Horses running from our main list to follow – None
Horses running from our “dark horses” list – None
Ramblings
Sunday at the Cheltenham Open Meeting saw a change in the conditions with a strong wind and driving rain. Mendo was one horse to relish the soft ground and he stayed on strongly to give Noel Chance his first winner of the season. this son of former Champion Hurdler Alderbrook was winning for the third time on a row and looks the sort to make a chaser. Sadly the sire, Alderbrook died not long ago.
Moon Over Miami proved too strong for the Paul Nicholls trained favourite in the opening novice chase. Trained by Charlie Mann at Lambourne Moon over Miami caught the eye last season when he won a Grade 2 novice hurdle at Cheltenham. He is a former winner on the flat in Germany.
I was pleased to see that great old warrior Kerry Lads add to his winning tally in typically gritty fashion at Carlisle. He has been a fantastic servant for the Lucinda Russell yard this being his 9th career win. He has won 3 times at Ayr, Carlisle and Wetherby.
Things were not going too well for me on the tipping front in the early part of the day so I was glad to see my selection for the Greatwood Hurdle, Sizing Europe come in at 5s. The runner up, Osana ran with a lot of credit off a big weight.
Somke of the big stables are having a bit of an in and out time of things at the moment with Paul Nicholls, David Pipe and Philip Hobbs all having some disappointing runners. A change in the going may well help. Alan King has around 150 horses in his charge now and looks set for a successful season. He will have been pleased with the run of Champion Chaser Voy Por Ustedes today I would imagine.
We lost one runner from our list to follow on Saturday when Granit Jack was killed at Cheltenham, and another, the Irish hurdler Iktitaf, is fighting for his life after a serious injury in training. He will certainly not run again.
Nap of the day
This is one of a number of “new features” that I am introducing. I have probably picked a bad day to start with the only jumps meeting an all hurdles card at Leicester on fast ground. Anyway I am going for something adventurous. Oumeyade couldn’t put a foot right last season but I am banking on him proving better this time around. Hee si a half brother to the useful Ladalko and his trainer has had a few winners lately, notably Harris Bay and Glasker Mill. So it is Oumeyade in the 2.40 at Leicester.
Today’s trivia
All the Indian Classics are run at Bombay (Mumbai to you)
The Indian Derby, run at Mahalakshmi Race Course, is the highlight of Mumbai's racing year.
Traditionally run on the first Sunday of February, the race is known as the "Crown Jewel of the Triple Crown." It is restricted to four-year-old horses, both colts and fillies.
What’s in a name?
L’oiseau de feu runs in the 2.10 at Leicester. It means “bird of fire” in French. The sire was Stravinsky named after the composer Igor Stravinsky who composed “The Firebird
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