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Key events
Surrey Lord is another interesting runner here, though the three-mile trip is possibly a concern.
1.25 Windsor, handicap hurdle, 3m
There are fewer issues with non-runners over at Windsor, where the ground is good, good-to-soft in places, and 12 runners go to post for the first of two races from the riverside track on the ITV Racing schedule.
Doctor On Call, a summer switcher from Paul Nicholls’s yard to Sam Thomas, is the narrow market leader at 5-2 to follow up a four-and-a-quarter length success in a three-runner race at Ludlow back in February. It’s limited form and he has been off the track for 269 days, but Thomas is a dab hand at getting them ready first time up.
Emma Lavelle’s Kildinian Prince is his main market rival, making his handicap debut off a very workable mark of 120 having shed his maiden tag in a three-runner race at Exeter in March.
1.10 CHELTENHAM: ATOMIC CITY EXPLOSIVE IN TRIUMPH TRIAL
1. ATOMIC CITY (J J Slevin) 11-10 fav, 2. Charles Darnay, 3. Don Dandy. 8 ran.
Heading away from the stands now, Atomic City has passed Tiny Riot but is still second-last.
Down the back, Magnetude has taken over in front, all bar Tiny Riot covered by three lengths behind.
Three to jump, still Magnetude in front, Charles Darnay and Atomic City both going well.
Now Charles Darnay jumps into second at the third-last. Atomic City making eye-catching progress on the bridle too.
Over the second-last, Charles Darnay has a narrow lead turning in but Atomic City goes well too.
They’re in the air together but Atomic City is going best, he’s quicker away from the final hurdle too and going clear, putting down a big marker for the Triumph Hurdle back here in March!
Atomic City held up last, Charles Darnay mid-division.
Electrical is taking a very strong hold in front, Magnetude tracks him in second.
Off and running in the Grade Two Triumph Trial!
More money for Atomic City just before the off, he’s down to 6-5 with Charles Darnay out to 3-1. Admiral Will Brown is a 4-1 shot and James Owen’s second-string, Magnetude, has also been nibbled at, down to 17-2.
Just under 10 minutes to the off in the Triumph Hurdle Trial and there is still plenty of money for Atomic City, currently trading at around 11-8. Charles Darnay is attracting backers too, though, at 9-4, while Admiral Will Brown, who was rated 78 on the Flat and won his hurdles debut at Down Royal in October, is also lively in the market at 9-2.
There was fine display of jumping for the big Saturday crowd to enjoy in the opener, as Oran McGill got into an excellent rhythm on Dinoland and comfortably held Little Ledgend by six lengths.
Jon Pullin, Cheltenham’s clerk of the course, has been discussing the ground and slew of non-runners on Racing TV.
“We’re comfortable that we did everything we could and got as much water on as possible ahead of the meeting,” Pullin said.
“When we finished irrigating on Thursday afternoon ahead of Thursday night’s frost we were comfortable there was enough moisture in the ground. We were hopeful that would hold for yesterday and today because we knew realistically we couldn’t get anymore water on due to the frost.
“As it transpired we had a sharper frost than forecast and that sharpened it up on Thursday into Friday and the same last night so we’ve gone good, good to firm in places but the majority is good.
“With irrigation and the little rain we have had between the Showcase [meeting in October] and this one, we have put 400mm on, but we’ve only had 16mm of rain.”
Cheltenham 1.10, Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle, Grade Two, 2m 87yd
With the two star names in the Arkle Trial at 1.45 both scratched, this is now the main supporting act on Saturday’s card in some respects, as there are a couple of very interesting juvenile prospects in opposition.
Charles Darnay, whose trainer, James Owen, is hoping to win this race for the third time in four years, was the early favourite after the declarations on Thursday, but has since been supplanted by Joseph O’Brien’s Atomic City, who was a lightly-raced maiden winner on the Flat but looked a natural over hurdles when making a successful debut at Cork last month (in this video at 1m10sec).
Charles Darnay, meanwhile, was also highly impressive on his hurdling debut, at Wetherby.
There is very little to pick between the pair of them on that (limited) evidence, but personally I plumped for Atomic City, mainly because his maiden event at Cork was run in an excellent time for the grade and he won with plenty to spare.
They are on the way to post at Cheltenham for the opener, a handicap chase for amateur riders over three miles and a furlong, and the going is now good, good-to-firm in places.
Transmission, Top Guy and Jaccours are all non-runners here, leaving nine runners and a market headed by Olly Murphy’s Little Ledgend at 11-4.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live-blog coverage of what should be one of the great days in the jumping calendar: Paddy Power Gold Cup day at Cheltenham’s November meeting.
Unfortunately, though, “should be” is doing the kind of heavy lifting in that sentence that Red Rum achieved in his second Grand National victory in 1974, because the prevailing fast ground has already seen the card shorn of several star names, and around two dozen of the original declarations in all.
The original field of 15 for the Paddy Power Gold Cup, perhaps the biggest handicap chase in the first half of the winter campaign, is now down to 10 runners – July Flower is the latest absentee – while the “Big Two” in the Grade Two Arkle Trial – Kabral Du Mathan and Old Park Star, last year’s Supreme Novice Hurdle winner, are scratches too.
It is disappointing and also deeply frustrating for the track, as it is difficult to know what else Jon Pullin, the clerk of the course, could have done. Sub-zero temperatures overnight meant that he was unable to switch on the taps on Thursday or Friday, and there has been so little rain for months, rather than just weeks, that even watered ground is unlikely to be any easier than good.
The 30k racegoers expected through the gates still have a busy afternoon to look forward to, though, kicking off with a handicap chase for amateur riders at 12.35 before the ITV Racing action begins with the Grade Two Triumph Hurdle Trial at 1.10. There are a couple of top-class prospects in that race – Atomic City, backed down to favourite this morning, and Charles Darnay – while the Paddy Power Gold Cup is due to be off and running at 2.20.
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