DOUBLE HANDFUL

IT’S always a fun time to go racing at this time of the year.

People are still in a good mood and they still have some money left.

If you put those two factors together you invariably end up with the bookies taking more cash than the fancy dress shop nearest to wherever they play the darts.

The best race anywhere today is undoubtedly the Grade One Savills Chase at Leopardstown.

I’m disappointed stablemates Al Boum Photo and

KEMBOY won’t be taking each other on, last year’s Gold Cup winner versus the winner of this race last year.

Willie Mullins has decided to run Al Boum Photo elsewhere, meaning the horses who came first and second in the Punchestown Gold Cup in May won’t be renewing rivalries.

This leads me to believe that the Mullins camp firmly believe Kemboy will win this race. But there’s still one hell of a field.

Irish Gold Cup winner Bellshill has been declared along with Pat Kelly’s Presenting Percy and the Noel Meade-trained Road To Respect. The latter won this race two years ago while last year’s Gold Cup favourite, Presenting Percy, could only manage third in the John Durkan Memorial Punchestown Chase earlier this month.

Henry de Bromhead has last year’s runner-up Monalee while Gordon Elliott will run Delta Work, who will have a bit to find after a disappointing fourth behind Road To Respect on his return to action at Down Royal.

When you look at the price of Anibale Fly at around 20s, you realise just how much quality there is in the field. Anibale Fly was runner-up in the Gold Cup and fifth in the Grand National!

For me, Kemboy is the most likely winner not only of this race but next year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup.

The one negative is the enforced absence from the track following a ban after some confusing syndicate registration misdemeanour.

The seven-year-old last raced in May so if he wins today I really would expect his price to take a tumble in the Gold Cup betting. My advice? Take a price before this race.