RACING NEWS ROUND-UP:GRANDS CRUS might be one of the festival hotpots at Cheltenham in three weeks time, but First Lieutenant is on course to defend Ireland's sparkling recent record in the RSA Chase.
Irish-trained runners have won the last three renewals of the novice staying crown – Cooldine, Weapons Amnesty and Bostons Angel – and First Lieutenant will attempt to score at the festival for the second year running.
The 2011 Neptune winner is stepping into the Gigginstown Stud breach for the RSA on the back of Last Instalment’s injury which has ruled him out for the season.
Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown team have dominated the major staying races in the novice division in Ireland this season with Last Instalment landing the Fort Leney and the Moriarty and Bog Warrior successful in the Drinmore.
Sir Des Champs has also won a couple of Grade Two prizes, but bookmakers reckon First Lieutenant is the main Irish hope for the RSA and rate him a general 8 to 1 third favourite behind Grands Crus who is as low as 6 to 4 and still has the option of going for the Gold Cup instead.
First Lieutenant bounced back from being pulled up in the Drinmore to finish runner-up to Last Instalment in the Fort Leney over Christmas. On both occasions he was the pick of Gigginstown’s number one jockey Davy Russell.
“Everything is A1 so far with him and the RSA remains the plan,” Mouse Morris said yesterday before ruling out the Jewson as a realistic alternative for his stable star.
Morris, famously a Gold Cup winner for Gigginstown with War Of Attrition six years ago, also intends giving China Rock another crack at chasing’s blue-riband after being pulled up in the Gold Cup last year.
China Rock has run twice since returning from injury this season and faded in the closing stages of the Hennessy earlier this month behind Quel Esprit.
“I was disappointed on the day with the way he didn’t get home, but he scoped badly afterwards. He’s getting treated and should be grand so we’re aiming at Cheltenham again. He must have a place chance the way they keep beating each other,” Morris said yesterday.
His other festival starter may be Kicking King’s brother, Four Commanders, runner-up to the 50 to 1 shock winner Lion Na Bearnai in Sunday’s Ten Up Chase at Navan. “He had a hard race, but seems fine after it and he could be a good ride for someone in the four-miler (National Hunt Chase) at Cheltenham,” Morris added.
Another potential RSA rival for Grands Crus is last weekend’s Ascot winner Invictus who is being aimed at the festival by trainer Alan King. “I have loved Invictus from day one, and we put a line through his Dipper Chase disappointment at Cheltenham’s New Year meeting as he never travelled that day and came back very sore, having lost a shoe early on,” King said yesterday.
“Invictus is a brilliant jumper and you can see 10 strides before he gets to a fence where he is going. He has got more gears than you normally associate with a three-miler and is definitely not slow, and, while Grands Crus will be the one we all have to beat if he goes for the RSA, our fellow has earned the right to his place in the field.
“We saw the real Invictus again at Ascot, and he does seem to enjoy that good ground. We knew that the Dipper was not him as he was so professional at Plumpton, and he has bounced back in style,” he added.
Due to his win at Plumpton earlier this season his connections would benefit from a £60,000 (€71,700) bonus were he to win at the festival.
