solwhit...world hurdle????

Skips Cheltenham and goes fresh to Aintree for the 2m4f Aintree Hurdle.

Owners are interested in Prize money and not necessarily Cheltenham glory.

shame...but i won't take it as gospel coming from them

Worked well for them last year when he won the Aintree Hurdle. He isn't good enough to trouble a horse of Hurricane Fly's class so I'd expect them to aim for the G1's he skips, especially ones over 2m4f next season.

He's still young and world hurdle could be on the radar next season if/when Big Bucks goes chasing.

Actually he might make a few trips to England next season. No Hurricane Fly over there.

owners have one better for the ch [;)]

Probably not a common opinion but i think hed have as good a chance as any in the champion hurdle. As someone else pointed out theres a good chance this race is going to hot up from a long way out and I could see Solwhit staying on similar to punjabi in '09. Fair enough HF is all over him at the moment but so what?! Doesn't mean he'd beat him in a champion hurdle.

you should never be afraid of one horse. solwhit would have been near on fav. if he didnt get ill last year.

Forget CH,he aint the same horse since his problems imo,certainly aint looked it!!

He is the same horse, he would be moping up the grade ones if hurricane flt was still injured like he did last year. He just met a truly exceptional horse and it's best avoiding him and aiming for aintree. Plenty of horses have had success skipping cheltenham and aiming for aintree.

we disagree then,makes a change!!
Dont look the same to me.
Bad at Chelt and not much better since.

If HF werent in those races,they would be awful grade 1's.

He still would have won four in a row.

solwhit world hurdle a possibility i see....no point whatsoever in waiting for liverpool...let's find out if he stays and give BB some sort of race.!!!

give bb some sort of race ?

why not?

"if" he stays, he'll put up a better fight than anything he's been running against recently....and i've backed him at 100/1 so i want a run for my money

nice to see they've listened to reason

Might as well try it, not a great deal to lose. Adds another obvious place lay to the pot to go along with PC in the Champion!!

Having a massive nrnb stake on big bucks at 4/5 since december this is not good news. Will certainly lay back a large portion of my stake on the day when he gets hammered.

Silly idea sending solwhit though, I assume connections took some big prices first.

But good luck to the horse, he's a fine animal.

Had any horse won a grade 1 that season over 2m and then won the stayers on their first try over the 3m trip?

Nah, don't fancy jois chances at all.

He's a better horse than grand crus in my opinion too, just not over 3m.

Think the connections made the decision based on the odds they can get on the horse as much as his chances of  winning the race given how dodgy the trainer and stable are.

Anyway hardy and inca didn't get three miles and I personally don't think this horse will either. He's be mopping up the 2m grade  ones is hurricane fly wasn't around and 3m would be out of the question.

Total after thought as there's no other festival option. Same as starluck in the arkle.

Anyway, really like the horse. Would be a dream to own. If he were mine he'd go for the champion hurdle.

Good luck to those who took a chance at a big price. It's become an interesting race now.

yep,mopping up IRISH grade 1'S mate, big deal.

This race became interesting when grand crus bolted up a few weeks back.
mourad and also Ashkazar make it interesting for me as well.

I can see BB going off 6/4 on the day .

As for Starluck,he may be an after thought,but tomorrow may tell us hes in with a fair chance.
Best hurdler in the race he would be,so if he jumps well,has to come right into it.

Solwhit had his ground in last years Champion and was well beaten, he needs 2m 4f IMO and of course there is no such race at Cheltenham.
If Big Bucks is anywhere near 6/4 on the day I'll be unloading, waa glad when Grand Crus entered the scene as I thought I might sneak evens BB, 6/4 would be like a gift from the Gods...

great news that solwhit runs all of sudden the world huredle has gone from being a walk over at christmas too an absolute belter

big bucks might not even be placed[;)]

Solwhit was a sick horse in last years champion

Really looking forward to the World Hurdle this year, looks a lot better contest than last season

bud I am a bit sick of you mocking the standard of irish races. We have plenty of better horses than the English so plenty of our races featured the best horses around. We win plenty of races at Cheltenham because we have loads of quality horses. So please, shut up with the continually mocking of our racing lest I call you out every time we have a winner at the festival.

Thanks.

horse9 firstly the quick ground in last years champion would not be "his ground" secondly he was sick in the days leading up to the Champion Hurdle.

Here is a quote from the saturday before the champion hurdle

Russell said “at the moment this horse is sick and on antibiotics. I was supposed to school him yesterday and I was told not to come down … as we speak now, Solwhit cannot run in the Champion Hurdle as he’s on antibiotics.”

I think this is the most interesting addition to the race and am thrilled he's going. This is a much, much better World Hurdle than we have been accustomed to and it will be a thrill to watch.

I had decided a few weeks ago that Grands Crus was my banker (even allowing for the superb Big Buck's being present) but the more I look at this race, the more I can see a big-priced winner. I know the front two are very good, but to be able to back Solwhit at 16-1 is unreal. He looks like he'll stay (of course he might not) and he'll have a mighty turn of foot and a touch of class to keep him pitching with BB and GC for sure. And that's without including 543 and Mourad (both unexposed and very classy up-and-comers).

Alvarado is, I assume, being tongue-in-cheek about BB potentially not placing but stranger things have happened. He is in against a grey monster rated 169 and two others that have won genuine Grade One contests. Placepot breaker, perhaps?

actually looking forward to this race now theres several challengers to big bucks. fiveforthree to win![;)]

A couple of weeks ago though had a great bet having done Mourad at 33s.

Now have Grand Crus, todays news and might not even be Mullins' no 1 - not chuffed lol[:(]

CBByrne - yeah I remember there being a scare around him but as they ran him I would back that connections gave the horse every consideration.
Your other point interests me, are you saying the horse doesn't want good ground ?
His performances at Aintree and Punchestown on quicker ground tell me he is better on faster ground, I'm not saying he can't run on soft ground as he clearly can, but he does look a pound or two better on good IMO

CV,to be honest i am sick of you keep going on about irish grade 1's,as if they are great races.You have 1 possibly 2 decent 2m hurdlers.
its the way you keep mentioning them in your write ups as if anyone is impressed with them,maybe some are,i aint,accept it and stop making out i have anything against the Irish,cos i can assure you i have not,i just dont rate any of their 2m hurdlers bar HF and possibly Dunguib.
guess you stop going on about them,i will stop criticising them.

Cheers

Sorry bud, just snapped.

No English horse has beaten Go Native, Solwhit or Hurricane Fly ever so really sick of the crabbing about our 2m hurdlers.

Anyway.

CV, your last post, does that mean Solwit and Go Native didn't run in last year's Champion.....I could have sworn they did.

horse9, yes they said he was ok after the antibiotics. But the horse is an instant non runner if he was with any real trainer. When a horse scopes bad and goes on antibiotics days before a race it's only the desperate who would still run him. ie Charles Byrnes.

Also he acts on any ground, but he hasn't too many gears but does have stamina so soft ground would be to his benefit. Good ground over 3m is certainly what he wants as he's easily the fastest horse in the World Hurdle now but with questions over stamina at the trip.

There was a few English horses that beat Go Native an Solwhit last March cv

Look mate,we disagree(again!!)mainly about Solwhit really,and how good he is now,if alright with you i will leave it at that.
But, my friend, i have absolutely nowt against Irish horses,far from it.My biggest bet so far is Big Zeb nrnb with lads at 4,and might i say is imo the best value i have seen so far this season for Chelt.
I have a fair few others backed as well.I look for value and potential improvement,watch as much racing as i can both sides of the sea,and back accordingly,whatever the nationality.
Apologies i upset you,i know i can get a bit repetitive and can bang on a bit!!.i understand your thinking that,and sticking up for your horses.

No worries dude, just snapped. I know it's you don't rate Solwhit.

For what its worth i feel Solwhit is going there with big chance, and if ground livelier than normal just might help him getting the distance.
Can see him cruising coming down the hill and one thing for sure he very tough and 100% genuine.Trainer knows better than us and fact he going for WH rather than wait for Aintree speaks volumes.

Serious chance of winning not just place money i feel

^ I quite agree. For what it's worth, I feel he will probably get the trip (although admittedly it's not the best year to try to 'get home' with BB and GC sure to pour it on from some way out). Don't forget Mysilv nearly won a Stayers' two days after running in a Champion Hurdle, and although she was a lovely horse, she was no world-beater. So I wouldn't let the two to three-mile step-up put me off him. His battling qualities are exactly what you'd want in a horse that might potentially be pushed to the limit.

Well worth a few quid I feel - especially at 18-1.

Tomdeane, I think Mysilv was a significantly better horse than Solwhit. I sometimes think that people think that because a horse doesn't have the toe for the championship races over 2 miles that it automatically means it'll get the longer trip; I think the more common reason is that they are just not that good. I'd like to say I wish you luck but I'll be place laying it so I'll refrain this time!!

^ Of course you may be right about the stamina - and I do agree with you that it is a common misperception that those done for toe want to be going further.

But, in fairness to Solwhit, he has looked to me like he wants two and a half miles for a long time (he did after all win the Aintree Hurdle a fair while ago in the style of a horse that wanted every yard of the trip). I think he has at least fair prospects of staying the three miles at Cheltenham. I'm very surprised that you think Mysilv was a far better horse - she only ever won twice at the highest level and that was as a juvenile. I doubt very much that she would have fared any better than Solwhit has against Hurricane Fly.

Just feel people are very quick to ridicule the Irish form because it doesn't leap off the page at you. But there can be no denying it takes a fair horse to have won six Grade Ones at the age of 7, as well as finishing runner-up in a further four. He's a pretty useful tool, this lad.

yes....we aren't talking about a massive leap of faith here as we already know the horse gets 2 and a half well.

It's the ground that sways people (in UK) off Irish form.
Every race is run in hock deep ground which as we all know is unheard of at Cheltenham these days

I love how English don't rate our form, we win loads of races at Cheltenham and usually we can get to have nice juicy antepost odds even after after a couple of runs. While in England, if a horse wins a race at any of the big meetings in Nov or Dec is by by value.

Is Dancing Tornado coming over again, i nearly chopped it off on the lad in the PP at 50-1

i wouldn't worry too much about the lack of faith people have in irish horses.....back in october plenty over here thought that loosen my load was an arkle horse....the fact that no other half decent novice had even sniffed a fence yet made no difference.

Tomdeane, fair enough. Looking at its form going a fair way back, together with its running style do give it a chance of getting the trip. My comments re Mysilv were we really based on its festival record; a smart win in the Triumph followed by a 5th and 6th in the Champion and a 2nd in the stayers......a pretty sound record really bettered by very few.

I'll now wish you every success with this one and i'll now look elsewhere for my place lay.

cv you win about 6-7 out of 40

CV is right.
Irish Grade 1's are open to English horses too, that they usually choose no to run in them is their choice, if they wanted to take on the Irish horses we'd have a better idea now.

Hurricane Fly has earned approx £300k this season to Binoculars approx £50k.

Doesn't prove which is the better horse of course but I know which one I'd rather own this season.


Howdi:
We'll say that makes it 15%, what % of runners are Irish?
They're already at a disadvantage having to travel to get there.

Compared to the number of runners we have we so very well. Especially in the grade 1 races, even last year when we didn't do too well we won 4 of them, the year before we had 5. All this is a time when we have no  Inca, Hardy, Kicking King, war of attrition.

We win plenty of the big races, the races we spend plenty of time discussing on here.