Punchestown Champion Chase 2013 ( Round 2)

[Sprinter]

SPRINTER SACRE HAS CHAMPION ENTRY

The brilliant Sprinter Sacre, who took his unbeaten run over fences to nine at Aintree on Friday when winning the John Smith's Melling Chase, heads the entries for the feature €200,000 Grade 1 BOYLESPORTS.COM CHAMPION CHASE on Tuesday, April 23.

Three-time Grade 1 winner Flemenstar, who finished third to Sprinter Sacre at Aintree, is on course to line up in the two-mile showpiece while last year's winner Sizing Europe is another engaged in what promises to be a fantastic contest.

BOYLESPORTS.COM CHAMPION CHASE (Grade 1), €200,000, 2m, 5yo+

1 Blackstairmountain (Willie Mullins)

2 Cue Card (GB) (Colin Tizzard GB)

3 Days Hotel (Henry de Bromhead)

4 Finian's Rainbow (Nicky Henderson GB)

5 Flemenstar (Peter Casey)

6 Foildubh (John Ryan)

7 For Non Stop (Nick Williams GB)

8 Kumbeshwar (GB) (Alan King GB)

9 Mad Moose (Nigel Twiston-Davies GB)

10 Noble Prince (GER) (Paul Nolan)

11 Pires (GB) (Tony Martin)

12 Sizing Europe (Henry de Bromhead)

13 Sprinter Sacre (FR) (Nicky Henderson GB)

14 Toubab (FR) (Paul Nicholls GB)

15 Wishfull Thinking (GB) (Philip Hobbs GB)

16 Blazing Tempo (Willie Mullins)

17 Lead Kindly Light (Sean Byrne)

[Sprinter]

Fine supporting races on same card

Punchestown's Tuesday card also includes the Grade 1 GROWISE CHAMPION NOVICE CHASE in which the Kim Bailey-trained Harry Topper, who was unbeaten over fences until unseating his rider at Kelso in March, is set to line-up.

"Harry Topper is entered for the Growise Champion Novice Chase with the intention of running providing the ground is soft," said Bailey.

"Although we didn't enter him, we were planning to run him at Aintree last week but there is no point running a horse on good ground when he wants soft ground. I think as he gets older he will be less ground dependant.

"He unseated his rider at Kelso but he schooled last week and that went very well so I am happy enough with him. He has already won a Grade 2 at Newbury and his form is working out well. He deserves to take his chance in a Grade 1 and we want to find out if he is good enough.

"The intention next season is to start him off in the Hennessy at Newbury and then go from there."
A strong entry also includes Benefficient, winner of the Jewson Novices' Chase at Cheltenham. Trainer Tony Martin is debating whether to aim the seven-year-old at the Growise Champion Novice Chase over 3m 1f or the two-mile Grade 1 RYANAIR NOVICE CHASE on Thursday, April 25.

"We are very happy with Benefficient and the intention is to run him at Punchestown. We have entered him in the two-miler and three-miler but I can't tell you what one he will go for at the moment as it will all depend on the ground," said Martin.

"We have been very pleased with him since his win at Cheltenham and we didn't go to Aintree because we wanted to give him a bit more time.

"We put the hood on him because he can get a little bit lit up. Cheltenham is a very noisy and buzzy place but the hood helped him settle and he won well."

Others engaged in the Growise Champion Novice Chase include Dynaste and Third Intention, who finished first and second in the Mildmay Novices' Chase at Aintree on Friday, Back In Focus, winner of the four-mile John Oaksey National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham, his stablemate Boston Bob, who fell at the last when in contention in the RSA Chase, and RSA Chase runner-up Lyreen Legend.


GROWISE CHAMPION NOVICE CHASE (GRADE 1), €80,000, 3M 1F, 5YO+

1 Back In Focus (Willie Mullins)

2 Baily Green (Mouse Morris)

3 Benefficient (Tony Martin)

4 Boston Bob (Willie Mullins)

5 Buckers Bridge (Henry de Bromhead)

6 Dedigout (Tony Martin)

7 Dynaste (FR) (David Pipe GB)

8 Goulanes (David Pipe GB)

9 Hadrian's Approach (Nicky Henderson GB)

10 Harry Topper (GB) (Kim Bailey GB)

11 Lyreen Legend (Dessie Hughes)

12 Marasonnien (FR) (Willie Mullins)

13 Marito (GER) (Willie Mullins)

14 Mount Benbulben (Gordon Elliott)

15 Opening Batsman (Harry Fry GB)

16 Real Milan (Donald McCain GB)

17 Realt Mor (Gordon Elliott)

18 Sea Of Thunder (Charles Byrnes)

19 Super Duty (Donald McCain GB)

20 Sweeney Tunes (GB) (Paul Nolan)

21 Terminal (FR) (Willie Mullins)

22 Third Intention (Colin Tizzard GB)

23 Tofino Bay (Dessie Hughes)

24 Vesper Bell (Willie Mullins)

25 Argocat (Tom Taaffe)

[Sprinter]

Punchestown's Supreme

HERALD CHAMPION NOVICE HURDLE (GRADE 1), €80,000, 2M, 5YO+

1 Ally Cascade (Noel Meade)

2 Art Of Logistics (Dessie Hughes)

3 Bonisland (GB) (Gordon Elliott)

4 Champagne Fever (Willie Mullins)

5 Clondaw Kaempfer (Donald McCain GB)

6 Cops And Robbers (GB) (Noel Meade)

7 Court Minstrel (Evan Williams GB)

8 Forgotten Voice (Nicky Henderson GB)

9 Jezki (Jessica Harrington)

10 Legal Exit (Jim Culloty)

11 Mallowney (Tim Doyle)

12 Midnight Oil (GB) (Willie Mullins)

13 My Tent Or Yours (Nicky Henderson GB)

14 Pique Sous (FR) (Willie Mullins)

15 Rule The World (GB) (Mouse Morris)

16 Shrapnel (Gordon Elliott)

17 Sizing Rio (Henry de Bromhead)

18 Ted Veale (Tony Martin)

19 Tennis Cap (FR) (Willie Mullins)

20 Too Scoops (Henry de Bromhead)

21 Un Atout (FR) (Willie Mullins)

22 Un De Sceaux (FR) (Willie Mullins)

23 Waaheb (USA) (Dermot Weld)

24 Zuider Zee (GER) (John Ferguson GB)

25 Annie Power (Willie Mullins)

26 Upsie (FR) (Willie Mullins)

[Lester]

That is just too good a days racing for a punchestown Tuesday ...if they switched that card with Saturday would sell out IMO.

[Old Vic]

All three of those races could be better than the Cheltenham equivalent. Need to see decs though.

[billstraighten]

Looking to go to the saturday myself, shame that quality racing will be missed by so many due to people working.

[Old Vic]

Looking to go to the saturday myself, shame that quality racing will be missed by so many due to people working.

Think they usually kick off late enough in the afternoon. A meeting that could do with starting Wednesday and finishing on Sunday imo.

[Yeehaa]

Henderson said: “Sprinter Sacre could go for the Champion Chase at Punchestown on April 23. He still looks absolutely stunning in his coat.
“His work rider Nico de Boinville will tell me in a week if the horse is 100 per cent. If he is he will run, anything less and he won’t.

“I always promised Punchestown that he would go there one day.”

[mayo]

Missed this ...I suppose we have to let Sprinter Sacre have his own thread again

The original Sprinter Thread http://www.fatjockey.com/forum/showt...l-of-the-Jumps