Champion Hurdle Update

28 December 2009

So the dream is still alive. Where Punjabi’s 2008-9 WBX.COM £1 million bonus challenge foundered at the second leg when he fell two from home in Kempton’s Christmas Hurdle, Irish-trained Go Native came through that tricky part of the treble on Saturday – but only just.

With regular rider Paul Carberry again reduced to a supervisory role as his alcohol suspension nears its end – let’s hope he avoided the champagne in the Kempton winning connections room afterwards – Davy Condon did the steering.

And as ever with a Noel Meade Christmas Kempton challenger, much in the Harchibald mode – Go Native came running away between the last two flights, but either idled or tired a shade near the line.

Whatever the answer to that conundrum, Go Native kept going well enough to hold a surprisingly robust late challenge from Starluck by a short head, with Binocular just over a length away third.

Now to the big one and where Punjabi came from Kempton via Wincanton to beat Celestial Halo and Binocular in the Champion itself leaving connections to rue that fall, Go Native is in line for the main event.

So from where can Meade and Carberry expect the main dangers to emerge? Well tomorrow at Leopardstown should tell us plenty. If Solwhit wins the Festival Hurdle there he would step up as the principal contender, even if he was disappointing in the slowly-run WBX.COM Fighting Fifth at Newcastle.

Binocular certainly got nearer to Go Native at Kempton if still exhibiting signs of mid-race sluggishness, not helped by a major mistake at halfway. So Solwhit, third at Newcastle, will be expected by trainer Charles Byrnes to be more effective with a better gallop this time.

But a real potential threat lurks in the shape of Voler la Vedette, a five-year-old King’s Theatre mare trained by Colm Murphy, Brave Inca’s handler. Murphy certainly knows how to win a Champion Hurdle and Voler la Vedette, with six wins in eight career starts and four out of five over hurdles, is developing nicely.

A Punchestown Festival winner in the spring, she has emerged as a lively outsider in Champion Hurdle betting, hardly surprising in view of her comeback win early in November at Down Royal.

That day she was most impressive as she drew 13 lengths clear of – ahem – Go Native, who as usual travelled well, but was unable to peg back the Barry Geraghty-ridden winner.

As to the other dangers, it seems Hurricane Fly is out of the argument. Leaving such as Muirhead and Sublimity to re-state their claims in the event of neither Solwhit nor Voler la Vedette coming forward at Leopardstown.

Binocular’s trainer Nicky Henderson was encouraged by the Kempton effort, but the former short-price favourite for Cheltenham has been supplanted by stablemate Zaynar as market leader after two easy wins at longer trips. His credentials for two-mile championship honours might be examined at Sandown.

Meanwhile the reigning champ, our boy Punjabi, will be off to Ffos Las on Saturday week. Henderson told Raymond Tooth at Kempton that Punjabi will try to add the revived Welsh Champion Hurdle to his English and Irish versions, bemoaning the fact that the Scottish, as a handicap, cannot be a realistic target.

Last year it was all about whether Binocular would last up the Cheltenham hill. He managed it to a large degree. Now it will be a case of more of the same for Go Native. Last March he did it well enough to take the Supreme Novice despite having his lead cut down rapidly nearing the line by Medermit.

Carberry will be back on board for the big day. Having sweated time after time to judge Harchibald’s runs up the hill, nobody is better placed to know what’s needed. What he, Meade and owners the Docado syndicate will be hoping is that five years on, Go Native does not suffer the same frustration of Harchibald, who won both at Newcastle and Kempton before losing out by a neck to the tougher Hardy Eustace at Cheltenham.

Back