Fighting fifth

Peddlers Cross the one I want to see!

very interesting race if they all turn  up. I am a massive Peddlers Cross fan but worried it might be a bit quick for him on a flattish 2 mile track. I reckon Clerks Choice is interesting. Absolutely demolished a field that included a couple of half decent horses in his last race. He willhave the benefit of being more race fit than the majority in the race.

peddlers cross makes all, never headed, minces in

Binocular heading to Newcastle says Nicky in the Post. Think punters are still underestimating this horse. Every chance he will go through the season undefeated, starting in Fighting Fifth.

He will run.

is 7/2 for peddlers gonna be available on the day? 16s for the champion now and thinking of getting stuck in

Why are you ignoring the fact that Binocular is entered at Newcastle,as well of course as the C Hurdle??
Seems a bit strange to me.

Would not put anyone off Sublimity if ground is ok for him.

I respect Binocular but i remember how he ran on his first run last season. Im just thinking 7/2 is a good price on Peddlers

and 16s is ew value

Yeh,fair comment,Bin did not run much of a race last season,but if he turns up in form,watch out!!
Agree PC is an interesting one for CH,have backed it at 24,bit short now though i think.

Binocular's first run will be at Wincaton in the new year

Will hype us all along with excuses until then. Where will the fast pace he needs come from in the FF

marodima at 250/1.... is jamie snowden takin the piss

Princequillo Joined: 11 Sep 09
Replies: 180 15 Nov 10 21:26
Binocular's first run will be at Wincaton in the new year

what makes you say that??

where will the fast pace come from....peddlers cross i would have thought....unless the mccain stable fancy stacking them up and turning it into a sprint!!![smiley:crazy]

i'd have thought that connections of binocular are licking their lips at the prospect of peddlers cross in there....can't see this race being run in any way like last years renewal....although the way binocular was performing at this stage of the season last year wouldn't have had him winning regardless i doubt.

Always surprised by lack of faith people seem to have in Binocular. Obviously a slight injury last season affected jumping and the feel it gave McCoy, but up until that point extremely consistent, tough and progressive. Taking into account Henderson's comments on how well he schooled last week,  which he crucially had not done until his injury cleared up, think 3s Binocular to repeat is incredibly tempting. Looked like a horse ready to go imperial this season as opposed to being a flash in the pan.

Don't think a strong pace is as big an issue for Binocular as some think, there was something wrong with him first half of last season.

Yes their was something wrong given his running in the CHurdle.However he still ran fairly well in those races,close 3rd in the xmas hurdle and not that far away at Newcastle which was first time out,and can happen,which imo shows his class.
Connections are bemused when he dont perform as they know he can,as he did at Ascot and the CHurdle this year.He was obviously regarded as better than Punjabi,so the problem must have started after the Ascot race where he comfortably beat Cel Halo.The way he ran in winning the CHurdle suggests that he is now over those problems,and should he stay sound he could well emulate his owners last great hurdler

Still think Bino can be vulnerable on easy ground, forget that g/s bollox of a going that chelt gave out of the tues this year

Binoculor at evens or above is a gift. His champion hurdle win was probably the best since Istabraq.
He had a blip early last season but is reported in great form now. I'm opening the vault and putting
2 large on.

dont discount nearby with a run.14s is decent price.hes won his last 2 very convincingly.impressed me anyway.stepping stone to better things

I would rate Khyber Kim a very good horse and seeing what Binocular did to him, I think he'll  win at Cheltenahm. I think he'll probably take this aswell tbh, I'm of the view there was something amiss most of last year. It is funny about the pace issue as I always had him down as a very quick horse rather than a grinder, therefore IMO even if its a slow pace provided he settles I think he can win here.

clerks choice an unlikely runner?

must be out tomorrow i think

or today now

Only 7 runners left after todays forfeit stage,anymore views?

Race looks paceless (Bygones may take it up)

Won't suit Binocular and certainly not Peddlers, can see a boilover

Peddlers Cross / Binocular match?

Starluck/Sublimity reverse forecast imo.

Looks, at the 5 day stage, to be a viewing race. We all remember Binocular's poor run last year when there was no pace. And it looks like it could be the same slow race although with PC more of a staying type, he might try to burn them off. Starluck wants good ground which he wont get (soft just now and wont dry any) the only other danger is Nearby which is improving rapidly but I doubt he is up to beating this field, even if he is 100% race fit. As I said, watching race

forecast rain all week and its going to be feezing so ground is gonna be most likly heavy.

In my opinion, though probably not conventional wisdom, binocular could be a dual champion, as I thought at the time if mccoy held on to it a bit longer until turning for home it would have gone past celestial and punjabi on run in. But the fact that it was such a short price favourite and the other two were stayers(with top notch jockeys on them) panicked him a little. Not a criticism of mccoy though as I think he's great, just got from top of hill to turning for home a little unbalanced.

That's an interesting angle on the 2009 race, Yodacricket. How you maintain the race position you want, without risking over-stretching and unbalancing your horse, coming from the top of the hill to the turn for home, must be one of the main tests of riding the course, even for experienced jockeys like McCoy. Binocular certainly wasn't as balanced and fluent over the final hurdle in the 2009 renewal as he can be and that, arguably, cost him some momentum in terms of making up the ground on the front two.

I suppose what we can never know is whether the horse was simply finding it harder going in 2009 (not perhaps 100% right on the day, as the trainer speculated afterwards). In that case, it may have been the effort of fighting fatigue that was the key factor slightly unbalancing him from the top of the hill to the run-in. Interesting that in the 2010 renewal, McCoy momentarily had to rein back the horse as they took the final turn, so well had the horse come down the hill and so easily was he travelling. The same ease of movement wasn't there with Binocular as they turned for home in the 2009 race.

With Binocular, the ground is clearly important for the horse (though there may be a danger that the extent of the importance of the ground is over-emphasised to the exclusion of other factors that may be important in understanding the horse). Getting the horse balanced and fluent, and releasing that fantastic ability he has to quicken well off a fast pace, may actually require a few different factors to come right on the day, including of course how he is ridden. I just have a feeling he may prove to be a harder horse to work out from a punting angle than his frequently short odds might suggest, though equally a very interesting horse to observe and analyse.

FFT, Peddlers Cross could go on and make it. Has done before, though he does risk then setting it up for Binocular/Nearby/Sublimity etc.

Interesting thoughts on Binocular re 2009 and 2010 Champion Hurdle. Still think Newcastle, Kempton and Sandown performances last season were that of a horse with a physical problem and should be forgotten. Ground, pace and track are misnomers in my opinion as his record shows incredible versatility - Remember Liverpool? Henderson schooled him again last Friday (Alan Lee, The Times) and they were delighted with him.They think if he schools well then all is well physically with the horse. I think 2010/2011 will be his season and will be really surprised if he is turned over on Saturday.

Is there any possibilty that the ground could end up a bit "crispy" if a tad of frost gets in? Just trying to weigh up who would prefer what really.Still think sublimity is a tad big at 25's+.If (and i know it's an if) any of the top 3 in the betting were to come out then that would be rather large looking.

a think n henderson has a gd chance off the big race double

sorry to be a doom-monger but looking at forecast for next 3-4 days , if its right id be very surprised if its on. snow forecast. dont study too hard.

If its off its my fault. I am going to Newcastle for the first time this w/e!
The last time I organised an away day at a northern racetrack York abandoned the Ebor meeting due to waterlogging!

sublimity nr

needs to bring Sublimity to kempton for the xmas hurdle to bring his strengths into play instead of trying to slog throught the mud in Ireland.

Snowy scene in Newcastle right now..

can verify that , im 12 miles north and its a white out now, no sky too. dear me. massive flakes. what a shame

any mention of provisions to save the race should it be called off...sandown next week perhaps?

Was re-ran at Wetherby on Tingle Creek day 2 years ago iirc

looking at weather this morning ,absolutely no chance it will be on.

yeah is snowing again in gosforth now absoltuely no chance it will be on

Typical; I live a stones throw from newbury but the one year I organise a trip to Newcastle it snows!

abandoned

does peddlers cross go to ireland if its on?

Peddlers Cross was taken out of the race on Tuesday. Not a great decision now!

not really a bad decision....they want to find out if he's a 2 miler at the highest level.....slapping round fairyhouse over 2 and a half miles isn't going to tell them that....the fighting fifth may well be run at sandown next week or there's always the bula (what was) after that.

why do they have to run 3 class hurdle races within a month madness

Now on tomorrow's Newbury card!

The turnout at Newcastle was going to be little less than pathetic , for such a historically prestigious race

Binocular did not look like a world beater every time he ran last season , yet how many were turning up to take him on ?

Newbury card is feckin awesome tomorrow now.......

anybody no what happens to ante-post bets placed on here?

I think your bet is void, due to change of venue, and change in declared runners. However I would contact your bookie to check

Lads refunded my bet.

anyone know what happens to ante post bets on here please?

They have to be refunded.  I would be a little aggrieved if I had back Orsippus ante post.

thanks gopher

I'm not as convinced about Binocular as many of you seem to be. I think the excuses for his defeats at the Festival in 08 & 09 are a bit limp. I think he was beaten fair & square both times and furthermore, Yodacricket, if there was a moral winner of the Champion Hurdle in 2009, it was Crack Away Jack - he was given at best, an injudicious ride and made up a vast amount of ground to close into 4th place. However dubious I am about Binocular, he was imperious last year and is the obvious benchmark. I just have doubts he's as good as he's been hyped. We won't be finding this out tomorrow, it'll be in March.

He proved he is as good as the hype with his victory in the CH.And actually not sure he has been hyped up that much anyway.

Binocular is a much better horse off a fast pace imo

I think the switch to Newbury is in his favour due to the better ground, would still be a worry if it ends up as a two furlong sprint like last years though

it can't end up a sprint because peddlers needs it to be a true run race.....without being disrespectful.....peddlers cross is a perfect pace maker for binocular

Are bets on BF standing? My antepost bet is still showing as matched rather than cancelled, so i assume it stands.

Would Peddlers really want to go a flatout pace first time out? If it does become a 2f/3f sprint, Starluck may easily pick them off.

Agree Bino is best off a fast pace and also recall during his build up to last years CHurdle thinking he looked a real Champion in the making to me and disappointed massively behind Punjabi, thought he had gone off the game then.

i think the whole point of peddlers in this race is because connections want to establish whether he is a champion hurdle horse or a world hurdle candidate.....they know he stays further and will want to put that to good use......just before the home turn in the neptune he had to be niggled before stamina kicked in.....if it turned into a sprint...he's be the first sufferer imo....and they would have learned nothing.

Surely to god the bets cant stand,ie...different track etc?

One of the most interesting renewals of this race for some time.
Ground should be good enough to make it a fair test of where we stand with these ones in relation to the upcoming CH. It'll be interesting to see just how much pace Peddlers Cross has. Trainer seems confident on that score - see quote from his stable tour below. We'll see. I'd be more concerned his hurdling might not be quite slick enough to live with the best two milers if there is a decent pace on, but would be very pleased to be wrong about that.
Saw him having a gallop after racing at Bangor a few weeks ago - lovely looking horse and seemed in fantastic shape.

"[i]He’s scarily good  and has a different gear to anything we’ve dealt with. Although he’s won his two best novices over two and a half miles, on what he does at home I can’t get my head around him wanting three miles. We still believe that he’d have won the two mile supreme novices at Cheltenham if he’d gone for that instead. Before Cheltenham we sent him with three fairly useful horses to work on the Flat at Bangor. It was only really to get him settled but they were going a fair old rattle in the gallop and Jason was quite a way back. But he quickened so well that it reminded me of one of the gallops I used to see at Newmarket when I was with Luca Cumani. That’s how good he is."[/i]

Surely to god the bets cant stand,ie...different track etc?

No announcement,  it looks like they are going to.  As I said before backers of Orsippus can be aggrieved.  It was entered as the race was down the road from the stable but is not travelling to Newbury.

E mailed Betfair and reply stated Ante post bets refunded but only after race because of the "slim" chance it could still be run at Newcastle. Honest guv.

I was most impressed.  Can't see any reason PC should not win the CH

McCoy very easy on Bino after the last, looked like he blew up to me, and Peddlers looked the pick of the paddock beforehand.

Bookies only bumped him out to 4/1 from 3/1.

Wasn't impressed by anything in that race though you have to give the benefit first time out. Peddler's Cross was hit numerous times to keep ahead of a weak finisher. He's an admirable horse but that wasn't Champion Hurdle winning form. The handicappers clocked two and a half seconds quicker.
Binocular may be back on form for the Champion if his owner fancies a punt and the army of vets do their job again but you'd hardly be scared stiff to take him on.