Following the Dublin Racing Festival there’s a touch of after the Lord Mayor’s show about this weekend’s action, although one big name in the spotlight is popular veteran Minella Indo.
The 2021 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner proved he’s no back number with an admirable third to I Am Maximus in last season’s Grand National and is set to have a first start over flights in almost six years at Navan on Sunday.
Henry de Bromhead’s stalwart is one of seven due to line up in the Grade Two William Hill Boyne Hurdle.
Tiger Roll won the race in 2019 en route to more National glory at Aintree and De Bromhead will hope for a similar long-term outcome in Liverpool come April. Minella Indo is currently a 50-1 outsider for the world’s most famous steeplechase.
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De Bromhead’s shorter-term ambitions, though, will be to see signs of a resurgence in stable form this weekend. He has a single runner at Naas on Saturday and “Indo” is one of three hopefuls at Naas.
Having been in superb form up to Christmas, there has been a notable fall in the De Bromhead team’s form since. A less than five per cent strike rate in the last three weeks has been well below normal, although encouragingly Special Cadeau did win at Thurles on Thursday.
“The last month has been frustrating, but you get runs like that and we’ve had them before. You’d prefer to see them running a bit better, but we feel we’re on top of it. You stick to your processes and tweak little things here and there,” said the Co Waterford trainer.
“We’d put away quite a lot of our horses after Christmas and there’s a good few back cantering and strengthening up to get them back as fresh and well as possible.
“We’ve had it before but I’m not sure to this degree. You can see the horses come back into form at home and hopefully it’ll turn around in the next couple of weeks. Up until Christmas, we had a great run and it’s slightly more exaggerated now, I suppose,” he added.
Rachael Blackmore is back aboard Indo who hasn’t been seen in action since chasing home French Dynamite at Punchestown in October.
Testing conditions at Navan may not be ideal for him, whereas they could be for 2022 winner Thedevilscoachman. He showed some spark at Gowran last month when runner-up to Rocky’s Diamond in the Galmoy.
Sunday’s other Grade Two is the novice chase widely known as the Ten Up, where Gordon Elliott has three of the five runners. He is pursuing a fourth win in five years.
Not surprisingly Sam Ewing has opted for Better Days Ahead, narrowly beaten by stable companion Croke Park in a Leopardstown Grade One over Christmas. He can cement his place in next month’s Brown Advisory at Cheltenham for which he’s a general 8-1 shot.
Willie Mullins also has just three runners at Navan including the bumper newcomer Copacobana. Burrows Drive has a run under his belt, though, and that third to Sixandahalf and Colcannon last season reads even better after the latter’s recent DRF success.
Mullins has two of the three runners in Saturday’s black-type highlight at Naas, the Listed BBA Opera Hat Chase, where last year’s winner Allegorie De Vassy takes on her stable companion Dinoblue.
The latter is up against it on official ratings but is a proven Grade One winner at two miles, so this trip could tip it Dinoblue’s way.
In contrast the concluding Hunters' Chase is likely to be a real stamina test on arduous ground which should be good news for last year’s winner Its On The Line.
Derek O’Connor is back on board the Emmet Mullins’s runner whose only defeat in the Hunter sphere last season came at Cheltenham. Subsequent victories at Aintree and Punchestown were impressive and Its On The Line is a general 5-2 favourite to set the record straight at Cheltenham next month.
His return to action at Down Royal over Christmas saw him running on late to finish runner-up to Big Interest who’s also in Saturday’s line-up. The going will be considerably more testing this time and O’Connor’s presence is always a plus.
Saturday’s bumper sees the racecourse debut of Apple’s Jade’s first foal, named Apples Jane.
The four-year-old has mountain to climb to live up to her dam’s record. Apple’s Jade won 11 Grade One races when trained by both Mullins and Elliott during a 28-race career. Bective Stud paid €535,000 for her when carrying a first foal that now sets foot on a racecourse.
“She’s a bit like her mother, she’s not fancy at home but she’s very tough,” said Elliott. “She’s a good attitude and if she’s half as good as her mother, I’ll be happy.”
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