Mares’ Hurdle Tips

Mares Hurdle Preview

by Will Smith…

You can argue until the cows come home as to whether Lossiemouth should be running in the Champion Hurdle or not, but the fact remains that she has the option of a (supposedly) easier task in trying to win the Mares Hurdle.

I say ‘supposedly,’ as you could make a very tangible case for the Mares Hurdle having much more depth to it, and more genuine Grade 1 winning hurdlers too. Some of those Grade 1s have been in mares’ only company, but it does look a very competitive renewal of this year’s Mares’ Hurdle.

I’m not so sure that Lossiemouth has as much in hand of her rivals as the market currently suggests, and she will probably face the most competition from the enemy that lurks within, as 4 other contenders, of which Gala Marceau, Ashroe Diamond and Echoes In Rain would all have a genuine chance at their best.

However, the main inclination I get with most the field is that they haven’t been in quite the form of last season for most of the current campaign. Gala Marceau, Echoes In Rain, Love Envoi, You Wear It Well and Maries Rock are all operating at a level below that of their peak in the past 12-24 months.

The one who stands out like a sore thumb to me, on the grounds that she probably already holds the best form in the race is Ashroe Diamond. She has also progressed nicely throughout last season and stepped forward markedly from seasonal reappearance in the Hatton’s Grace, to win over an inadequate 2m at Doncaster.

There isn’t much juice in her current best price of 7/2, but I’m hoping that 9/2 or 5/1 each-way for an extra place is available after declarations, as that would certainly make plenty of appeal. I’m also keeping an eye out and an ear close to the ground about Telmesomethinggirl, as she suggested at Naas last time, when done for speed by Champion Hurdle entrant Zarak The Brave, that the fire for mid-range hurdling still burns…

Will Smith’s Mares Hurdle Tips

2023 Mares Hurdle Preview & Betting Tips – Cheltenham Festival – Will Smith

With the 2023 Cheltenham Festival fast approaching, and final running plans gradually becoming crystallised, it’s time to get adding to the WhichBookie Ante-Post selections for the big jamboree.

The small yet select list of picks feature on this page, and for the most part, are looking in decent fettle.

Decent fettle is exactly how you’d describe the condition the next instalment looked in, when hosing up in her prep run just over a month ago – the 7/1 each-way selection for the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle at 4.10 on the opening day of the Festival is Echoes In Rain.

One of three Willie Mullins entries in the Mares Hurdle, Echoes In Rain also has a Champion Hurdle entry, but surely as long as Constitution Hill is around, then the easier option of winning the Mares Hurdle will be on Echoes In Rain’s agenda in two Tuesday’s time.

In 13 races on the flat or over hurdles, it is pretty extraordinary that Echoes In Rain has only been pitched in against her own sex on one solitary occasion, and 6 of those have come in Grade 1 company. She is a mare used to keeping herself in exalted company.

That one off foray against her own sex came in last year’s Mares Hurdle, where she was strong in the market and traveling well into the race, only for the unfortunate melee involving Telmesomethinggirl and Indefatigable at the second last hurdle, to really hamper Echoes In Rain’s momentum.

She attempted willingly to get back in the race, and even jumping the last it looked as if she may. But ultimately, the damage was done and she finished an honourable 5th, beaten 6½ lengths.

So, in theory, she has ground to make up on Marie’s Rock and Queen’s Brook, on that running. But, can easily do so, accounting for the distance and energy lost at the second last hurdle. Plus, this season, Echoes In Rain has looked a stronger, more settled individual.

On the back of three outstanding runs on the flat, including winning over 2m at Galway and also just being touched off in the Irish Cesarewitch, Echoes In Rain was just creeping her way into contention behind Stayer’s Hurdle contender Teahupoo and Honeysuckle in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle, when just stepping at the second last hurdle, and coming down.

She proved herself none the worse for wear however, by dotting up in a Grade 3 at Naas after that. Given her pedigree, the ability she showed on the flat over 2m, and that fact that she is settling much better than in her younger days, it should be now that 2m4f is her very best trip.

An interesting feature of this year’s Mares Hurdle could be that there may not be a huge amount of pace on the front end, and so with her ability to settle, it could be an opportunity for Paul Townend or Danny Mullins to ride her more prominently. Time will tell…

Of her rivals in the market, Honeysuckle is perhaps just off the level she has always shown and is a vulnerable favourite, Marie’s Rock might go for the Stayers’ Hurdle, Epatante is a better horse at 2m I believe but could be suited by a potentially slow pace, Love Envoi would want it very soft and hasn’t had an ideal preparation, while Brandy Love looked awkward on her reappearance behind Queen’s Brook.

Basically, there are many in the race with a chance, but none have the convincing and improving profile of Echoes In Rain. So, for these reasons, taking the 7/1 each-way with William Hill, Bet365 or Betfred for the Mares Hurdle is a very wise move in my view.

Non-Runner, No Bet and Best Odds Guaranteed are valuable concessions that Bet365 offer, while the other two are also Non Runner, No Bet.

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Steve Mullington’s Mares Hurdle Tips

The Mares’ Hurdle should be a thriller this year and it really does appear now that it has all been teed-up and scripted for the fantastic mare Honeysuckle to bow out in a blaze of glory on National Hunt’s greatest stage.

Honeysuckle has been an absolute darling for the sport, winning her first 16 races including two Champion Hurdles and this race in 2020. She tasted defeat for the first time when she could only manage third behind Teahupoo and Klassical Dream at Fairyhouse and she followed that with a second place in the Irish Champion Hurdle.

Connections are totally realistic in that she cannot beat Constitution Hill in the Champion Hurdle, so why not go for a race she truly can win instead? That is the path they have wisely chosen in my opinion and at 2/1 with most bookmakers she really does look like a “knocking bet” as the term goes.

So what of her rivals? Well, her chief danger appears to be Epatante (7/2). She was the winner of the Champion Hurdle in 2020 and placed behind Honeysuckle in their last two meetings. She scored with ease at Doncaster in late January and won’t have a problem with the step back up in trip.

After the BIG TWO comes the very classy Brandy Love (6/1) in the betting. Trained by Willie Mullins the seven-year-old mare has always been held in high regard and she showed why when thrashing Love Envoi by eight lengths in Grade 1 last spring. She had a little bit of a cobweb blowout at Fairyhouse last time and is sure to come on a great deal for that.

Echoes In Rain (6/1) looks a little too short in the betting for me. She tends to take a keen grip in her races but despite that scored easily at Naas last time, but remember that was over a shorter trip. She could only finish fifth to Marie’s Rock in this race last year so I would be surprised if she could lay any punches on the top two in the betting.

Love Envoi (7/1) comes into this feature two from two this season and is the current apple of Harry Fry’s eye. Last year’s Dawn Run victor, she’ll need to produce another career-best performance to take this but it is not against the realms of possibility that she may just do that.

The consistent Queens Brook (10/1) has yet to finish outside of the first three in 13 career starts, scoring on five occasions. She was last seen keeping up her amazing record going by winning the Grade 3 Quevega Mares Hurdle at Punchestown. She’s what you could call a placepot banker and will be a very popular pick on the day of the race.

Speaking of Queens Brook, Shewearsitwell (12/1) produced her best performance yet when turning over the short priced favourite Queens Brook in a Grade 3 for mares at Leopardstown in late December. Market watchers will notice she’s been backed down from 25/1 to 12/1 in the last couple of weeks so there are clearly some punters out there who respect her chances.

One longshot I would like to throw into the mix is Anna Bunina who should never be a 33/1 outsider. After a few seasons running in some large handicap hurdles in which she had plenty of success, she raced in mares only company last time and finished with a fair rattle behind Queens Brook. I can see her doing the very same thing at Cheltenham at generous odds.

Suggested bet: Queens Brook E/W @ 10/1

Will Smith’s Mares’ Hurdle Tips

Mares Hurdle Ante-Post Tips – 2022 Cheltenham Festival – Will Smith

The last couple of seasons, there has been plenty of eye-catching ante-post prices in the immediate aftermath of the Cheltenham Festival, but no so this time around – and those that were tempting were quickly snapped up.

Hence, why I only have one Cheltenham Festival 2022 recommendation. Having recommended taking the 50/1 about My Drogo for both the Arkle Chase and the Marsh Novices’ Chase, whichever he goes for, it will obviously become roughly a 25/1 bet. But given he is as short as 5/1 for the Marsh Novices’ Chase, we are still in a good spot.

I’m sure there will be copious opportunities as the season roars onwards towards the spring, and now is the time to get involved in the market for the Mares Hurdle, run on the Tuesday.

The three main pillars of ante-post betting are strongly catered for with these two each-way picks in the Mares Hurdle – a price likely to shorten, a likely runner (and winner!), and the scope for others in the market/race to be unsuited by the race or absent come the day.

Firstly, the picks themselves – Telmesomethinggirl at 16/1 each-way with Bet365, and Queens Brook also at 16/1 each-way with a variety of bookmakers, but for simplicity, Bet365 are also offering that price.

Telmesomethinggirl was a ready winner of the Mares’ Novice Hurdle last season, in a time only 0.79 seconds slower than Belfast Banter won the County Hurdle in over the same course and distance the next day, and who went on to win a Grade 1 at Aintree.

She sauntered through the field on the run downhill, and then on the long, punishing climb to the line on the New course at Cheltenham, she cleared away impressively in the manner of a mare who has a unique blend of speed and stamina. Two qualities that you will find in any winner of the Grade 1 Mares Hurdle itself.

Fresh from her brilliant victory at Cheltenham, she was then given the incredibly tough assignment of the Grade 1 3m novice hurdle at the Punchestown Festival. Held up in rear in that race, she was one of the last horses off the bridle, and as the race became dragged out in the closing stages, she faded a touch. Given the quality of rival she was taking on, it was a ‘fierce’ run, to coin a phrase often used by her brilliant trainer Henry De Bromhead.

The Mares Hurdle being on the sharper Old course will present a different challenge for her, but the 2m 4f trip will be the counterweight to this, and at 16/1 each-way with Bet365 she is a wild price.

Given she ran down the field on her seasonal reappearance last weekend, this is the clear reason why she has been pushed out by some of the layers, and I believe it to be an over-reaction. Don’t forget, just 6 weeks before her Cheltenham victory last season, she was being beaten in a handicap off a mark of 126!

Telmesomethinggirl clearly thrives in the spring, and De Bromhead will have both eyes firmly fixed on the Grade 1 Mares Hurdle on the second Tuesday in March for her.

The other mare to back now is the Gordon Elliott-trained Queens Brook, who is also quite significantly overpriced I feel.

At 16/1 each-way generally, but handily with Bet365 also, Queens Brook is another horse who we know will be targeted at the race, similar to Telmesomethinggirl – connections have said as such about both.

On her form last season, Queens Brook would be a 160/1 shot, let alone 16/1, but the fact that she wasn’t seen in the spring suggests something was amiss, and she has begun this campaign in much better form.

A cobweb-clearing run at Wexford was followed by a resounding win in a quick time at Fairyhouse at the beginning of November. Again, the bare form isn’t anything stellar, but sometimes the visual impression and other metrics can give you more meat on the bones.

With Queens Brook, we know she has the inherent class, as if you hark back to the Champion Bumper at the 2020 Cheltenham Festival, you will see Queens Brook pulling clear with Ferny Hollow, Appreciate It, Eskylane and Third Time Lucki.

Obviously, that level of pure ability gives her a more than likely chance of being naturally good enough to win a normal edition of the Mares Hurdle, and so must be backed now at 16/1 each-way generally.

In the copious ante-post lists, there are only two horses that would potentially worry me at this stage – the Willie Mullins-trained Shewearsitwell and the Peter Fahey-trained Royal Kahala.

Of the former, she could be brilliant, but hasn’t the experience around Cheltenham, hasn’t tried the 2m4f trip yet, and has been fragile. While Royal Kahala is the only horse in the Mares’ Novice Hurdle field of last season that I could see getting closer to Telmesomethingirl.

Royal Kahala wasn’t right that day, and she finished in front of Telmesomethinggirl at Fairyhouse recently. She has the natural ability to improve from, and could be the flyer this season.

At the best prices of 12/1 for Shewearsitwell and 20/1 for Royal Kahala, I wouldn’t dissuade you from backing them now as well, as I would hazard a guess that in addition to Telmesomethinggirl and Queens Brook, you would have 12/1, 16/1, 16/1 and 20/1 bets about the four horses that I can see going off single figures come the day. Granted, this methodology wouldn’t be for everyone.

Plenty of other horse in the lists will be aimed elsewhere, and plenty won’t be good enough, so one thing is for definite – take the 16/1 each-way about the pair with the solid Cheltenham Festival form: Telmesomethinggirl and Queens Brook.

Andrew Blair White’s Mares’ Hurdle Tips

Mares Hurdle Ante-Post Tips – 2022 Cheltenham Festival – Andrew Blair White

It is only a mere eight days away from the racing world descending into chaos as the white flag is raised for the Supreme. It’s a feeling of a year’s work and opinions all put to the table and the racing will finally give us the answers we so desperately crave. There have been plenty of races that I have covered and my ante-post book for WhichBookie has some horses already fallen by the wayside, as some others are in a very strong position. I am hoping at this stage, I can try to add some more solid options to the piece.

Step forward the Mares Hurdle, and step forward a mare that we have already shot a blank with this season on these columns. That horse was for the Stayers Hurdle, as when before a sub par run at Newbury, it looked like she might take that route. Things didn’t go right on that occasion, and she has been put away since for a tilt at the Mares Hurdle at Cheltenham.

If you haven’t guessed by now, the mare in question is Mrs Milner.

Now some of you may be thinking that I am beating the Paul Nolan drum once again, but it has been a drum that has been very successful for followers of this page and the vibes about this mare seem positive. Having won at the Cheltenham Festival last year when taking the Pertemps in taking fashion, she will be part of a very small but select team of horses that will be traveling over from the Enniscorthy yard.

Mrs Milner brings a lot of likable qualities to the Mares Hurdle, including some excellent course form. She has run twice at the course, when narrowly being denied by On The Blind Side in November 2020 before winning at the Festival last year. She started this year in sparkling fashion, when winning easily in a Listed mares race at Limerick, when jumping boldly to win.

This prompted connections to throw their hat in the ring of the Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury, where she slightly underperformed in fourth. That was a funny race with how the complexion of the race changed on multiple occasions, and she ran a little bit flat. Connections have decided to bide their time and have given her every chance to get back to her best form heading for a repeat win at The Festival. As much as some of her form would leave you with questions over a step up to Grade 1 company, I don’t feel she is a long way off the standard required this year and with a good pace to aim at, she should run well.

Stormy Ireland and Heaven Help Us are likely to go forward in this year’s renewal, with Burning Victory unlikely to be that far away. Whether they go too quickly for each other’s good remains to be seen, but it will suit a horse that can travel and jump as well as Mrs Milner can. In relation to some people’s doubts about her pace to stay in the race, I would note that she showed a lot of tactical speed to get out of trouble in last year’s handicap and I don’t think she is short of the pace required to stay in the hunt at crucial times of the race.

With all this in mind, and with connections acting like they have a good solid chance in this race, I think she should be backed. A price of 9/1 with SkyBet represents each way value with 3 places available ante-post and with the usual Non-Runner-No-Bet rules applying at this time of the season. She could be one that springs in the market if the continued good vibe continues to circulate her and her two stablemates who are coming over to Cheltenham. Let’s hope we’re roaring home a winner in the Mares Hurdle, and that it’s the purple and gray colours of SoftCo coming clear in front.