McManus gets ready to respond
JUMP racing’s Irish-born titans Willie Mullins and JP McManus are e x pected to figure strongly in the feature events at Cheltenham this afternoon when an unprecedented 40 Irish-based horses give the visiting contingent plenty to get excited about.
Festival specialist Mullins alone has 21 runners declared for this second session in the Cotswolds while McManus, the most lavish investor in the code by a country mile, also has a decent quota of a dozen participants based on either side of the Irish sea.
It was definitely advantage Mullins yesterday between the pair when a resurgent Annie Power brilliantly exorcised the ghost of Cheltenham 2015 in the Champion Hurdle at the main expense of the McManus - owned My Tent Or Yours.
Somewhat ironically it's two of JP’s English aces, More Of That, a course specialist hailing from Jonjo O’Neill’s local yard, andd the Alan King-trained, equally progressive Yanworth that could grab the headlines before Mullins takes the wraps off Queen Mother Champion Chase hotpot Un Dee Sceaux.
Mind you t here’s no doubting the Mullins intensity to make that McManus duo work to claim the RSA Chase, in which Don Poli justified favouritism for Mullins a year ago, and the Neptune Novices Hurdle with two and four hopefuls respectively.
Barry Geraghty, who is proving an inspired choice in succession to Tony McCoy as McManus’s principal rider, has been waxing lyrical for some time about More Of That’s smooth transition to the larger obstacles after missing out through injury on the entire season after they had landed the World Hurdle from a previously unbeaten Annie Power.
Thus there’s little doubt that the combination will start as favourite to follow up in the RSA Chase despite the obvious claims of Gordon Elliott’s No More Heroes plus fellow Michael O’Leary-owned Roi Des Francs which Ruby Walsh prefers to Shaneshill.
Four victories from as many outings at this unforgiving venue means More Of That sets the bar quite high, even if we’ve also seen No More Heroes proving a revelation since going over fences to be rated 4lb ahead by the official assessor and perhaps possessing a slightly better finishing kick.
Whatever his fate with Roi Des Francs and Shaneshill, Mullins can surely expect to be seriously competitive as well in the Neptune Hurdle as his hat-trick seekers A Toi Phil and Thomas Hobson along with multiple scorer Yorkhill have the combined talents to discover if Yanworth is the real deal after an impeccable j- umping campaign under Geraghty. The drying ground could help, rather than hinder, Alan King’s charge, according to Geraghty, after booking their passage in fine fashion over the course on trials day whereas the equally admirable Yorkhill and less exposed French import A Toi Phil have so far been at their best with plenty of ease underfoot. The going, however, won’t be any concern for the i- mperious Mullins-Walsh alliance when Un De Sceaux then bids to add the Queen Mother Champion Chase to last year’s romp to Arkle Trophy glory i- n the colours of Cork’s O’Connell family.
Backed up for the visiting fans by stable companion Felix Yonger and particularly Special Tiara which generally prospers in this sphere, Walsh’s front-running mount can replicate exactly what Douvan did yesterday for the Irish champion trainer by putting their nine opponents to the sword from the outset.
Although cross-country elite performer Balthazar King could prosper once more against nine Irish rivals for the Glenfarclas Chase, ante-post favourite Ballyandy and the rest of the home defence might be outshone by a ten-strong posse of our Champion Bumper runners with solitary mare Augusta Kate given the nod as the pick of seven Mullins-trained starters.