Cloth Cap enters Randox Grand National picture
Silviniaco Conti ridden by Noel Fehily (right) jumps the last fence with Dynaste ridden by Tom Scudamore on his way to winning the Betfred Bowl Steeple Chase during the opening day of the Grand National horse race meeting at Aintree in Liverpool, north-west England on April 3, 2014.
With exactly one month to go before the Randox Grand National, excitement is already at crescendo levels, due to its cancellation last year.
Imagine, there are now 90 entries, which have to be whittled down to forty come April 10. So far, Cloth Cap (Tom Scudamore 7-1), has provided a clue to who might be market leader at 6-1, after lighting up Kelso, with an astonishing display in the Premier Chase.
Tiger Roll is not participating in the National as his connections are not happy about the unfair handicap he received. Cloth Cap is referred to as a cracker by anyone who has seen him run. It could be a fourth National for owner, Trevor Hummings, and a second for trainer, Jonjo O'Neil.
Cloth Cap actually was supposed to run at Doncaster, but plans changed due to ground conditions. Aso (Charlie Deutsch 9-4) was next best, but definitely never smooth or fluent in his jumping.
Two for Gold (David Bass 5-2), same story in third. Cloth Cap finished the 2.7 miles in 6:04:7/10 which is slow, but he had nothing to race against.
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The lovely 8-year-old grey, Lord Glitters (Danny Tudhope 2-1), continued his superlative run of form in Dubai, with a triumphant blast in Jebel Hatta at Meydan on Super Saturday. This was a top-level spark for Lord Glitters right as far back as 2019 in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Next in line for this marvelous horse, is the Dubai Turf on World Cup night. Al Suhail drifted at just the right moment, allowing Lord Glitters a free run on the inside.
Walton Street (William Buick 3-1), ran a stunning race at Meydan in the Dubai City of Gold for Charlie Appleby. He broke the track record in January, then held it for this event, with a few lengths credit over Dubai Future.
Frankie Dettori on Dubai Warrior, did not perform as usual, failing to blink against Walton Street, and sliding down to last place.
Salute the Soldier (Adrie de Vries 3-1), boosted his chances for the World Cup after striking nicely in the Al Maktoum Challenge from Hypothetical. Trained by Fawzi Nass, Salute the Soldier is a progeny of Sepoy.
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D J Stable's, Helium (Joe Ferrer 15-1), made it 3-for-3 with an off-pace cropping in the Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby, Florida. Conditioned by Mark Casse, Helium covered 1.1/16 miles in 1:43:5/10 setting Hidden Stash and Moonlite Strike aside.
Helium earned 85 points for the Kentucky Derby, but he might not be a Triple Crowner. He must be something special, because, after a slow start, a wide outside run, filtered by some boredom, he managed to regain composure and reign supreme. There is not much time for all that, so it requires a good one to hold firm.
