Arkle....Menorah or Peddlers

Sprinter Sacre

The Arkle looks incredibly tough this year, so many good hurdlers going chasing. I'm going to wait until I've seen them jump.

The Arkle looks incredibly tough this year, so many good hurdlers going chasing. I'm going to wait until I've seen them jump.

Peddlers for me.
He has everything i look for in an Arkle winner

The Arkle is over fences, not hurdles.

I agree it's hard to judge before they jump a fence in public. I really like Menorah as a horse though - tough, great attitude, good turn of foot and likes the course. Very disappointing at the Festival this year though.

Sprinter gagging for fences

I took Stan James up on his very kind offer of 14/1 on Peddlers back in April.

Don't think I'd be backing him around the 6/1 mark.

At the moment I can't see past Peddlers or Sprinter Sacre - for some reason (maybe gut feeling), I don't fancy Al Ferof, Menorah or Solwhit, but I don't know why??

Indeed it is rhinestone and Peddlers has already won a point to point so i am confident the jumping wont be an issue.
Also if memory serves me right the highest rated hurdler that runs in the Arkle has a decent record in it.

Yes highest rated have a good record. Peddlers is a cracker for sure.

Don't think you can read too much into the fact he has won a point though. Lot's have won point(s) been high class over hurdles then flopped over fences.

Time will tell.
As for Sprinter Sacre plenty seem to think he will excel going chasing and he may well do but i cant get out of my head how he travelled so well in the Supreme but weakened up the hill.Maybe fences will change that but if Peddlers and Sprinter happened to turn into the straight side by side i no who i would favour.

Stormey, I think I recall Henderson being unsure whether Sprinter was yet strong enough for a championship race such as the Supreme Novices's, but obviously he let him take his chance. With that in mind, it would seem that there is a lot of room for strengthening up over the winter that should help him this season.

Was that not Spirit Son?
It may have been both.
I may be a touch biased as ive bin a big Peddlers fan since i saw him win at Haydock.

He deffo didn't want Sprinter to run in the Supreme, it was the owners.

I'm hoping his weakening up the hill is down to his pulling hard/tanking along, like it should be and that he has got stronger and more mature

They have been saying lately that Spirit Son was not streetwise enough for the Supreme, but they never said that before the race...

Rightly or wrongly Sprinter Sacre reminds me of Finians Rainbow in that i can see him hacking up in a few small field races then heading to the Arkle..... il let you fill in the rest!!!

Same trainer yes.

Peddlars but no point backing antepost, too short already

interesting views lads...thats what this forum is all about !!!dont know why more of you dont like menorah though,i think he is tailor made for this but thats what this is aLL about

the arkle will be a cracker this year, the winner will surely go on to great things!

Just hope all these prospects make it there in good form.

Without seeing them jump a fence impossible to say really, but gut feeling on watching them hurdle is Peddlers. I love Sprinter Sacre but just think Peddlers will have the edge.

Arkle could be stronger than the Champion Chase this year, we are due a real high class arkle imo.

You could well be right Neill. Big Zeb getting on a bit, Sizing Europe, Captain Chris, Master Minded not certain to run - do you think some of the novices may be tempted to step up straight away?

Nope.
At least if they are trained properly they wont be.
The novice season is there for a reason.

The Arkle is so prestigious a race that I don't think they would, I think its the fourth most prestigious race at the meet after the GC, CH and QM. I think it's an unwritten rule.

Fair comments neill.Arkle and the QM following year,some real good 2milers have done that.
Cant think of any right now that have gone for QM in their novice year.

I agree that the Arkle is a great race and the novice season is certainly there for a reason but I've seen others on here speculate about this. Particularly with the likes of Menorah & Peddlers already having the experience of running a championship race in a potentially weak year its an option some may consider - I hope not as it is shaping up as an Arkle for the ages if the majority of the big players get there

Two things:

To the original poster, I favour Peddlers of those two. Debatable of course but I see it as a simple enough decision based on the fact that PC has won a point before and was the better of the two in my opinion over hurdles. Assuming he jumps OK I think he is always going to be a hard horse to pass in any race. The effort behind Hurricane Fly in the Champion was really excellent.

And, neilld, I love your assessment of the Arkle being the 4th most prestigious race at the meeting. It really is an "unwritten rule". I would actually go as far as saying it is the race I most look forward to all season - seeing the quickest and best up-and-comers jumping those big fences in March is a true thrill.

'He might make an Arkle horse', love it when they say that, it is the immortal line for the staying yet classy type.

arkle is a thrill because they can come at you from all angles imo