Badger ales trophy wincanton

[Guest]

Nicholls benefit race ?

Was this the card he went through a few years ago ?

[Statto]

It was January 2006 he had the six timer. time flies !

PAUL NICHOLLS*made British racing history at Wincanton yesterday when he became the first trainer to saddle six winners on the same card as he maintained his progress towards a first jumps trainers' championship.

The six-timer, courtesy of Raffaello, East Lawyer, The Luder, Almost Broke, Nippy*des Mottes and Bold Fire, saw Nicholls pull further ahead of arch rival and 15-time champion Martin Pipe.

[Old Vic]

Trends/ Previous Winners

http://www.fatjockey.com/festivals/racing_festivals.php?Badger-Ales-Trophy-Chase-Trends-99

[Yeehaa]

Saturday's Badger Ales Trophy at Wincanton is likely to have two runners from the Tom George stable in the shape of Triangular and Ballyallia Man. The giant Ballyallia Man will be running from 2lb out of the handicap if top-weight Diamond Harry takes his chance as expected, but George is keen to run his charge.

Triangular bolted up at Newbury last season but has struggled off his revised mark.

"This has been Ballyallia Man's target for a while and we gave him a run over hurdles to put him right for it," said George.

"He's got to progress but he is a big, staying type, so there is no reason why he shouldn't.

"His run over hurdles was a good deal better than what it would have been at this time last year, so he obviously is going the right way.

"He's an enormous horse and hopefully he's grown into his frame a bit. Also, he does have to go right-handed.

"Triangular will run as well and he just seems to have the odd day when things don't go quite to his liking.

"We'll just tip along and hopefully he puts in a good show rather than a poor one."

[johnno]

From Joe Tizzards blog

Golden Chieftain will run in the Badger Ales Trophy. He seriously impressed me when winning st Worcester last time out and although his handicap mark has risen and mirrors his hurdling ranking, the focus is on jumping. He feels much better his season and should run well. Admittedly, Paul Nicholls will take all the beating with Michael Le Bon who has been set out for this race.

[johnno]

Cheltenham Festival winner Teaforthree is among 17 entries for the Badger Ales Trophy at Wincanton on Saturday.

The eight-year-old ended the last campaign with victory in the four-mile National Hunt Chase, and the Somerset showpiece is just one of the possible starting points for him this season.

The Badger Ales is also an option for Old Wigmore, although he has an alternative in the Blue Square Bet Handicap Chase at Sandown the same day.

"He’s very well at home. I’ll have a look at the entries for both races and see," she said.

Paul Nicholls has won the last two renewals with Meanus Dandy (2010) and The Minack (2011).

This year the champion trainer can call on Michel Le Bon and No Loose Change.

The 17 entries for the Badger Ales also include the Nick Williams-trained Diamond Harry and Alan King’s West End Rocker.

[Navanman]

Finding it hard to get interested in this lot


HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER RTF% JOCKEY OR TS RPR
1 45PP- Diamond Harry212 9 11-12 Nick Williams50 150 145 167
2 2183P- Tamarinbleu238 12 11-11 David Pipe32 149 134 156
3 P1FP- West End Rocker196 10 11-8 Alan King56 Robert Thornton 146 152 161
4 21P11- Teaforthree241 8 11-8 Rebecca Curtis44 146 149 159
5 P/21P- Zarrafakt242 8 11-4 Emma Lavelle43 142 131 165
6 313-51 Golden Chieftain17 7 11-4 Colin Tizzard59 Joe Tizzard 142 89 156
7 1/0P1- Michel Le Bon205 9 11-2 Paul Nicholls57 R Walsh 140 148 149
8 U55/4- The Package242 9 11-1 David Pipe32 139 141 158
9 20PP-U Tullamore Dew7 10 11-0 Nick Gifford33 138 140 161
10 8112- Prince Of Pirates223 7 11-0 Nicky Henderson50 138 133 157
11 721P-0 Triangular21 7 10-12 Tom George47 136 147 161
12 21102- Mic´s Delight209 8 10-7 Victor Dartnall29 131 121 155
13 3U14-P No Loose Change15 7 10-3 Paul Nicholls57 Daryl Jacob 127 150 162
14 P34-2 Aimigayle175 9 10-2 Suzy Smith50 Colin Bolger 126 145 159
15 2145-P Old Wigmore174 7 10-1 Rebecca Curtis44 125 119 160
16 4131-3 Ballyallia Man28 7 9-12 Tom George47 122 133 154
17 83F250 Life Of A Luso21 8 9-12 Paul Henderson33 122 150 158

[Yeehaa]

It is safe for Diamond Harry backers to come out of the woodwork ...

1 Diamond Harry 212 P-1-45PP 9 11-12(150) Noel Fehily Nick Williams
2 Tamarinbleu (FR) 238 22183P 12 11-11(149)cp David Pipe
3 West End Rocker (IRE) 196 PB-P1FP 10 11-8(146) Robert Thornton Alan King
4 Zarrafakt (IRE) 242 1PP-21PC1 D1 CD1 8 11-4(142) Dougie Costello Emma Lavelle
5 Golden Chieftain (IRE) 17 P313-51C1 D1 CD1 7 11-4(142) cp Joe Tizzard Colin Tizzard
6 Michel Le Bon (FR) 205 31-1-0P1 9 11-2(140) R. Walsh Paul Nicholls
7 The Package 242 12U5-5-4 D1 9 11-1(139) Timmy Murphy David Pipe
8 Triangular (USA) 21 1721P-0 7 10-12(136) tcp Gerald Quinn (7) Tom George
9 Mic's Delight (IRE) 209 221102 8 10-7(131) Andrew Glassonbury Victor Dartnall
10 No Loose Change (IRE) 15 33U14-P 7 10-3(127) t Daryl Jacob Paul Nicholls
11 Aimigayle 175 28-P34-2 9 10-2(126) Colin Bolger Suzy Smith
12 Ballyallia Man (IRE) 28 F4131-3 7 10(124) t Paddy Brennan Tom George
13 Life Of A Luso (IRE) 21 83F250 8 10(124) t Tom Scudamore Paul Henderson

[johnno]

Betting ..Michel Le Bon (4) , Golden Chieftain (5) , Zarrafakt (6) , Diamond Harry (8) - OTHERS 9 or more

[Lester]

Michel Le Bon is an each way price ...that will do me.

[Lester]

The Package is price wise pick. Diamond Harry also a market mover.

[Hoof]

5:25 Wincanton - Michel Le Bon

He has had his problems down the years but he is a horse I still believe in. Perhaps not to the extent that I think he will be winning Grade 1 races, but he has a workable mark off 140 and I have trained him for this race ever since he came in. He disappointed on his first two starts last season, including when too fresh and free when we fancied him in the Hennessy, but he came good in a handicap hurdle on his final start. Ruby schooled him on Wednesday. Any rain would be a bonus for him.


No Loose Change

Was impressive when winning at Newbury but that was an uncompetitive race and he paid for the wide-margin win with a steep rise up the weights. Ran poorly when pulled up at Fakenham last time, where I think the track was too sharp. Has at least been dropped 3lb since then, but he probably is still up against it here.

[mayo]

Morning all..the Donn is with Le Bon

Question: Badger Ales Trophy? Answer: Paul Nicholls. Obviously.

Nicholls has won three of the last four renewals of the race, and he nearly won the one that he didn’t win as well, with The Tother One finishing well to take second place behind Ellerslie George in the 2009 renewal.

There’s more. The champion trainer had two runners in the race last year, and they finished first and second. He had two runners in the race in 2008, and they finished first and third. He sent out the third in 2007 and the runner-up in 2005, and he won it in 2004 with Royal Auclair when another of his horses, Whitenzo, finished third. Wincanton is Nicholls’s track – he has had 50 winners from 185 runners there in the last five seasons – and the Badger Ales is his race.

Nicholls runs two in today’s race. No Loose Change is an interesting horse. He looked really good in winning a decent three-mile handicap chase at Newbury last March, but he couldn’t cope with a 16lb hike for that when he was well beaten at Ayr on his next run. He disappointed on his debut this term at Fakenham as well and, while he could easily bounce back, he is on something of a recovery mission now.

It is no surprise, then, that Ruby Walsh has chosen to ride Michel Le Bon in his stead. Graham Roach’s horse has something to prove himself. He looked like a really exciting chasing prospect when he won a Grade 2 contest on his chasing bow at Newbury on Hennessy weekend in 2009, but a tendon injury meant that he missed the rest of the season and the whole of the next one. He returned after exactly two years off, and was well backed for the 2011 Hennessy, in which he did travel well, but ultimately faded up the home straight.

He was again well-backed for the Racing Plus Chase at Kempton last February, but he could never got into a racing rhythm and he was pulled up. Reverting to hurdles for his only subsequent run, he stayed on gallantly to win a good handicap at Cheltenham last April off a mark of 134.

That run proved that he retained at least a sizeable portion of his ability, and suggested that he could be well up to a mark of 140 over fences. He shaped like a potential RSA Chase horse three years ago when he won that Newbury race, and he raced off a mark of 146 in the Hennessy and off a mark of 144 in the Racing Plus Chase. He is nine, but he has raced just three times over fences, he is really lightly-raced and he still has plenty of scope to be significantly better than his mark.

Rain last night would be a help, but you can be sure that Nicholls will have him primed for today. The assistance of Ruby Walsh in these long distance chases is invaluable and he should probably be at least a little shorter than 5.0.

I was surprised to see The Package and Diamond Harry in the line-up. I thought that David Pipe would keep The Package for the three-and-a-half-mile chase at Cheltenham next weekend, and I thought, perhaps naively, that Diamond Harry would be kept fresh for the Hennessy, a race that he won on his seasonal debut in 2010 off a mark that was 6lb higher than his current mark. He could be a really well-handicapped horse now, there is no doubting his class and he does go well fresh, but he under-performed in all four of his runs last year, he would probably prefer softer ground than he is going to get, and he is enigmatic character who has never before raced at a right-handed track. Seventeen runs, all 17 at left-handed tracks.

If Michel Le Bon under-performs, Zarrafakt is the most likely beneficiary. The time to catch Emma Lavelle’s horse is when he is fresh, as he will be today on his debut this term. His record on his seasonal debut reads 1112, the 2 a head defeat to That’lldoboy at Newbury last November. He won a handicap chase over today’s course and distance as well last January, and he won’t mind good to soft ground.

He has raced just six times over fences, and he has plenty of scope for progression, but he is 9lb higher than he was when he last won. Michel Le Bon has more scope for progression for me and, at a similar price, the Nicholls horse is more appealing.

[Yeehaa]

Diamond Harry for me in this.

[Yeehaa]

Pricewise the man last year. Must have been one of David Johnson's last big wins.

De la Bech for me this time.

Verdict

STANDING OVATION has really got his act together and, though racing off another career-high mark, may not have stopped winning yet. He again receives weight all round after completing his hat-trick over a longer trip here last time when jumping like an old hand and his stable has won it twice in recent years. Paul Nicholls also has a decent record in the race and Poungach looks the pick of his pair this time but Pantxoa has shot up the weights and found Twirling Magnet too good at Cheltenham last time. Chepstow third Court By Surprise is interesting and Ballyallia Man was fourth in the race last year and should strip fitter for a pipe-opener over hurdles. Masters Hill won over the smaller obstacles on his return but may lack the chasing experience for a race like this.
Formwatch

Aiteen Thirtythree (IRE) 11-2fav (11-10) Mid-division, headway 12th, chased leaders 5 out, soon pushed along, weakened before 3 out, 10th of 15, 34l behind Calgary Bay (11-11) at Doncaster 3m listed hcp chs (1) gs in Jan '12.

Poungach (FR) 11-8 (11-7) Made all, not fluent 7th, hit 4 out and ridden along, pushed clear from 3 out, blundered last, driven out and stayed on well, won at Kempton 3m nov chs (3) gs in Mar beating Malt Master (11-7) by 5l, 3 ran.

Billie Magern 20-1 (11-0) Prominent, ridden after 4 out, stayed on same pace from last, 4th of 11, 4l behind The Disengager (11-12) at Newton Abbot 2m 5f listed hcp chs (1) gd in Aug.

Pantxoa (FR) 7-2fav (11-8) Led, jumped right, not fluent 3rd, blundered badly 3 out, headed last, stayed on, no impression on winner, 2nd of 9, 4 1/2l behind Twirling Magnet (11-8) at Cheltenham 3m nov chs (2) gd in Oct.

Masters Hill (IRE) 5-4fav (10-11) In touch, headway to 3rd at 5th, left 2nd next, challenged from 3 out, led before last, stayed on well to go clear flat, won at Exeter 2m 7f am nov hdl (4) gs in Oct beating Lumpys Gold (11-4) by 5l, 12 ran.

Ballyoliver 8-1 (10-10) Held up in 5th, mistake 14th, ridden 16th, headway after 3 out, led before next, headed approaching last, stayed on same pace, no impression on winner flat, 2nd of 9, 10l behind Life Of A Luso (10-1) at Cheltenham 3m 1f hcp chs 0-150 (2) sft in Apr.

Court By Surprise (IRE) 11-4fav (10-8) Chased leaders, went 2nd 13th, led before 5 out, 1 length ahead last, no extra and headed final 75 yards, lost 2nd close home, 3rd of 14, 3/4l behind Al Co (11-0) at Chepstow 3m hcp chs 0-150 (2) gd in Oct.

Alvarado (IRE) 16-1 (10-8) Towards rear, headway on inside 3 out, left 5th at the last, kept on same pace and no impression flat, 5th of 14, 3l behind Al Co (11-0) at Chepstow 3m hcp chs 0-150 (2) gd in Oct.

Owen Glendower (IRE) 50-1 (11-9) Held up in rear, effort before 4 out, never dangerous, 5th of 8, 7l behind Grandads Horse (11-12) at Wetherby 2m 4f hcp chs 0-135 (3) gs in Oct.

Ballyallia Man (IRE) 6-1 (10-12) Led, mistake 7th, ridden and headed before 2 out, lost 2nd 2 out, kept on same pace and no impression in 3rd, 3rd of 7, 23l behind Southfield Theatre (11-7) at Wincanton 2m 6f nh nov hdl (4) gd in Oct.

De La Bech 6-4fav (10-12) Led until 5th, prominent, not fluent 9th, challenged 4 out, led 2 out, all out, won at Exeter 3m nov chs 0-125 (4) gd in Mar beating Big News (10-7) by 1l, 6 ran.

Alfie Spinner (IRE) 14-1 (10-8) Mid-division, lost place and towards rear 6th, never on terms after, 10th of 14, 33l behind Al Co (11-0) at Chepstow 3m hcp chs 0-150 (2) gd in Oct.

Lamboro Lad (IRE) 3-1 (11-2) Tracked leader, every chance after 3 out, soon hard ridden, weakened before last, 2nd of 4, 9l behind Hazy Tom (11-12) at Bangor 2m 4f hcp chs 0-140 (3) sft in Oct.

Standing Ovation (IRE) 5-1 (10-0) Tracked leading pair, went 2nd 5th(water), led after 18th, joined and strongly pressed from 3 out, stayed on to assert flat, won at Wincanton 3m 3f hcp chs 0-140 (3) gd in Oct beating Highland Lodge (11-12) by 1 3/4l, 12 ran.