RACING LEOPARDSTOWN PREVIEW:THE HENNESSY Gold Cup might be a €200,000 centrepiece at Leopardstown tomorrow, while the Deloitte Novice Hurdle is the least valuable of the card's three Grade One's, but for many the clash of the Willie Mullins-trained stars, Hurricane Fly and Cousin Vinny, will be the principal focus.
Both horses currently dominate ante-post betting for Cheltenham’s Supreme Novices’ Hurdle next month and are the two banner names among a vintage crop of young hurdlers at the Mullins yard.
They line up tomorrow against three others, including another hugely-promising horse in Pandorama. He is on a retrieval mission after being beaten by another star Mullins novice, Mikael D’Haguenet, last December but Pandorama was found to be lame afterwards.
Tomorrow’s race will be hugely informative to his trainer, Noel Meade, but Meade’s big rival in the Irish trainers table admitted yesterday a pre-festival clash between Hurricane Fly and Cousin Vinny doesn’t fit in with his ideal plans. “It’s not what I had hoped for but it’s just the way things have gonen,” Willie Mullins said yesterday.
“I don’t think the ground will be a problem. They would both prefer it nicer but both have won on it before so it shouldn’t be a major problem,” added Mullins.
Hurricane Fly already has a Grade One victory over Cousin Vinny to his credit last November in the Royal Bond when Paul Townend was on board and Patrick Mullins kept the ride on Cousin Vinny on his hurdling debut.
The riding arrangements remain the same now despite Ruby Walsh’s availability and Mullins added: “Paul has got on very well with Hurricane Fly this season and the horse has raced nicely for him.
“I’m happy for him ride this time.”
Cousin Vinny has won twice since the Royal Bond and will get even more valuable experience this weekend. But Hurricane Fly looked an outstanding prospect when scoring at Christmas and could still be ahead of his stable-mate.
Ground conditions are also on Paul Nicholls’s mind ahead of Neptune Collonges’s attempt on the Hennessy.
Despite a week’s postponement due to snow, Neptune Collonges dominates the betting alongside his fellow British-trained runner, The Listener, who tries to retain his Hennessy crown.
“I just wish for him to be at his best the ground wasn’t so soft but we can’t do anything about it,” Nicholls said yesterday.
In contrast it will be a case of the softer the better for the main home hope, Notre Pere, while Thyne Again’s first racecourse attempt at three miles will be of some interest.
Nevertheless, it’s hard to escape the conclusion that this will emerge as a battle of the raiders and based on his Punchestown record, and Cheltenham Gold Cup third, Neptune Collonges at his best should be capable of landing the odds.
The hierarchy of Ireland’s novices in the staying chase division will be considerably clearer after the Dr PJ Moriarty Novice Chase in which Trafford Lad bids to regain the winning thread after a Christmas defeat and Cooldine steps up in trip after finishing third in the Durkan New Homes Novice Chase.
Throw in Forpadydeplasterer and Tranquil Sea and it looks a hugely competitive heat.
Tranquil Sea was backed to win the Drinmore in November only to finish 35 lengths behind Trafford Lad.
Nothing specific came to light to explain such a lacklustre performance, but in hindsight Edward O’Grady believes the horse wasn’t quite as exuberant as usual in the preliminaries that day.
On his Grade One-winning hurdling form Tranquil Sea looks just about the best of these and with the O’Grady team in outstanding form he could be worth another shout.
The colourful Monaghan trainer Oliver Brady believes Ebadiyan could be the horse to win him the Triumph Hurdle next month and victory for the ex-John Oxx-trained horse in the Grade Two Juvenile Hurdle will only encourage such hopes.
Rare Commodity didn’t finish far off Wave Power here at Christmas and may be worth checking out in the bumper.
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