Today’s best bets, by Chris Cook
I hope the King George was enough evidence for you all to make up your minds about Might Bite because it sounds to me as though he’s going straight to the Gold Cup now. Nicky Henderson was musing on that subject yesterday, after training a winner at Cheltenham, and naturally he left the matter open at such an early stage of the year, but he seemed to be leaning away from another prep-run.
“That’s the big question,” Henderson said, when I brought up the possibility of another pre-Festival outing. Alluding to Cheltenham’s Cotswold Chase at the end of this month, he added: “The one place I’m pretty sure it won’t be is here. I mean, I really can’t see the point of going three and a quarter miles in what is almost certain to be soft ground
“You would leave the Gold Cup somewhere halfway up that hill. No, he definitely wouldn’t run in the Cotswold. The Denman [at Newbury on 10 February], I suppose, is probably the only possibility. Otherwise, there’s every probability that he won’t go anywhere.”
The example of last year’s Cotswold Chase will doubtless be in Henderson’s mind when he talks about leaving the Gold Cup behind there. That was the race after which poor old Many Clouds dropped dead and Thistlecrack sustained a season-ending tendon injury. On the other hand, there have been Cotswold winners who have gone on to win the big race and Bristol De Mai is likely to take that route this year, being a horse who is well suited by testing conditions.
As for Might Bite, the clinching factor is likely to be how little there is to gain in running him again. Henderson contrasted him with his Champion Hurdle favourite, Buveur D’Air, who “needs work, work, work” and will certainly run again if fit to do so. “Might Bite needs nothing,” the trainer said.
“He doesn’t have to prove to anybody he stays. We’ve just got to assume he does. It’s only another two furlongs from last year.”
Today’s action is a little thin but I’m happy to be getting 7-2 about the nap, Twin Appeal (4.40) at Newcastle. He comes from the David Barron yard that punched a bit below its weight for most of last year but is currently placing its handful of all-weather runners to good effect, with four winners from 14 runners since the start of December.
Twin Appeal is among the Barron horses now back in form, with a second followed by a win at Wolves at the end of 2017. He’s still below the mark from which he won on turf in April and another bold showing is surely on the cards.
His main market rivals are good old Heaven’s Guest, who is on a dangerous mark but does best in big-field turf races, and Dragon Mall, who hasn’t been seen since July but is attracting support.
Later, 9-2 seems big about Shades Of Mist (6.40), who came good last time on his all-weather debut, having moved from Ann Duffield to Tony Coyle. Generally, I’d be put off by the switch in surface from Fibresand to another type of all-weather but I think he remains on a very beatable mark and we don’t yet know that he needs Fibresand.
Ayr’s jumps card has survived the weather and there is something to be said for 7-2 about One For Harry (2.40) from Nicky Richards’ yard. Following his last-time success at Haydock, he has six hurdles wins on soft or heavy to his name and has only gone up 3lb.
By the way, our list of tips each day will now be appearing in this natty little blue panel immediately below this sentence.
Ayr 12.30 Caventara 1.00 Royal Salute 1.35 Better Getalong 2.10 Acdc 2.40 One For Harry 3.10 Titian Boy 3.45 Younoyounoyouno
Newcastle 3.35 Not So Sleepy 4.10 Dellaguista 4.40 Twin Appeal (nap) 5.10 Gracious John 5.40 Completion 6.10 Rosina 6.40 Shades Of Mist (nb)
Ffos Las abandoned (waterlogging)
