Punchestown Saturday preview: Donn McClean tips
By Donn McClean
Punchestown Friday best bets:
5.05 Drop The Anchor
The Willie Mullins thread that usually runs through Punchestown week is running as deeply as ever this year so far, and it could go even deeper today, on the final day of the week, the final day of the Irish National Hunt season.
In Concertista, Stormy Ireland and Burning Victory, the champion trainer fields the first three favourites for the Coolmore Kew Gardens Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle, with My Sister Sarah in there as back-up, while in the other Grade 1 race on the day, the Ballymore Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle, Haut En Couleurs is vying for favouritism with Triumph Hurdle hero Quilixios. The record of 18 that was posted at the 2018 Festival is in danger.
UPDATED 7:38PM, APR 13 2021
Weight-for-age conditions for jump races in Britain and Ireland will be symmetrical from next season following an agreed change of rules by the BHA and IHRB.
Hurdlers and chasers aged between three and five are currently given different allowances in the two countries depending on age, time and race distance, which can vary between 5lb and 7lb, but the Anglo-Irish jumps scale is to be introduced from May 1 in Britain and three days later in Ireland. This will not affect the Punchestown Festival, which runs from April 27 to May 1.
Irish horses will be most impacted by the changes, with five-year-old hurdlers no longer benefiting from weight-for-age allowances, and a general decrease on the amount permitted per month across all distances.
Jockey Rachael Blackmore made history at Cheltenham today as she became the first woman to win the Champion Hurdle.
The daughter of a dairy farmer and a teacher, the jockey, 31, from Killenuale in County Tipperary, was not reared in a racing family but has been competing professionally in horse racing since 2015.
Today Rachael, who has been described as a reluctant heroine , couldn t hide her delight as she became the first female jockey to win the Unibet Champion Hurdle as she guided Honeysuckle to a brilliant victory at Cheltenham.
She produced the heavily-backed 11-10 favourite to lead between the final two flights and she bounded up the hill to go on and win in impressive fashion, bagging the £180,000 prize.
Cheltenham Festival: Three tips for day four including the Gold Cup
By Sporting Life
16:16 · FRI March 19, 2021
Timeform have three to follow for the final day s action at the Cheltenham Festival, the clearest top-rated horse, a flag horse on their Race Passes and a handicap fancy.
Clear on ratings
Elimay ridden by Mark Walsh
Willie Mullins has dominated the two mares’ races over hurdles since they were introduced at the Festival and there’s every reason to expect it will be the same story in the Mares’ Chase which will be run for the first time this year. At a Festival that has been notable for some small fields, a double-figure entry is an excellent start for the new race and Mullins is responsible for four of the 11 runners with two in particular, Colreevy and Elimay, standing out. Novice Colreevy is unbeaten in three starts over fences this season but it’s the year-younger Elimay who tops the ratings. She barely has more experience over fences herself but has won t