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Cappa Bleu (any 3m+ chase not the Gold Cup). Gold Cup 2011.....
I got back this afternoon and was rung up by neighbour with horses in training with Evan Williams. Apparently Williams is over the moon to get him and thinks he has almost unlimited potential.
I'll bet..
I only backed him because he'd drifted to an acceptable price (same with Zaynar!) so I was very relieved. He seemed to take to the whole thing really well considering he won't have seen anything remotely like it before.
It will be interesting to see what they do with him - didn't Willie say that Pistolet Bleu's tend to need tender handling?
I also fancy Well Chief to place in the QMCC - if he were mine I'd wrap him in cotton wool and not bother running him until next year's race. The horse clearly can't take much racing but still retains a high level of ability. _________________ Please, call me Alex.
My own guess (and it is only a guess) is that hunter chases don't count when deciding if a horse is a novice or not. But I will wait for the looky-uppy guru to confirm!
"Novice" for the Season 2009/2010 for Hurdle races is a horse which has not won a Hurdle race before April 26th, 2009 and for Steeple Chases other than Hunters' Steeple Chases is a horse which has not won a Steeple Chase before April 26th, 2009 other than a maximum of two Maiden or Novice Hunters' Steeple Chases or Hunters' Steeple Chases confined to horses eligible to run in Point-to-Points run in Great Britain only during the two preceding seasons.
Any horse which wins a Hurdle race or Steeple Chase for the first time from March 1st, 2009 until April 25th, 2009 (both dates inclusive) will be regarded as a "Novice" and eligible to run in Novice Hurdle races or Novice Steeple Chases as the case may be until October 31st, 2009.
Note:
1. This Definition is applicable to Hurdle races and Steeple Chases from April 26th, 2009 until April 24th, 2010 (both dates inclusive) Season 2009/2010. See Appendix R.
2. For the avoidance of doubt, "Novice" for flat races is as defined in the relevant race categories which make reference to "Novice" in the title.
3. For "Novice" in relation to Hunters'Steeple Chases see Definition of "Novice Hunters' Steeple Chase".
I think, reading that, he will only be a novice until October as I don't think the Foxhunters falls into any of the exclusion categories.
God I wish the BHA would draft the Rules more clearly - it practically takes a QC to unravel them!
I think Cappa Bleu just misses the exclusion zone because the hunter chase he won (the only one he has so far won) was NOT confined to horses eligible to run in point to points in great Britain only - because the Cheltenham Foxhunters allows Irish entries. In which case he will only be a novice up to 31 October......
My next question was going to be whether Cappa Bleu will get a handicap mark from winning the hunter chase but I'm so confused from the answer to his novice status I'll bypass that minor detail
My next question was going to be whether Cappa Bleu will get a handicap mark from winning the hunter chase but I'm so confused from the answer to his novice status I'll bypass that minor detail
He's sort of got a handicap mark as I think Phil Smith allocated all the entries one so that he could put the ballot together; it may not be "offical" as such but means he will have a mark in mind.
Whether that mark is generous or not, I don't know!
It may well be published this Tuesday (or next - not sure when the cut-off is),
Rowan is right about the rating (not, as I understand it, an official handicap mark, because he can be rated for balloting purposes, but his handicap mark may well be different and I don't trust Phil Smith as far as I could throw him anyway!!) Hunter chasers who have previously run under Rules retain their last Rules rating/handicap. I don't think a handicap mark is allocated specifically because of a hunter chase win.
I think we need to do this pragmatically, by watching out for hunters if and when they run under Rules, and see what happens. There were a couple of handicap hunter chases last season, which argues that hunters do at least have a notional mark, but those races are very unusual and I don't know whether they are retained in the fixture list this term.
Jenny/Rowan, I believe that Cappa Bleu will not be a novice past that date, ie hunter chases do count. That certainly used to be the rule, hence good Irish pointers aimed at the English market were never allowed to set foot on the track just in case they won, which would make them less valuable (a bit Irish you might say). Regarding Pistolet Bleus, no they are not the toughest. I thought the poor boy looked a bit shell shocked over the last two fences, but from what you hear he had never come under pressure in his life before, so hopefully it won't have left any mark. I always had Evan Williams marked down as quite a tough trainer though? Is that wrong? Maybe it's just the type of horses he has had up to now and he's exploited their handicap mark until they reach their limit
Think you're right, Willie, but I really find those Rules hard to interpret clearly.
Just a bit of news, first - owners/new trainer (Evan Williams) are murmuring about the Hennessy next season, which seems a bit ambitious even given other runs first. And there was even a mention of a Gold Cup.....which I think is premature but understandable. He did beat some good older Rules horses on Friday and the age profile is right. But I honestly can't see him getting near a Gold Cup with Kauto Star and Denman still in contention.
As far as Evan Williams is concerned, yes, I think he is a trainer that demands a lot of his horses; I know my neighbour was a good deal dischuffed when her husband decided to take theirs away from Richard Lee and send them to Williams. Make of that what you will.....
James Wiloughby was saying that Cappa Bleu's performance might not look out of place in the Gold Cup and he's one to keep an eye on next year. The Hennessy will all depend on what handicap mark he gets allocated to him.
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