Sandown wins boost for Nicky

PLANS may have changed for Nicky Henderson during the week but he left Sandown on Saturday with two established Cheltenham Festival contenders.

Buveur D’Air had been novice chasing and held an entry in the Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase on the card, with his engagement in the Contenders Hurdle thought to be no more than a back up given Henderson had aimed Brain Power at the race and owner JP McManus had Yanworth in the mix.

However, connections decided to do an about turn, with Buveur D’Air being aimed at the Champion Hurdle and, when Yanworth suffered a setback, Henderson’s runner stepped into the Sandown breach.

Quite what we learned after he breezed past Rayvin Black with Barry Geraghty barely moving a muscle is hard to say but he has certainly breathed life into what was a stagnant ante-post market.

Henderson decided against running Brain Power at the last minute and he will instead head straight to Cheltenham.

He said: “We didn’t learn a lot, I just think at this stage of his life he might just be a sharper hurdler than chaser. Barry Geraghty said he can make a length or two over hurdles with him but not so over fences. He is very quick, slick and pacey.

Top Notch was a relatively unconsidered 20-1 chance for the JLT Novices’ Chase at the Festival prior to his very impressive display in the Scilly Isles.

All five runners still had a chance approaching the Pond Fence but Top Notch was not extended in beating the admirable Baron Alco by five lengths and is now around 8-1 for the JLT. “I’d say the JLT is what we’ve got to go to,” said Henderson. “It just gives him that little bit more time with his jumping. He is a bit more than a racehorse, dare I say it, he is more of a pet.

“He was a very good hurdler in his own right but he looks to be a better chaser now, which we never dreamt of.”

Alan King has not ruled out a crack at the Triumph Hurdle with Coeur De Lion who held off Henderson’s Rather Be in the opener. “He might run in the Triumph. I’ve got to split them up somehow and we have to run something in the Triumph. I’m not ruling it out,” said King.

Otago Trail paid a huge compliment to Bristol De Mai when winning the Masters Chase, having not been able to lay a glove on the grey previously at Haydock. The Grand National could beckon for him.

Trainer Venetia Williams said of the 4-1 chance: “The Masters Chase is a race that we’ve won before and it is always a nice race to come to when you have the soft ground and others are focusing on Cheltenham.”

Baywing defied his long odds to run out a clear-cut winner of the totepool Towton Novices’ Chase at Wetherby.

Trained by Nicky Richards, the eight-year-old had only had one previous run over fences, when beaten a long way, so his 33-1 starting price was not too surprising in the Grade Two.

Baywing, giving Ryan Day the biggest success of his career, came home 22 lengths clear of Calett Mad.

“The key to his horse is the ground as he’s got to have plenty of dig,” said Richards.

“We might have a think about a four-miler as long as the ground was soft enough.