Teal aims to put Wind up Festival Goliaths

Trainer’s four-year-old bargain has ‘live chance’ against Mullins et al, he tells Marcus Armytage

Roger Teal is no stranger to trying to shake up the established order. Two years ago, Saxon Warrior, trained by Aidan O’brien, was the only horse to finish in front of his 50-1 shot Tip To Win in the 2,000 Guineas.

Teal is predominantly a Flat trainer and, remarkably for a handler of 35 Flat horses, he is on the Classic trail again this spring with the unbeaten Kenzai Warrior.

He has just six jumps horses and will represent the “small man” against the mighty yards of Mullins, Henderson and Elliott, the Goliaths of Cheltenham, when

Ocean Wind contests the Weatherbys Champion Bumper next Wednesday.

What is more, he is doing it from Windsor House, the Lambourn yard with a proven a track record at the Festival, and where Nicky Henderson started out before moving to Seven Barrows. For those who believe in lucky yards, there is a plaque on the wall honouring See You Then’s achievements as a three-time Champion Hurdle winner.

Unlike the big price for Tip To Win, you will not get better odds than 14-1 about the four-year-old Ocean Wind, who originally cost his owners £9,000 last July. He has since won two of his three starts and bolted up by eight lengths at Newbury last time.

“He was originally a Godolphin horse, but did a suspensory ligament at two, hence he went to the sales,” explained the trainer yesterday. “He came to us in October and he worked nicely on the all-weather.

“We took him to Huntingdon for his first start, it rained a lot and [ jockey] Aidan Coleman came out and said it was proper soft ground, which we weren’t sure if he’d handle. Nicky Henderson had the

‘Small man’ aims big: Roger Teal runs 14-1 Ocean Wind in the Champion Bumper

favourite, Karl Burke’s had been backed overnight and when I told Nick Littmoden I couldn’t have chosen a hotter bumper if I’d tried, he said he fancied his, too.

“I told him Ocean Wind was probably more of a Flat horse, but he duly obliged and Nick came up afterwards and said, ‘Some Flat horse!’

“His dam was a Brazilian Group One winner, but John Ferguson trained his half-brother Three Kingdoms to win seven times over jumps.

“He’s one of those horses who does not do much until you cop hold of him, then he really quickens. He was still green when he got beaten [a neck] at Cheltenham second time out, but he really hit the line running.”

It will not be Teal’s first Cheltenham runner. He ran Alph in the 2009 Champion Hurdle for a “bit of fun”. The 250-1 shot did not disgrace himself, finishing 16th of 23 behind Punjabi. Ocean Wind, however, is going for a bit more than just fun.

“He has a live chance,” Teal said. “He has gone on tacky ground, but any ‘good’ in the going description would help.”