Nicky Henderson: “We’ve won this race with some good horses and I think No Ordinary Joe is up there with the best of them”

ASCOT – FRIDAY

12:45 Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle

Steal A March (Jack Tudor)

He ran a great race at Cheltenham last time when staying on well up the hill to finish third and I think he’s come on a lot for that. There’s no doubt he has a future over fences and we’ll be stepping him up in trip as well but this looks an ideal race for him and he won’t have any issues with the ground.

Emir Sacree (Joe Anderson)

His dam is a half sister to Sprinter and that is probably where the similarities end but he’s an interesting person who can be a little enthusiastic which is why he has the hood on so hopefully he’ll settle nicely for Joe. He’s an ex Frenchie so won’t have any problem with the ground and this looks a good starting point but he’s been off for yonks so is entitled to come on for the run.

2:30 G2 Novices’ Hurdle

No Ordinary Joe (Nico de Boinville)

He’s a person we’ve always liked who did everything asked of him in his Bumper at Sandown but jumping is his game and he’s well schooled so we might as well crack on with him. We’ve won this with some nice horses down the years and this chap is right up there with the best of them so I’m hopeful of a bold show under what should be ideal underfoot conditions.

3:05 G2 Novices’ Chase

Allart (Nico de Boinville)

I have a lot of time for this horse and am really excited to go over fences with him because he’s a chaser through and through and will hopefully be a very talented one at that. He’s quick and has been schooling very well so this looks a great place to start his career over the larger obstacles and he wouldn’t have to improve much on his Supreme run to go extremely close in a race like this.

Buzz Allart Caribean Boy

Trainer Nicky Henderson shares his thoughts on three of his runners at @Ascot this week

✍️ Keep an eye out for @SevenBarrows daily blogs where he'll share his thoughts on the rest of his runners pic.twitter.com/uCO8Sc9yBD

— Unibet Racing (@UnibetRacing) December 17, 2020