GLENLOE’S FLYING HIGH
McManus handicapper can end six-year winless run
The final day of the Punchestown Festival and the final day of the 2021/22 Irish Jump racing season.
The coronation of Willie Mullins as champion trainer for the 16th time will be marked today, as will the crowning of Paul Townend as champion jockey for the fifth occasion.
The pair have simply dominated the week here with Grade One after Grade One and there’s every chance they’ll pick up another before the day is out.
VAUBAN (5.00) was one of the most impressive winners of the week at Cheltenham and can continue the remarkable run of Mullins and Townend here this week with horses that also won in the Cotswolds.
Terrific
The Rich Ricci-owned gelding showed terrific gears to win the Triumph Hurdle and should confirm placings with Gordon Elliott’s Fil Dor — who was disqualified after a dead-heating at Aintree two weeks ago.
The 3m7f Colm Quinn BMW Handicap Chase is one of the longest races on the Irish jumping calendar — second only to Thursday’s La Touche in length.
GLENLOE (3.10) is a horse that has threatened to be an above-average handicapper at times and he takes the eye off a low weight for Gordon Elliott and JP McManus.
He’s amazingly gone six years without a win but has run some excellent races behind the likes of Grand National winner Minella Times and was even beaten just a nose by Delta Work in the 2018 Pertemps at Cheltenham.
He showed some old spark at Fairyhouse recently and the booking of Jack Kennedy is another positive as the Kerryman is riding very well at the moment.
It could be a good day for JP McManus as the surprising appearance of EPATANTE (3.50) in the Mare’s Champion Hurdle should reap dividends.
She swerved another battle
with Honeysuckle in yesterday’s Paddy Power Champion Hurdle in favour of this and it might prove a shrewd move by trainer Nicky Henderson.
She’s a former Champion Hurdle winner at Cheltenham herself and looked in good nick when winning the Aintree Hurdle earlier this month.
Classy
It’s not easy beating Willie Mullins here in a Grade One — even more so in a mares’ contest — but Epatante is a classy horse and might just prove too good for Mullins’ Stormy Ireland and Henry De Bromhead’s Tell me somethin girl.
Dermot McLoughlin is still basking in the glow of his Irish Grand National success and has become something of a dab hand at winning big handicap chases.
He sends out WA WA (4.25) with a bit of a chance in the Palmerstown House Pat Taaffe Handicap Chase — and a return to the form which saw him finish 11 lengths fourth to Conflated at Navan in December would give him a life. The booking of Brian Cooper takes the eye and he possibly found the ground too deep when disappointing at Navan last month. Cooper has also picked up a nice spare on Mullins’ LA PRIMA DONNA (5.30) in the €100,000 Tote Always SP Or Better Handicap Hurdle.
Mullins has won this with an outsider for the last four seasons in a row and she ran a cracker to finish runner-up to Glan at Fairyhouse last week in a similar big field handicap.
The opening Dooley Insurance Group Cross Country Chase sees a number of old favourites line-up but Jim Dreaper’s MITCHOUKA (2.35) is a speculative each-way bet following an encouraging run at Cheltenham.
Faded
He travelled well for a long period of time and only faded in the home straight when fifth to Delta Work and his rating of 140 gives him many pounds in hand here on several rivals.
Shady Operator missed the La Touche due to a traffic jam on the M7 motorway on Thursday.
He should be suited to the ground but Mitchouka was a better horse than him over regular fences and gets 4lbs off him here too.
Dreaper also runs Tech Talk, who ran very well here on Tuesday in the Ladies Cup, and he also has an each-way squeak.