Nicky Henderson: “He’s a fresh horse and I’m hopeful he can run a big race”

Aintree

 

1:45 G1 Manifesto Novices’ Chase

Fusil Raffles (Daryl Jacob)

He ran a great race in the Marsh Chase at the Festival and appears to have come out of that in really good form so it made sense to come here. He loves good ground and jumps well therefore I’m very hopeful; that said I do think Hitman has some rock solid form and I feel Mr P Nicholls and I are going to clash quite a lot this week!

 

2:20 G1 Anniversary Juvenile Hurdle

Paros (James Bowen)

He’s a very talented horse but I do fear this is the wrong way round for him because he almost went off the track at Doncaster on his penultimate start which is why we went up to Musselburgh last time where he won very impressively. This is a big step up and whether he’s quite ready for it I’m not 100% sure just yet, but we’ve got various contraptions on to try and keep him straight and he’s definitely a nice horse for the future.

 

2:50 G1 Bowl Chase

Mister Fisher (Nico De Boinville)

Despite being pulled up in the Ryanair Chase I thought he still ran a great race because, to be fair to him, he’s gone that good gallop with Allaho who is an extremely good horse and Mister Fisher made a few costly mistakes which obviously didn’t help his chance. Good ground is absolutely key to him and he’s got that here, and Nico and I have always been looking forward to stepping him up to three miles. This is, as you would expect, a very competitive renewal and Clan Des Obeaux looks the one to beat but I still think there is plenty of improvement in Mister Fisher going up in trip and he will love the track so I’m very hopeful.         

 

3:25 G1 Aintree Hurdle

Buveur D’air (Nico De Boinville)

As you all know it’s not been an easy road back and I was glad we swerved Cheltenham because we wouldn’t have beaten Honeysuckle who was absolutely brilliant in the Unibet Champion Hurdle. He has won this race before and while I would prefer it to be a little softer he should handle conditions and I expect him to have improved for that run at Haydock. Once again, it’s a very good race but hopefully he will enjoy himself and with some luck we’ll see him produce something like his best.

Buzz (James Bowen)

I thought he ran a great race at Newbury last time where he wasn’t beaten that far and I think the step up in trip is a big plus for him. He was very talented on the flat and handled any ground so is a very uncomplicated person. He is another of ours that skipped Cheltenham so he’s a fresh horse and I’m hopeful he can run a big race.         

 

5:15 G2 Nickel Coin Mares’ Bumper

Mind Sunday (Nico De Boinville)

Let’s be clear this is the best girls race you will see for quite some time and in any normal year I would be very confident that this mare was capable of winning, but as it is I think Pam Sly’s horse will be extremely hard to beat so I think we’re all racing for place money. Mind Sunday was extremely impressive at Newbury on her debut for us but I suppose had she beaten one horse home it would’ve been an improvement on what she shown over in Ireland. We got her wind done which obviously helps and she has always shown plenty of ability now she can breathe. I’m not surprised she ran so poorly in Ireland because it is impossible to scope her, she just won’t let you do it.