Blue Lord bids to fill void left by Ferny Hollow for Mullins in Irish Arkle

Patrick Ward & Co Solicitors Irish Arkle Novice Chase (Grade 1) | 2m1f | 5yo+ | RTE2 & RTV

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A Ferny Hollow-shaped hole was punched into the Arkle picture at Cheltenham with the news last week that the long-time ante-post favourite would be ruled out for the rest of the season, but Willie Mullins can continue to play a significant role in this division.

Blue Lord heads the champion trainer's trio here and it's hard not to be impressed with what he has done in his first two runs over fences.

A solid novice hurdler without being a star, Blue Lord has taken his form to a new level since he was sent chasing and fitted with a tongue-tie, winning impressively at Fairyhouse before dismantling a small but decent field at Naas.

Mullins indicated then that Blue Lord might head straight to Cheltenham but the seven-year-old stops off here and could be well placed to fill the massive void left by Ferny Hollow.

Mullins' Haut En Couleurs and Saint Sam both arrive here off the back of one start and one win over fences.

Haut En Couleurs was the more impressive of the two when winning at Leopardstown over Christmas, although Saint Sam did nothing wrong at Fairyhouse.

The biggest threat to Blue Lord, however, is the five-year-old Riviere D'Etel. Gordon Elliott's mare had been making merry over fences in receipt of the age and sex allowance but her bid for four in a row came up short behind Ferny Hollow at Leopardstown over Christmas.

She has a tendency to jump to her right, which remains a slight concern around Leopardstown, and will need to be at her best to beat Blue Lord. The Joseph O'Brien-trained Embittered and Busselton have it all to do on ratings.

'I'm looking forward to Haut En Couleurs - he's very unexposed'

Patrick Mullins has warned punters not to underestimate Haut En Couleurs despite the market confidence behind fellow Closutton challenger Blue Lord in the Irish Arkle.

Haut En Couleurs won his beginners' chase in effortless fashion at Leopardstown over Christmas and Mullins, who believes the Irish Arkle will be “a spectacle,” insists there is not a lot between the three Closutton runners.

Blue Lord shot to the head of the betting for the Arkle at Cheltenham following the news that Ferny Hollow would miss the rest of the season and, while Mullins admits it will be hard to fill that void, he is backing Haut En Couleurs to outline his credentials at Leopardstown.

Mullins said: “The Arkle will be a spectacle. There's a lot of speed in the race. Blue Lord has the physique for chasing and it looks like fences have improved him. He seems to have settled better over fences and he seems to jump fences much better than he did hurdles. He has a bit more respect for fences. He's the number one, Paul [Townend] has chosen him, but it wouldn't be a huge surprise to me if Haut En Couleurs or Saint Sam turned him over.”

He added: “Haut En Couleurs is very unexposed and has won around the track. Saint Sam has been the surprise package. He's a much smaller horse but loves jumping fences. Even the first day we schooled all of the novices back in November, he was the one who caught the eye. I don't know if we have a horse capable of filling the void left by Ferny Hollow and I wouldn't like to put my last fiver on saying one of our three is definitely the best. I'm looking forward to seeing Haut En Couleurs. I think he's very unexposed.”

What they say

Gordon Elliott, trainer of Riviere D'Etel
She ran a good race here over Christmas and was beaten by a serious horse in Ferny Hollow. She has loads of experience and jumps well. I had a look at her in her stable on Thursday evening and she's got even stronger. She's been growing the whole time and has put on weight since her last run. I'm looking forward to running her and she's getting 7lb off them. She has every chance.

Read all of Saturday's previews:

3.15 Leopardstown: Irish Gold Cup: key quotes and analysis as Frodon, Kemboy and Minella Indo clash

Asterion Forlonge: is he a maverick or simply misunderstood

1.05 Leopardstown: Hollow Games has most to fear from fast-improving stablemate Minella Crooner

1.35 Leopardstown: Fil Dor bids to cement Triumph hopes but Vauban 'the one to beat', says Elliott

2.20 Sandown: L'Homme Presse and Pic D'Orhy set for Sandown showdown in Scilly Isles

2.30 Wetherby: Lucinda Russell looks for 'confidence booster' to put Ahoy Senor back on track

3.30 Sandown: Could course specialists prove the key to a race with a rich history

3.45 Musselburgh: Questions over ground and jumping - who can come up with the winning answer?