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JNwine.com Champion Chase |
Competitive JN Wine Chase Could Provide Early Gold Cup Pointers
04/11/11
Despite no Kauto Star this year, the GradeOne JN Wine Chase over 3 miles at Down Royal on Saturday has attracted a top quality field, with two Cheltenham Festival champions, Sizing Europe and Bostons Angel both declared, as well as a host of other chasers with big ambitions for the season.
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The favourite for the race is Quito De La Roque, who has won five of his last six chases, including a 14 length victory in the Grade One Champion Novice Chase at Punchestown in May. The Colm Murphy trained seven year old is a 5/2 chance with MansionBet and is just ahead in the market of Bostons Angel, who's chalked up at 7/2, the only horse to have beaten Quito De La Roque over the bigger obstacles!
Bostons Angel is trained by Jessie Harrington and won the Grade 1 RSA Chase at the Cheltenham Festival last season, after claiming two Grade 1s in the two months leading up to the Festival. He is a highly regarded seven year old, who has the potential to be a major player this season on both sides of the Irish Sea now stepping up from novice company. A win here would shorten his odds considerably for the Cheltenham Gold Cup next March and signal him as one of Ireland's leading hopes for the season.
One other entry on Saturday who could also contest the notion of Ireland's best chaser is Champion Chase winner, Sizing Europe, who will be running in this race for the second year in succession. He certainly ran well last year but had to be content in finishing 4 lengths behind the winner, Kauto Star. There were many detractors who believed then as they do now that he doesn’t get a three mile trip but his trainer, Henry De Bromhead insists that he does and should he prove correct, then Sizing Europe would be another leading player for the 2012 Cheltenham Gold Cup next March.
Despite the absence of Kauto Star this year, Paul Nicholls will be represented by The Nightingale, who will be returning to the track after a ten month lay-off due to a fibrillating heart, very similar to that from which his stablemate, Denman, suffered a couple of seasons ago. The Nightingale won the Grade Two Ladbrokes Chase on this card last season and the hope is now that he can pick up from that and run a big race in this.
The other major raider from across the Irish Sea is the highly regarded Midnight Chase, who is trained by Neil Mulholland. This nine year old won three of his four starts last season and finished a very creditable fifth in the Cheltenham Gold Cup behind Long Run back in March and it would be no suprise to see him run a big race at the Northern Ireland track.
Of the rest, Roi Du Mee trained by Gordon Elliott is an improving sort and at only six year old he would seem to have a big future ahead of him. He has already won at Grade 3 level over chases and also has claimed a Grade 2 Novice Chase. He will probably have too much to do to win what looks a highly competitive race and one which should go some way in establishing who may be capable of challenging Long Run for his Cheltenham crown.
