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2016 Neptune Novices.

Could Bachasson be the forgotten novice hurdler, looked as good as anything early season, has now had a good rest so should be fresh if going to the fez, 25/1for this and 33's for the supreme at 365,
 
VIgil ?

Best of Irish in last years bumper and encouraging return at Christmas ?
 
MrMcGoldrick said:
Could Bachasson be the forgotten novice hurdler, looked as good as anything early season, has now had a good rest so should be fresh if going to the fez, 25/1for this and 33's for the supreme at 365,
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gets a mention in the super soarway sun

Yanworth first caught the eye when running on well in the Champion Bumper last season to finish fourth behind Moon Racer.

Since he’s gone over obstacles he’s become a different horse, initially being aimed for the Supreme, King surprised many people when mentioning the Neptune as an option.

He had looked all speed, and many ante-post backers where holding their heads in their hands at the thought of it.

Saturday was the real test, whether two and a half miles is his optimum trip was one question, but the heavy ground he encountered was another obstacle.

There should’ve been no doubts as he bolted in and the step up in trip proved a shrewd move by King as Yanworth settled far better than he had done and travelled powerfully throughout.

Although favourites don’t have the best record in the race, with only three of the last 11 winners have gone off favourite, he fits the trends and has the perfect profile of a Neptune winner.

The last 11 winners have been aged five or six, and Yanworth passes that test being a six-year-old.

Eight of the past 11 winners had won or finished second in all completed hurdle starts that season, Yanworth once again ticks the bill having won his four hurdle starts.

10 of the past 11 winners had run in three to six hurdle races that season, showing experience is vital, Yanworth has improved with every run and now has four runs under his belt.

Ten of the last 11 winners had also shown their quality before the Festival, finishing in the first two in a graded hurdle.

Yanworth has no worries there having already won two Grade two events this season.

He has all the qualities to be a Neptune winner and I would be surprised were he not to give Alan King a memorable day out at Cheltenham.

He looks 'the real deal'.

One horse who is worth considering each way is the Willie Mullins trained Bachasson.

The five-year-old was out early on in the season in July notching up four wins including a Grade three event. He then finished a close second to Long Dog before a disappointing run at Leopardstown over Christmas.

I wouldn’t judge him on his past two runs as he’s clearly a far better horse on good ground. He’s been put away since then and Mullins confirms he’s on course for the Neptune.

He’s 33-1 with Ladbrokes and I wouldn’t put anyone off backing him each way for the race, he will improve massively for the better ground we hopefully get in March.
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Long Dog is definitely one to keep an eye out for in Neptunes. Ricci gave an interview back in October/November time and he mentioned 3 of his horses to keep an eye on for the festival... Min (looking like it's the one to beat in the Supreme), Karalee (seems to be unheard of since this interview, i'll be keeping an eye out for this if it does run at the festival)... And finally Long Dog, as you said Aldie, it has beaten some good horses, including the likes of Bachasson and Tombstone in it's previous runs, @ 16's for the Neptunes, I think it's a cracking bet!!
 
who would have thought it. OV a Sun reader ;)

Entries

Neptune Investment Management Novices’ Hurdle
Grade 1, Total Prize Fund £120,000, Cheltenham, 1.30pm, Wednesday, March 16. Old Course, two miles and five furlongs (2m 5f
26yds). For novice four-year-olds and upwards. Weights: four-year-olds 10st 13lb; five-year-olds and upwards 11st 7lb. Allowances: fillies
& mares 7lb. Entries closed February 2, entries revealed, February 4 (78 entries), scratchings deadline February 23. Six-day confirmation
and £6,000 supplementary stage March 10. Final declaration stage 10am, Tuesday, March 15.
Horse Age Owner Trainer
A TOI PHIL (FR) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
ACAPELLA BOURGEOIS (FR) 6 Slaneyville Syndicate Sandra Hughes IRE
AFFAIRE D'HONNEUR (FR) 5 Holt Robinson Kronbauer Macnabb O'Connor Harry Whittington
ANIBALE FLY (FR) 6 J P McManus Tony Martin IRE
ARKWRISHT (FR) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
AU QUART DE TOUR (FR) 6 Susannah Ricci Willie Mullins IRE
BABBLING STREAM 5 John I O'Byrne Willie Mullins IRE
BACHASSON (FR) 5 E O'Connell Willie Mullins IRE
BADEN (FR) 5 Triermore Stud Nicky Henderson
BAILY CLOUD (IRE) 6 R A Scott Mouse Morris IRE
BALKO DES FLOS (FR) 5 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
BARTERS HILL (IRE) 6 Circle Of Friends Ben Pauling
BELLO CONTI (FR) 5 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
BELLSHILL (IRE) 6 Andrea & Graham Wylie Willie Mullins IRE
BLEU ET ROUGE (FR) 5 J P McManus Willie Mullins IRE
BLUE RAMBLER 6 Bloomfields John Ferguson
BUVEUR D'AIR (FR) 5 Potensis Bloodstock Ltd & Chris Giles Nicky Henderson
CHAIN GANG 5 Barry Connell Alan Fleming IRE
CHARBEL (IRE) 5 Julie and David Martin Kim Bailey
CONEY ISLAND (IRE) 5 J P McManus Edward Harty IRE
COTTERSROCK (IRE) 6 Stuart Baikie Martin Keighley
DONT TELL NO ONE (IRE) 8 B Gleeson Dermot Weld IRE
DUKE DES CHAMPS (IRE) 6 Diana Whateley & Tim Syder Philip Hobbs
FAGAN 6 Ronnie Bartlett Gordon Elliott IRE
FLYING ANGEL (IRE) 5 R J Rexton Nigel Twiston-Davies
GANGSTER (FR) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
GENERAL PRINCIPLE (IRE) 7 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
GHOST RIVER 6 John Andrews Peter Bowen
ITS'AFREEBEE (IRE) 6 Rebel Jumping Dan Skelton
JOT'EM DOWN (IRE) 5 Simon Hunt David Bridgwater
LABEL DES OBEAUX (FR) 5 David Sewell & Terry Warner Alan King
LAST ENCOUNTER (IRE) 6 Mary Mullins Mags Mullins IRE
LIMINI (IRE) 5 Susannah Ricci Willie Mullins IRE
LONG DOG 6 Susannah Ricci Willie Mullins IRE
MA DU FOU (FR) 6 Walters Plant Hire & James & Jean Potter Warren Greatrex
MAHLERS STAR (IRE) 6 Simon Hunt & Jack Hunt David Bridgwater
MIN (FR) 5 Susannah Ricci Willie Mullins IRE
MINELLA AWARDS (IRE) 5 Potensis Bloodstock Ltd & Chris Giles Nicky Henderson
MINELLA DADDY (IRE) 6 Roddy Owen & Paul Fullagar Peter Bowen
MODUS 6 J P McManus Paul Nicholls
MOON OVER GERMANY (IRE) 5 Philip J Reynolds Edward Harty IRE
MYSKA (IRE) 6 Supreme Horse Racing Club Willie Mullins IRE
MYSTICAL KNIGHT 7 J P McManus Rebecca Curtis
NAMBOUR (GER) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
NORTH HILL HARVEY 5 Mrs G Widdowson & Lizzie Kelvin-Hughes Dan Skelton
O O SEVEN (IRE) 6 Triermore Stud Nicky Henderson
OKOTOKS (IRE) 6 Malcolm Denmark Tony Martin IRE
OPEN EAGLE (IRE) 7 Supreme Horse Racing Club/Colin Gray Willie Mullins IRE
PENGLAI PAVILION (USA) 6 Bloomfields John Ferguson
PETER THE MAYO MAN (IRE) 6 Masterson Holdings Limited Neil Mulholland
PETIT MOUCHOIR (FR) 5 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
POLITOLOGUE (FR) 5 John Hales Paul Nicholls
PREMIER BOND 6 Middleham Park Racing XI Nicky Henderson
ROADIE JOE (IRE) 7 Billy Bates Evan Williams
ROMAN GOLD (IRE) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
SHANTOU VILLAGE (IRE) 6 Jane Gerard-Pearse Neil Mulholland
SOLSTICE STAR 6 E&G Racing Ltd Martin Keighley
SOUTHSEA ISLAND (IRE) 8 Roy Wilson Stuart Crawford IRE
STONE HARD (IRE) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Willie Mullins IRE
TARA FLOW 6 Kate & Andrew Brooks Venetia Williams
THEO'S CHARM (IRE) 6 Michael O'Shea Nick Gifford
THOMAS HOBSON 6 Susannah Ricci Willie Mullins IRE
THUMB STONE BLUES (IRE) 6 P O'Dwyer Shay Barry IRE
TOMBSTONE (IRE) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
TOWNSHEND (GER) 5 Susannah Ricci Willie Mullins IRE
TYCOON PRINCE (IRE) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
UP FOR REVIEW (IRE) 7 Andrea & Graham Wylie Willie Mullins IRE
VICTORY MILL (IRE) 6 Gigginstown House Stud Gordon Elliott IRE
VIGIL (IRE) 7 Noel Furlong Dermot Weld IRE
WADE HARPER (IRE) 6 Favourites Racing (Syndication) Ltd 4 David Dennis
WELSH SHADOW (IRE) 6 Walters Plant Hire Ltd Dan Skelton
WESTEND STAR (IRE) 7 Paul & Clare Rooney Gordon Elliott IRE
WHAT'S THE SCOOP (IRE) 6 Michael Buckley Nicky Henderson
WHISPERING STORM (GER) 6 Masterson Holdings Limited Paul Nicholls
WORK IN PROGRESS (IRE) 6 Donlon & Doyle Dan Skelton
YALA ENKI (FR) 6 Hills of Ledbury (Aga) Venetia Williams
YANWORTH 6 J P McManus Alan King
YORKHILL (IRE) 6 Andrea & Graham Wylie Willie Mullins IRE
78 entries
41 Irish-trained
 
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"Who would have thought it, OV a Sun reader"
There's that mischievous side again Mayo, :highly_amused:
 
I was googling Bachasson to see if there were any quotes about his target.


Honestly:sorrow::
 
Yanworth put in a good peformance the last time but i really can not bring myself to back it now at even money, before today at 5/2 yes he would be in a festival multiple but at even money i just can't, 3 favourites have won in the last 14 years from what i can see, he has the best form to date but i think something is there that can get past him, it's just unearthing it now, maybe after just 4 runs including todays win bleu Et Rouge could be one to improve past him up the hill, even a place at 8/1 would give a 2/1 winner which is better than evens...
 
Just watched the race again and ruby really didn't move a muscle once they turned the last bend, just before the bend he removed a set of goggles looked like he was going to get serious on him and push on but as soon as bleu et rouge cane upsides he just didn't respond, was they're any quotes taken from ruby or willie in the immediate aftermath or since..???
 
gjt7756 said:
Just watched the race again and ruby really didn't move a muscle once they turned the last bend, just before the bend he removed a set of goggles looked like he was going to get serious on him and push on but as soon as bleu et rouge cane upsides he just didn't respond, was they're any quotes taken from ruby or willie in the immediate aftermath or since..???
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Have to be careful with some of these results, Ruby said a few weeks ago that Willie would prefer to see his horses lose than to have a hard race on the run up to the festival
 
To be fair willie just gave a lovely interview with mick fitz on at the races and talked about the horses running today plus those due to run at the festival, he felt Bellshill was beaten to far out to be a true running, weill see if something is amiss in his scope tomorrow and will now spend the next 5 weeks getting him ready for Cheltenham, he advised that footpad goes for the triumph but felt lets dance would learn a lot from the run and come on again so could be a nice lay for the triumph as well
 
Video of Deloitte


Winner probably underestimated but not a clue where he will run.
 
There was a mention about Ma du Fou in the Racing Post today. 66/1 could tumble if he wins again easy.
 
Has there been anything about A Toi Phils target since this ?

Mullins said: "He's learning and maturing all the time. He was more like a racehorse today compared to his previous few runs.

"It was two and a half miles today, and I'd say he'd have no problem going out to three miles. He's a very accurate jumper and he'll be entered in all the novice hurdles at Cheltenham. He will probably go for either the Neptune or the Albert Bartlett.

"I doubt if he will run again before Cheltenham.

"I don't think he was broken in until he was four in France, so he's nearly more like a French three-year-old than a six-year-old. He's still immature."
 
I like the mullins horse yorkihill for this but again he won't get his target confirmed until the week of the festival
 
Not guaranteed to go Cheltenham...

MA DU FOU put up a gutsy display to deny North Hill Harvey and remain undefeated this season.

Prominent throughout in the six-runner contest, Ma Du Fou was challenged late on by the Dan Skelton-trained North Hill Harvey but made the 4lb he was receiving tell for trainer Warren Greatrex.

Sky Bet trimmed the winner to 33-1 from 50-1 for next month's Neptune Investment Management Novices' Hurdle, while the runner-up holds entries in both that race and the Supreme Novices' Hurdle at the Festival.

"He did it nicely," said Greatrex. "I've always thought a lot of him."

Not certain to go to Cheltenham

Despite victory Ma Du Fou is far from certain to take up his entry in the Neptune with Greatrex keen to nurture the six-year-old following a troublesome season 12 months ago.

"He won his bumper well at Wetherby but that last year was a non-event really, we couldn't get him right for one reason or another," said the trainer.

"This year. it was a case of getting his confidence up, so he won two smaller races and this was the next step to see what sort of level we're at.

"I'll speak to [owners] Mr Walters and Mr and Mrs Potter and discuss [Cheltenham]. He's in the Neptune and I think he'd be very competitive but whether mentally he's ready for it yet, I don't know.

"I can see him being very good over fences, his jumping is his biggest attribute. There's plenty of options after Cheltenham, there's Aintree and Punchestown, so I'd be cautious and mindful of not going to the well too soon."

'Plenty left' at the finish

Greatrex revealed jockey Gavin Sheehan had always been confident after the last flight and believes the son of Le Fou could be effective over shorter trips too.

"He's always been a very good jumper and I think he's probably versatile on trip," Greatrex said.

"I think you could drop him back too because he shows plenty of pace but he does stay as well.

"Gavin actually said most of the way round he was better with company, he was still fairly babyish, so going to the last he just wanted to make sure.

"He picked up lovely and was going away. Gavin said he had plenty left too, which is great."
 
Regarding Tycoon Prince, @GordonElliottRC says the horse has had a wind op. Touch and go whether he makes Cheltenham (Neptune).
 
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