I’ll be participating in a variety of races this weekend, some really experienced horses and some who need to get back to their best, as well as one very big name.
Three Rides at Haydock on Friday
Tomorrow I’m at Haydock, and we’ll be starting off with one that everyone will be looking out for in the 1:25 – Jonbon. A lot of people have been asking me recently to compare Jonbon and Constitution Hill ahead of their meeting at Cheltenham, but it’s not for me or anyone to compare them – the only person who can do that is Nicky Henderson. Tomorrow is his last race before Cheltenham and will be a stepping stone towards the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, so we’re looking forward to a very good race from him. His last two runs have been good, but he still has to go out there and do the business, so we’ll be expecting him to perform well tomorrow in preparation for Cheltenham.
We’ll see tomorrow what the lads want to do and whether we’ll hold him up or not, but what I do know is that we’ll be focused on riding our own race and won’t be concerned with what anyone else is doing.
My second ride of the day is Hunters Call in the 2:00. I’m looking forward to the race and for a horse at his age to run as well as he has this season is brilliant. That’s testament to Olly Murphy and his team as they have kept him running as well as ever at 12 years of age. Obviously, Tommy’s Oscar is the favourite and is definitely one to beat, but he’s never run a race at this calibre and Hunters Call is a seasoned pro, so it’ll be interesting to see how they go out on the track.
In the 2:35 I’m on Sam Brown and I’m really excited about it. I haven’t seen too much of him as he’s had his problems, but he’s won some nice races and he’s got a great run of form in the book, so I can see him running a real big race. He’s definitely capable of challenging the two favourites, he had a good run in his first race of the year, but got tired. This race has been the plan for a while, so he’s well prepared for it and we’re quietly confident. He likes the ground heavy, and it’s always soft at Haydock, so any more rain would be great for him – the softer the better.
Brewin’upastorm at Lingfield on Sunday
I’ve got one ride on Sunday, I’m on Brewin’upastorm. In the 2:25 at Lingfield. He’s the favourite and will definitely be one to beat. On the downside, he’s coming back from a heavy fall a couple of weeks ago and you can never be 100% certain how they’ll be when they get back on the track. Having said that, he’s come out of the fall really well, so we’ll see how he goes tomorrow – his schooling has been top-class, so there should be no issues, but it’s always an unknown until you get out there. The heavy ground at Lingfield isn’t ideal for him, but he is in form and hopefully we can get a clear round in.