To Follow for the 2024/2025 Jumps season.

Cheers

The Wine Tipster    

 

Ten To Follow

Jeriko Du Reponet  (Nicky Henderson Unibet Ambassador)

Jeriko Du Reponet is a striking individual who won his first two starts over hurdles easily at Newbury when heavily odds on ahead of being upped in class to the Grade 2 Rossington Main Novices’ Hurdle at Doncaster where he completed hat-trick to beat Lump Sum and Fiercely Proud, who subsequently franked the form in the Dovecote at Kempton in February.

His Doncaster success might have appeared less flamboyant to many, however he still looked inexperienced that day, whilst possessing plenty of ability and he then headed to the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham where he was pulled up before the last. This run should be ignored as Nicky Henderson’s yard were struggling at the time and this showed on day one at Cheltenham.

Looking ahead to this campaign he is an exciting prospect who has showed himself to be ground versatile and he will make up to an exciting novice chaser running in smart company.     

 

Chianti Classico (Kim Bailey)

Chianti Classico was marked up in my Ten To Follow last season to have a strong campaign over fences and he certainly delivered on chasing debut with a superb round of jumping at the Unibet Jump Season Opener Chepstow meeting, when looking a natural. He then went on to win at Ascot in ground that ended up being tacky, rather than good and that didn’t suit him when not travelling so smoothly.

Chianti Classico was my Unibet nap for the Ultima at the Cheltenham Festival when he was always prominent, and he led the field round the home turn with victory never in doubt despite over pitching at the last to win in great style in the heavy.

He then headed to Aintree to contest the Mildmay Novices’ Chase Grade 1 in which he tried to do too much early on and finished fourth.

This exciting seven-year-old has plenty more to offer off a mark of 152 in comparison to 133 which was his rating at the start of his previous campaign, and you can expect more victories with another tilt at the Cheltenham Festival surely part of the plan.   

 

Captain Wallace (Sam Thomas) 

Captain Wallace has been brought along with this season in mind, as you couldn’t help but be impressed with Captain Wallace’s two victories within a few days of each other back in April. After thrashing them hollow at Exeter, he turned up under a penalty at Southwell four days later and won even easier, his slick and accurate jumping a key component in that success. The form, at its own level, looks strong, with both Saint Bibiana who was third and Mermaids Cove seventh in behind racking up sequences of wins subsequently. 

He’ll go chasing in time but regardless, his hurdles mark to open the season with of 107 looks there to be taken advantage of. He can win more races this term when the ground is on the good side, and this is a key point with Captain Wallace. 

 

Diamond Ri (Joe Tizzard) 

Diamond Ri was given a patient campaign as a chaser-in-the-making last season, and it’s pleasing they didn’t overface this huge horse last campaign as he was still continuing to grow into his frame. 

He started out at Exeter last November and although held in second that day, made a big impression physically and you knew that his career was going to be all about what he does from this season onwards when he’ll presumably be sent chasing.

He ran to a good level over hurdles, with an impressive win at Warwick on Classic Chase Day when I was at the course that day. His second to the odds-on Peaky Boy at Cheltenham in April, whilst still looking raw, showed he handles quicker ground as well as slower conditions, and he should improve plenty once he sees a fence. Diamond Ri should stay three miles as the season progresses and is a very exciting prospect. 

 

Prolific Profile (Katy Price) 

Prolific Profile, might not be a superstar, however in a Ten To Follow you should include horses that are going to win at a lower level too, and on that score Katy Price’s five-year-old gelding is already demonstrating that this season. 

He looked the part when finishing down the field at Warwick last November, a run he could be marked up for anyway, as he is a grand, old-fashioned chasing type, which is just the sort the yard like, in fact. He was a little disappointing on his handicap debut at Hereford, but he made no mistakes when well-backed to score at Bangor on his final start of last season, rallying well to get back up in the shadow of the post.

A mark of 94 to start the season off has been taken advantage of with a success at Bangor in early September over two miles and half a furlong and then Prolific Profile off a rating of 100 was victorious this month at Uttoxeter. 

 

Etalon (Dan Skelton) 

Etalon on the face of things could be hard to place this season as his handicap mark went up from 120 to 142 over fences but on the flip side, he’s only had the four chase starts to date and won three of them. 

It was impressive not only to his progression last season but how he did it, held up at both Newbury and Warwick but making all at Sandown and winning easily, showing adaptability as well as jumping prowess in the process.

Aintree proved a step too far at the end of the year, but he still travelled well into that contest before an uncharacteristic mistake three out stopped him in his tracks, and he gave the impression he’ll be able to lay up in top company without much bother. The two-mile division looks open to opportunities and you can see Etalon heading to Cheltenham in March.

 

Mahland (Mel Rowley) 

Mahland didn’t run in a bumper as there’s no way he’d have had the speed for them, so connections preferred to send him straight over hurdles instead. There was a lot to like about his no-nonsense from-the-front performances last year, steadily improving with every run, and after just the two handicap starts he remains pretty unexposed as a staying handicap hurdler (and chaser in time, he has won a point-to-point) for this year. 

After finishing second on his handicap debut at Exeter in deep ground, he made all to see off Minella Blueway and company at Ffos Las over three miles, finding plenty when tackled, and won that with a bit in hand. He’ll want a test of stamina as he first two starts under rules at around two miles three furlongs saw him outpaced and at around two miles five furlongs to three miles there will be plenty of those opportunities throughout the winter, and he will certainly be well placed.

 

The Jukebox Man (Ben Pauling) 

The Jukebox Man caught the eye more than most at the Cheltenham Festival last year. He did all but take the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle Grade 1 with an enterprising front-running display under Kielan Woods and it was only in the shadows of the post he was worn down by Stellar Story.

He went to Aintree to try and go one better in the Sefton Novices’ Hurdle but Kyntara gave him no peace up top, and although he finally saw that rival off with two to jump, he had nothing left to repel the challenge of Dancing City, who was reversing the Cheltenham form on the day, having finished third in the Albert Bartlett.

All the same, there’s so much to like about the way The Jukebox Man goes about things and rewatch his last two starts to see why it’ll be a major surprise if this powerful, attentive type doesn’t go on to take a high rank among the novice chasers this term when conditions are soft or heavy.

 

Isaac Des Obeaux (Paul Nicholls)

Isaac Des Obeaux caught the eye every time you saw him in the flesh last season, looking a chaser from the word go, he kept improving throughout last season, winning twice, until finding the step up to Grade 2 company in the Prestige Novice Hurdle at Haydock in February beyond him, though the ground was heavy and he was never travelling .

Isaac Des Obeaux was then given a break and he bounced back to form at Taunton in April on his final start of the season, giving weight away to all when beaten under half a length in a good-quality handicap hurdle and showing a great attitude too.  

The dam, unsurprisingly, is a half-sister to Clan Des Obeaux and that gives you some idea of where plans will probably lie for this season. A lovely, well-made sort, he should improve again this term as he sees bigger obstacles and Isaac Des Obeaux has an entry at the Unibet Jump Season Opener meeting on the Friday in the Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase.    

 

Good And Clever (Warren Greatrex)

Good And Clever won his bumper easily on debut at Warwick in soft ground by 12 lengths and whilst it was difficult to really assess the form as to how strong it was the favourite and runner-up had won at Doncaster.

Good And Clever then headed to Aintree for a typically competitive Grade 2 bumper in which he was definitely the runner to take out of the race after finishing third to Horaces Pearl when running all the way to the line, having taken up the lead early in the straight.

He has a real presence about him and an exciting campaign over hurdles surely awaits with a step up in trip sure to suit.

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