Silver can strike gold
A SPECTACULAR winner of the Christmas Hurdle 10 months ago, SILVER STREAK (3.15) can return triumphantly to the scene of his biggest career success by bagging the majority of the £40,000 on offer in the Unibet 3 Uniboosts A Day Hurdle at Kempton Park this afternoon.
One of the slickest hurdlers in the land, Evan Willliams’ eight-year-old followed that six-and-a-half length success with sixth place in both the Champion Hurdle and Aintree Hurdle.
That festive success took his winning timber tally to eight wins and his outstanding record when fresh allied to his superb hurdling technique and turn of foot on fast ground makes the selection a must in the day’s feature race.
The Alan King-trained Sceau Royal looks the biggest danger but the old boy may not have the speed to push the flying grey down the home stretch.
The rest of the card at the Sunbury-on-Thames track looks a cracker and should supply Paul Nicholls with a number of big plays, the best of which is his highly regarded TULIN (2.05) in the Listed novices’ hurdle. An easy winner of two events at Taunton in the spring, the youngster then blew out at Newton Abbot in May when perhaps racing too freely and not jumping as well as previously when soundly beaten by Trailboss.
With a 165-day break under his belt, he is expected to return to winning ways. But the best bet on the card could come in the form of newcomer
PAINLESS POTTER (1.00) in the opening juvenile hurdle.
The nap selection will be up against the hat-trick-seeking Impulsive One, winner of both of his starts by wide margins at Plumpton and Huntingdon, but those were weak races and the Nicky Henderson charge has a double penalty to contend with. Alan King’s charge was a fair performer on the flat up to a mile and a quarter and if he takes to hurdling, he looks huge value in receipt of 10lb from the likely odds-on favourite.
ISOLATE (1.30) can finally end of his run of frustrating placed efforts by landing the two-and-a-quarter mile handicap chase, while CARDBOARD GANGSTER (4.25) is taken to reverse recent form with Zafar in the lucky last. The first ‘National’ of the new season is the extended 3m5f Durham version at Sedgefield and this lung-bursting event can go to MONTANNA (3.30). Peter Bowen’s charge has been kept busy through the summer but looked in need of this kind of test when staying on nicely over three-and-a-quarter miles at Uttoxeter last month. The handicapper has kept him on the same 118 rating and he can prove too strong for Classic Escape and Hewick.