IT is less than four weeks until we hear the Cheltenham roar on Tuesday March 15th to announce the first race of the 2022 Cheltenham Festival, the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle. This is the first of my Cheltenham Festival pieces with my five ante-post selections. On Saturday, two of these selections are running, with Adagio heading to Wincanton for the Kingwell Hurdle and Hillcrest makes the journey from Shropshire to Haydock for the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle.
Enjoy Saturday’s racing whether at a racecourse or #athome.
Cheers
The Wine Tipster
Tuesday March 15th
3.30 Cheltenham – Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy (Grade 1) 2m ½f
Adagio for the David Pipe team runs in the Kingwell Hurdle against Goshen at Wincanton on Saturday and I’m confident he can take a step forward again and beat Goshen.
Adagio finished second in the Triumph Hurdle behind Quilixios, who like Adagio has moved forward this year. Other good juveniles like Teahupoo ran well at Limerick, Haut En Couleurs looks like making into a good novice chaser and Zanahiyr has twice chased home Sharjah, so it shows we had juvenile year with some depth.
On his only start this season Adagio had a super run in the Unibet Greatwood Hurdle when trying to give 13lb away to the winner West Cork, with the form of the race working out well, with Tritonic (fifth), Glory And Fortune (sixth) and Marie’s Rock (seventh) having all won since. Adagio is ground versatile and in his ten career starts to date he has finished in the first three.
Unibet 20/1 each way
Wednesday March 16th
1.30 Cheltenham – Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1) 2m 4½f
Hillcrest, one of my Ten To Follow, runs tomorrow over three miles at Haydock weather permitting for Henry Daly and although he has an entry in the Albert Bartlett he is surely much more likely to head to the Ballymore.
Hillcrest won over the Ballymore trip when beating I Am Maximus here at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day in a Listed contest, as he stayed on well up the hill, finishing with ears pricked, to win comfortably in the end. He was desperately unlucky on Festival Trials Day in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle, when a warm favourite and looking for his fourth win on the bounce, as he was unseated at the third after the fall of Harper’s Brook. This giant horse still looks visually to have so much improvement ahead of him and you won’t see a more striking individual throughout The Festival.
Unibet 16/1 each way
Thursday March 17th
1.30 Cheltenham – Turner Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) 2m 4f
L’Homme Presse, like his trainer Venetia Williams, is having such a fantastic season, as he started this season on a mark of 128 and now after four wins on the bounce he has a rating of 159. This seven-year-old has won all of these races by wide margins, particularly impressing in the Dipper at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day and on his last appearance at Sandown in the Scilly Isles when winning this Grade 1 by 21 lengths. He is ground versatile and will be more than a match for his key market rivals Bob Olinger and Galopin Des Champs.
Unibet 4/1 win
Friday March 18th
3.30 Cheltenham – Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup (Grade 1) 3m 2½f
Conflated is described by his trainer Gordon Elliott as a ‘quirky horse’, yet he certainly has a big engine as he showed when winning the Irish Gold Cup at the Dublin Racing Festival beating Minella Indo, the 2021 Gold Cup winner, by six and half lengths. He was the only runner in the field who had won on his previous start, with a victory at Navan and looked overpriced at Leopardstown on this occasion. Conflated does have to show he can step up effectively over this extra couple of furlongs, which we have seen on many occasions, has caught out key runners after they have jumped the last. He looks more than capable though, because he wasn’t stopping in the Irish Gold Cup, and this looks a much more open Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup than many would have predicted at the start of the season.
Unibet 10/1 each way
4.50 Cheltenham – Mares’ Chase (Grade 2) 2m 4f
Mount Ida for Gordon Elliott must have a strong chance in the Mares’ Chase after her fantastic win in the Kim Muir last year by six and half lengths, after looking beaten at halfway. She has won both her starts this year over a very similar trip to the Mares’ Chase and particularly impressed last time out beating Elimay at Fairyhouse on New Year’s Day, when giving her 3lb. This eight-year-old has looked better than ever this season and as well as having loads of ability she has courage too.
Unibet 11/4 win
