ED HUNTER!
King’s rising star can chase down hot favourite Energumene
EDWARDSTONE is the value call against hotpot Energumene in the Grade 1 Albert Bartlett Clarence House Chase (1.20) at Cheltenham this afternoon.
Energumene, memorably denied by Shishkin in a thriller for this race 12 months ago, was a hot favourite to go one better before Ascot’s fixture was claimed by the frost last Saturday.
But second choice Edwardstone will be no pushover. Alan King’s (right) nine-year-old put together a five-strong sequence over fences last season, culminating in a four-and-a-quarterlength supremacy in the Arkle Challenge Trophy at Cheltenham last March.
Edwardstone took another step forward with a nine-length call in the top-level Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown at the start of December.
Forgive his early unseat in the Grade 2 Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton over Christmas, and Tom Cannon’s mount has every chance of serving it up to Willie Mullins’ market leader.
Cannon is taken to double up aboard YOUR DARLING in the Paddy Power Cheltenham Countdown Podcast Handicap
Chase (1.50).
Ben Pauling hasn’t looked back since moving to his state-of-the-art Naunton Downs base a dozen miles from the home of National Hunt racing, and Your Darling made his contribution with a reappearance score at Ascot in November.
A step up to three miles proved beyond the eight-year-old son of Shirocco at Kempton in December, but Your Darling still has more to give. PAISLEY PARK looks a worthy favourite to gain a fourth consecutive victory in the Grade 2 Dahlbury Stallions At Chapel Stud Cleeve Hurdle (3.00).
Emma Lavelle’s evergreen 11-year-old made a stirring return to action when going under by a neck to Champ in Newbury’s Grade 2 Long Distance Hurdle in November.
And he went one better in style in the
Long Walk Hurdle, re-routed from Ascot to Kempton, on Boxing Day.
Success looked unlikely when Aidan Coleman became agitated on the run to the third-last flight. But Paisley Park stormed home to humble Goshen by four and a quarter lengths and capture the three-miler for the third time.
The Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle (3.35) presents PEMBROKE with the perfect opportunity to rack up a hat-trick.
Dan Skelton’s six-year-old followed a six-length call at Wetherby on his penultimate start with a 16-length margin at Ludlow five days before Christmas. More is required for this step up to Grade 2 company but Pembroke is a long way from the bottom of the barrel and should go in again.