Paisley Park eyes Ascot double
● Lavelle’s star will head a field of six as he bids to land Marsh Hurdle for second year in a row
Paisley Park will face a maximum of five rivals when he bids for back-to-back victories in the Marsh Hurdle at Ascot.
Emma Lavelle’s stable star dominated the staying hurdling division last season – winning each of his five starts, including this Grade One contest, better known as the Long Walk, as well as the Stayers’ Hurdle at the cheltenham festival in March.
Having made a successful reappearance in the Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury last month, the Andrew Gemmellowned seven-year-old will be a long odds-on favourite on Saturday to stretch his winning run to seven on his return to Berkshire.
Perhaps the most notable absentee from yesterday’s confirmations is the Harry Frytrained If The Cap Fits.
The Milan gelding got the better of subsequent International
Hurdle hero Call Me Lord, in a thrilling renewal of the Coral Hurdle at Ascot last month, and looked set for a mouth-watering clash with Paisley Park this weekend.
However, fry feels his charge is not yet ready for another race. He said: “He’s fine – it’s just come too soon for him.
“We’ll see how he is in the next week or so. He is entered at Leopardstown the following Saturday (Leopardstown Christmas Hurdle, 28 December). If he’s not ready for that we’ll just have to wait for the Cleeve Hurdle at Cheltenham at the end of January.”
Also missing from the confirmations is Colin Tizzard’s 2015 Long Walk hero Thistlecrack. The 11-year-old finished runner-up to Paisley Park at Newbury, but now looks set to revert to fences for the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.
Tom George’s The Worlds End could renew rivalry with Paisley Park, having finished third in the Long Distance Hurdle. The other contenders are the Nick Williams-trained Agrapart, Nicky Henderson’s L’ami Serge, Debra Hamer’s Tobefair and Oliver Sherwood’s mare Papagana.
Meanwhile, big iron on hi ship is likely to have his next outing in the Eider Chase at Newcastle on 22 February. The eightyear-old provided a rejuvenated Rose Dobbin with a big win in the Borders National at Kelso under Craig Nichol recently.
The victory meant even more to Dobbin as the race had been sponsored by her father’s Persimmon Homes company for years, and Bigirononhiship sported his pink and black silks.
“We’re thinking of the Eider, obviously, and in all likelihood we’ll probably just wait for that now,” said Dobbin. “He doesn’t have to have heavy ground and if it was safe you could think about the Scottish National. I don’t think he’s ground dependent. What was wonderful was the rhythm he got into and the way he jumped, it was lovely to watch.
“I’m hoping the handicapper won’t go too mad, maybe seven or eight pounds. That takes him to 130 and that would be fair enough thinking of the Eider and then if he wins that, does the National come into it?
“He doesn’t have a huge amount of experience and whether this season might be one too soon, I don’t know, but the way he’s going you’d hope one day he’d end up in it.”
She added :“it meant so much to win that race for mum and dad at Kelso, it was quite emotional.”