FEATURE SPOTLIGHT ON HORSES
FIVE TO FOLLOW Paul Nicholls and Nicky Henderson pick five of the best horses to follow over this coming season…
PAUL NICHOLLS
BRAVEMANSGAME “He ran a blinding race in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup last year. He was beaten by a very good horse (Galopin Des Champs) and there were no excuses. We think he got the trip. Possibly, if Harry (Cobden) rode the race again he might have ridden him with a bit more restraint, but the plan was to always ride him forward. “As a King George (VI Chase) winner we knew that he would run well in the Gold Cup, and so it proved. It was only in the last 50 yards that he ran out of petrol. He jumped brilliantly though, and we were delighted with him. “He had a good season in winning the King George at Kempton Park and the Charlie Hall at Wetherby and he ran very well in defeat at Punchestown. He is in good shape, but I don’t know where I’m going to start him. If the ground was decent it could well be the Betfair Chase at Haydock Park.
HERMES ALLEN “He had a wind operation over the summer and I’m hoping that will bring out some improvement. He will go novice chasing this season and is one that could run over anything between two-and-a-half miles and three miles. “At Cheltenham in the spring he could go over two-and- a-half miles for the Turners or three miles for the Brown Advisory, depending on the ground and what we do with some of the others. He is obviously a high-class horse. “It didn’t quite go to plan at Cheltenham or Aintree, but I think his breathing was troubling him from the start last season, hence why I put a tongue tie on him for his first run. “I think he appreciated running on good ground at the start of the season at Stratford and Cheltenham and that helped his breathing. He got the run of the race in the Challow Hurdle, plus he was the class horse in that race. He jumps nicely and he will be very interesting. “If Hermes Allen and Stay Away Fay ran in the same race I wouldn’t be able to split them I don’t think at this stage.”
“After the King George we will then make a plan whether we go straight to Cheltenham. “If he had a couple of runs this side of Christmas and a couple after Christmas that would probably suit him. “If he ran in four championship races with a chance in all of them you’d be happy with that.”
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