skyjack hijack

Fantastic stuff. From a young age I've always loved NH horses win from the front like this. Anaglogs Daughter, The Mighty Mac etc.

They've always been a joy to watch MJK for sure , thinking back even earlier when i was a nipper with Even Keel , I'm a Driver , Grey Sombrero and many others   

Smashing horse to own but I can't see him winning at Cheltenham. He was a late withdrawal from a Pertemps qualifier but another win today will push his handicap rating up so I would be inclined to keep going in similar races to today and then give him a long rest until Aintree.

post remembered Sage.

So which race would you aim at howard? He has been on the go since August and is now rated 132 plus what the handicapper puts him up for yesterday. He might not go up at all as he was already rated 15lb ahead of Zanndabad. He seems to want to lead and clearly stays so the Pertemps would be the logical target. Unless you see him as a Stayers Hurdle candidate?

QUOTES: SKYJACK HIJACK has done great and keeps at a good gallop - his jumping is his biggest asset. I honestly think the way he jumps he reminds me of a Champion Hurdle horse. He's so quick and accurate. How high can we go? He's doing everything right. I suppose Cheltenham comes into the equation and we can see whether we go in handicaps or down the Albert Bartlett route. It takes a fair horse to win six in a row and they were decent horses he beat too. He goes that gallop and he gets horses beat a long way out. It's great to have a horse like him. That'll be it for a while, he's been busy and the ground's going to start to change. After having a chat with Sean, he said he wasn't fully on song today. All these indicate he needs a break now and we won't see him until February time - Alan O'Keeffe, trainer's assistant.

If they aim him at the Champion Hurdle in a weak year I would not blame them but he does seem to be a stayer. 132 is an awful long way behind 165, the sort of rating needed to win a CH or Stayers. He started out below 100 so has already made a big jump up the ratings. If he has a rest now, they will find it hard to get him qualified for the Pertemps which only leaves the Coral Cup as a handicap where I think he would be swamped by faster horses early on. I would love to be proved wrong.

57 was a long way for a future Nunthorpe winner to go. I don't disregard numbers but sometimes it's useful to.  I once saw a horse win a Sandown h'cap off 72 and said to myself that's a group ONE horse ( presvis )  This horse is such a good jumper he will win very good staying races where they obviously jump more flights. Probably well worth his place in the Stayers next season.

It is great seeing a front runner, ping his hurdles and never see another rival....Obviously Pipe had many but my favourite back in the day was Hypnosis....

Ran them ragged one day at Cheltenham, final race of the day....not the festival of course.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6U0EYuVNMU&t=243s