Buzz horse set to be the one at Ascot

Buzz looks the one to beat in what looks a red-hot Howden Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot on Saturday.

There is a chance at the end of the afternoon he is not even the best staying hurdler in his yard, but at the moment he looks the young gun on the up. Nicky Henderson also runs Champ, a top-class novice hurdler in his younger days, and On The Blind Side, who ran so well at Newbury last time out – but if Buzz is a genuine Stayers’ Hurdle candidate he has to go close in this.

Of course, with Paisley Park, a dual winner of this race, Thyme Hill, a narrow second in this last year and impressive at Aintree, the 2020 Stayers’ Hurdle winner Lisnagar Oscar and Irish raider Ronald Pump, this is a deep affair.

But if there is one horse who could still be a good deal better than we have seen to date it is Buzz.

He actually finished second in a handicap on this card last year to subsequent Fight- ing Fifth dead-heater Not So Sleepy and progressed to be second to Abacadabras at Aintree.

Since then he returned to the Flat to win the Cesarewitch over two-mile-two and then won the Ascot Hurdle over almost two and a half miles.

This is his first run over three and with the potential of it bringing out even more improvement, and with the ground in reasonable nick for the time of year he is difficult to oppose.

Having been given a little respite from the handicapper Cloth Cap can stamp his class on the Howden Silver Cup Chase.

Winner of last year’s Ladbrokes Trophy for Jonjo O’Neill, he was subsequently sent off favourite for the Grand National with an impressive win at Kelso in between.

Having travelled and jumped well for three-quarters of the race at Aintree, he ended up cutting out tamely although it emerged he was suffering with a breathing problem.

With that rectified he has run two very solid races in defeat this season. First time out at Cheltenhan he was entitled to get tired and then in defence of his Ladbrokes Trophy crown he just looked too high in the weights.

However, back down to a mark of 150, 6lb lower than his first run of the campaign, he looks the class act in this field.

The Greatwood Hurdle could prove the key to solving the Betfair Exchange Trophy with the winner West Cork, third No Ordinary Joe and the fifth Tritonic all meeting again. Given the first and third have gone up in the weights and Tritonic has been dropped, though, slight preference is for Alan King’s fiveyear-old.