Can Found A Fifty boost the Arkle form and land another Grade 1 for Gordon Elliott?

The Arkle at Cheltenham didn’t look the strongest of runnings beforehand, but Gaelic Warrior produced one of the performances of the week to win it and the third home, Il Etait Temps, confirmed the impression the race has been underestimated by winning the Manifesto here on Thursday.

Il Etait Temps didn’t just win, he put nine lengths on Ginny’s Destiny and Grey Dawning, who had finished second and first in the Turners at Cheltenham on their previous starts. It was some performance and suggests that Arkle second, Found A Fifty, is the one to beat here.

Found A Fifty was four and three-quarter lengths clear of Il Etait Temps when the pair met at Cheltenham, but maybe it’s not wise to take that form at face value as the latter put in a messy round of jumping there and did remarkably well to finish third, all things considered.

Nevertheless, Found A Fifty is still the form pick on that run and he is the right market leader.

Willie Mullins has saddled just two runners in this race in the last ten years and both won. Douvan (2016) and Gentleman De Mee (2022) are the horses in question and Hercule Du Seuil is his sole representative this year. He carries the same colours as Gentleman De Mee.

The seven-year-old is a difficult horse to gauge, having won five of his six starts over fences from May to October and been off the track since. It’s rare for Mullins to run his star horses over the summer like that, but Hercule Du Seuil is on a roll and the drying ground will suit.

Henry de Bromhead won this in 2013 with Special Tiara, in 2015 with Sizing Granite and in 2019 with Ornua, and runs Quilixios this time. He was tailed off last of the finishers in the Arkle at Cheltenham behind Found A Fifty, but can’t be discounted given his trainer’s superb record.
Analysis by Graeme Rodway

Nickle Back 'extremely well' for Plan B assignment

No guessing is needed when it comes to the tactics James Best will deploy on the free-going Nickle Back, who is rerouted to this race because of conditions.

He gave Best and trainer Sarah Humphrey their first Grade 1 wins in Sandown's Scilly Isles Novices' Chase in February and the plan was to keep him at that intermediate trip for Thursday's Manifesto Novices' Chase at this meeting.

Nickle Back: his win at Sandown was a memorable one for connectionsCredit: Edward Whitaker

However, the recent rain means a drop in distance for the enthusiastic eight-year-old, who will again make a bold bid from the front.

"Coming back to two miles is completely down to the ground, " Humphrey said. "He doesn't want heavy ground, so we're banking on it drying out, but stamina can still come into play over two miles. He'll still bounce out, as there is only one way of riding him, and hopefully his stamina will see him through.

"Cheltenham wasn't part of our plan, but he was entered in case something happened and you weren't in. Aintree was always the main plan, although it was Thursday and the Manifesto. It was disappointing we couldn't run there, but at least we've got a Plan B."

Humphrey, who trains ten miles from Newmarket, added: "He's had a long time between now and his last run, but he is extremely well and I think he has potentially improved since Sandown. He's growing up mentally and will be competitive; he's in there with a fighting chance."

What they say

Venetia Williams, trainer of Djelo
It's a strong contest as you'd expect but I hope he'll put up a competitive performance.

Dan Skelton, trainer of Etalon
I'm really happy with the horse. He's won three handicaps and deserves his go at something like this. He has numbers to find with a good few here. I suppose Found A Fifty is the one who carries the best form into it, but he's a horse we've always thought would make a high-class chaser and he's climbing the ladder. This is a significant step up again.

Willie Mullins, trainer of Hercule Du Seuil
He's in great order but we’d like to see it dry out as much as possible for him.

Evan Williams, trainer of Libberty Hunter
He has earned a crack at something like this. He's got a bit to find on official ratings and it's a Grade 1, so it's a step up in class, but he hasn't done a lot wrong. He's got good form at Cheltenham, including when second there in the Grand Annual last time, but there's no reason Aintree won't suit, while he does handle cut in the ground particularly well – that's a big thing for him.

Willy Twiston-Davies, assistant to Nigel Twiston-Davies, trainer of Master Chewy and Matata
They ran massive races in the Arkle with Matata finishing fourth and Master Chewy being unlucky to fall when we think he would have been placed. Both should like the track, trip and ground, so we're hopeful of big runs, but I can't split them. Master Chewy might have finished ahead of Matata if he'd stayed up at Cheltenham, but the flatter track might suit him a little better here.
Reporting by James Burn

Read more of Saturday's previews:

'We think he's got a great chance' - the lowdown for the opening race on Grand National day at Aintree 

Record purchase Caldwell Potter makes his debut for Paul Nicholls in Mersey Novices' Hurdle  

'I'm looking forward to running him in a race we've been targeting' - analysis and trainer quotes for red-hot handicap chase  

Seconds out, round three: Flooring Porter and Sire Du Berlais clash again in Liverpool Hurdle  

'He's exactly where we want him to be' - top trainers on their Grand National hopes  

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