Premier Novices’ Hurdle third Cannock Park will skip high-profile options at both the Cheltenham Festival and Aintree’s Grand National meeting in favour of teeing-up a shot at a valuable event on Sandown’s end-of-season card.
Paul Robson’s six-year-old was third in Grade One company at Aintree on Boxing Day, having won at Cheltenham on his hurdling debut, and again picked up a bronze medal at Kelso in further graded action on Saturday.
He finished just two lengths adrift of the winner Personal Ambition and his handler was delighted to see him also bridge the gap with Formby Hurdle conqueror Jango Baie, who filled the runner-up spot in the Scottish Borders.
Cannock Park holds an entry in the County Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, while a return to Grade One action at Liverpool in the spring was also mooted as an option moving forward.
However, Robson intends to send his charge to Bangor before finishing the season in the £100,000 bet365 Novices’ Championship Final Handicap Hurdle at Sandown on April 27.
Robson said: “He made up 14 lengths on Jango Baie at Kelso, which I was absolutely thrilled about, and it was over a trip I thought might be a little bit far for him, but he looked like he stayed it out fine.
“He’s come out of his race absolutely fine, but I’m not going to take him to Cheltenham or Aintree. I’m going to take him to Bangor on March 23 – there is a £30,000 class two race there – and then it will be straight to Sandown for the £100,000 final on the last day of the year (season).
“We’ll take him to Bangor in three weeks and then he’ll have five weeks between those two races.”
The Cannock Park team at Cheltenham in November (Nigel French/PA)
Cannock Park has excelled for Robson this season, flying the flag for the former jockey, who now combines training a small string with duties in his undertaking business in the Scottish Borders.
However, the gelding’s future lies over fences, with the handler already eyeing next season’s novice chase campaign.
“He’s definitely next season’s chaser and he jumped absolutely faultless at Kelso,” continued Robson.
“If anything, he maybe just gave them a little bit too much height, but I’m thrilled with him and the horse has run another absolute blinder. I’ve ridden him myself this morning and he was bouncing.”
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Paul Robson is keen for Cannock Park to make the most of home advantage in the bet365 Premier Novices’ Hurdle at Kelso on Saturday.
The six-year-old has enjoyed a fine season so far, winning a Bangor bumper and a maiden hurdle at Cheltenham before finishing a fine third behind Jango Baie as a 40-1 shot for the inaugural running of the Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree on Boxing Day.
With Nicky Henderson’s Jango Baie again in opposition, Robson is fully aware his stable star his work cut out to turn tables, but is delighted the rematch is taking place on his local track.
“Cannock Park is in great fettle and seems very well in himself,” he said.
“There’s no pressure as he’s been beaten by Jango Baie in the past and the betting suggests he’ll get beaten again. We’re going there very hopeful, but without any pressure.
“He (Jango Baie) is still going to have to come and get us as it is probably the first time we’re going to have our ground. If you go down through the horse’s pedigree he wants top of the ground, we’re going to get it on Saturday and Craig Nichol (jockey) knows Kelso like the back of his hand.
“Jango Baie has got to come six hours up the road and we’ve got 20 minutes to go down the road, so I’m absolutely thrilled we’ve got a race of this magnitude at Kelso.
“Whether six hours travelling will equate to the 12 lengths he beat us at Aintree, probably not, but he did get beat the last day so it’s not as if he’s super human. We’ll have a crack at him anyway.”
Jango Baie in action at Huntingdon (David Davies/PA)
Jango Baie was impressive at Aintree, but was no match for Ben Pauling’s Handstands in the Sidney Banks Memorial Novices’ Hurdle at Huntingdon last month.
Pauling is represented this weekend by Personal Ambition, who has his sights raised after notching a second win from three starts over hurdles at Doncaster early in the new year.
Pauling said: “He’s in great order and this has been the aim for a long time. The ground will be fine and two-mile-two is ideal, so I’m looking forward to seeing how he gets on.
“He won first time over hurdles at Warwick as he liked, beating Jingko Blue of Nicky’s, who I think is a decent horse and has since won a handicap at Sandown very nicely.
“We then went to Sandown for a Grade Two novice where he got stuck in the mud and nothing really went his way, then he went up to Doncaster and did it as he liked, so I think he’s fairly unexposed.
“He’s in very good form and seems to be going the right way, so hopefully he can put up a good show.”
Brucio on her way to victory at the Dublin Racing Festival (Niall Carson/PA)
Stuart Crawford’s Brucio is an interesting contender from Ireland, having followed up a low-key win at Catterick with a wide-margin handicap victory at the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown.
Crawford said: “She seems in good form at home, hopefully she’s in as good a form as what she was going to Leopardstown.
“We were torn between going for the Morebattle and going for the novice race on Saturday and if the handicapper is right, she probably is better off in the novice. She’s carrying less weight and she’s higher rated than most of her rivals in it.
“Things have just fallen right for her and hopefully she can put in another big run this weekend.”
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Cannock Park has been handed a big local target by Borders handler Paul Robson after his pleasing third in Aintree’s Formby Novices’ Hurdle on Boxing Day.
Although a winner at Cheltenham on his hurdling bow, it was a bold move by Robson – who combines training his small string with running a funeral directors business – to run the six-year-old in the Christmas Grade One on just his second start over timber.
Cannock Park gave a fine account when attempting to make all in the hands of Craig Nichol and although well held by the front two, he plugged on gamely to make the podium at odds of 40-1.
Despite being pleased with the performance, Robson believes the gap to the front two is too much to bridge at present, with ambitions of running in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle switched for a crack at Kelso’s bet365 Morebattle Hurdle on March 2, where he will seek a famous local victory.
“He’s a lovely horse and he deserved his place in the race at Aintree,” said Robson.
“He was probably a lucky third given the horse that fell, but at the same time, I would say all roads don’t lead to the Supreme. I feel he is not quite that level.
“He’s going to be a lovely, lovely horse and we might look at the Morebattle at Kelso in early March, but we won’t be going to Cheltenham.
“The Morebattle is worth a lot of money and he needs two more runs to qualify, so he is going to have to be busy between now and then.
“He will probably go to Kelso on the 14th, there is just a normal class four novice and he will obviously have a penalty. If he runs there, then we will probably run him in a handicap three or four weeks after that in preparation for the Morebattle.”
A return to Aintree for further Grade One action in the spring is a possibility granted a decent performance in his Kelso target, but Robson is already looking forward to next season where he envisages Cannock Park making his mark over the larger obstacles.
“I imagine that is what he will do and if he runs a blinder in the Morebattle, we can go back to Aintree and if he doesn’t, he can have a break and come back as a novice chaser,” said Robson.
Cannock Park and connections after winning at Cheltenham (Nigel French/PA)
“I’ve never been too fussed about him being too quick over his hurdles as I’ve been trying to teach him to jump correctly. We’ve always wanted him to be a chaser, we know he is going to be a chaser and we hope he is going to be a high-class two-miler. That’s what I think his forte will be.”
Cannock Park is by far the best horse to pass through Robson’s hands and although initially disappointed his first foray into Grade One company ended in defeat, the handler is now delighted to be flying the flag for the Scottish Borders with his promising inmate.
Robson added: “We were utterly thrilled and I think the fact we have never been in races like that before, I was kind of gutted finishing third, but when you come away and start looking at it, you get an understanding of what we have just achieved, which is massive.
“We’re delighted and proud of the horse and just very excited. Every trainer I have bumped into when racing since has been chuffed for the horse and for me which is lovely, and they obviously have a lot more experience than me and are delighted there is a nice horse in the north which is super.”
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It could be a memorable Boxing Day for Paul Robson when he saddles Cannock Park in the William Hill Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree.
The fledgling handler, once a member of the riding fraternity before injury forced him to quit the weighing room, has an interesting back-story and splits his time training a small string with duties in his undertaking business in the Scottish Borders.
Robson classes training great Henrietta Knight among his close circle of friends and in Cannock Park may have found just the horse to join his great mentor on the big stage.
Cannock Park and connections after winning at Cheltenham (Nigel French/PA)
After some encouraging runs in bumpers, the five-year-old landed a telling blow at Cheltenham on his hurdling bow and his trainer feels he is more than worthy of his place in this Grade One contest.
Robson said: “I think he deserves his shot and at the end of the day we’re taking a step up, but so is Nicky Henderson’s horse (Jango Baie), he has only run once over hurdles. We’re in the same boat as him and the only difference is we have some bumper experience behind us.
“I think he beat some nice horses at Cheltenham and I would like to see it softer but even if it is good ground, I don’t think it would bother him. We haven’t run him on anything other than soft or heavy ground, so if it is good, it will be interesting to see how he acts on it.
“Liverpool itself will definitely suit him and looking at the form of the race, it could be lively – as there are plenty of front-runners in there.
“It looks a proper Supreme trial and I’ve looked at the race two or three ways from the aspect of which would I like to be riding and, at this moment, I would still be quite happy to be on my own. He’s got a high cruising speed and he stays well.
“There is plenty of depth to the race. We’re all excited and we don’t for any second feel we shouldn’t be in it, anyway. We’re there to give it a go and he will be going there as well as we have ever had him, so there are no excuses.”
Henderson has voiced his displeasure that this newly created race has replaced the Tolworth Hurdle but he could be the first to get his name on the roll of honour with the aforementioned Jango Baie.
The four-year-old just held on to register a nose victory over Tellherthename after the duo had a ding-dong battle up the Ascot straight and both are fancied to be thereabouts in this high-class event.
Henderson told Unibet: “The form of his Ascot win has worked out nicely, and while he takes on Ben Pauling’s horse again, I’d like to think our lad has come on for that first run.
“He handles the ground and could be quite an exciting prospect. Put it this way, we’ll know where he is in the pecking order after this.”
Since finishing second in that Ascot contest, Ben Pauling’s Tellherthename has bolted up at Huntingdon, with subsequent winners galore among the beaten horses.
“He’s a lovely horse with a lot of natural speed,” said Pauling.
“The Huntingdon race looked just a run-of-the-mill race in my eyes, and I expected him to win and he did win very nicely, but actually the form has worked out very well.
“The second (Lucky Place) came out and won by 13 lengths at Doncaster, the fifth (Soigneux Bell) has won by 11 lengths at Fontwell and the seventh (West Warhorse) has won by 16 lengths at Fakenham.
“He improved a lot from his first run, when he met Jango Baie, and he does seem to be in particularly good form with himself.
“I think he’s a very exciting horse for the future, we couldn’t be any happier with him at home and I’m looking forward to seeing how he gets on.
“It’s nice to see a proper Grade One contested by some nice, young horses.”
It was a novice hurdler that provided Fergal O’Brien with his first Grade One victory and now Kamsinas bids to another top-level strike, hot on the heels of the yard’s thrilling Long Walk Hurdle triumph with Crambo at Ascot on Saturday.
Whereas Poetic Rhythm’s 2017 Challow Hurdle success was built on pure stamina, O’Brien’s latest model possesses plenty of speed and showed lots of class when tasting Grade Two glory at Haydock last month, where he accounted for the reopposing Making Headway.
Kamsinas winning at Haydock last month (Nigel French/PA)
“We’ve loved him from day one,” said O’Brien. “He won his bumper for us and has done very little wrong since. He’s training very well and we’re really, really happy with him.
“He won his novice hurdle at Worcester and he won a Grade Two at Haydock and he deserves to take his chance.
“He’s a lovely stamp of a horse and we’re really looking forward to him. Fingers crossed he can run well.”
Gordon Elliott’s Farren Glory tasted Royal Bond success earlier this month and sets a high standard making the trip over from Ireland, while there is an international feel to the event with the addition of French raider July Flower, who will be ridden by Felix de Giles for handler Mickael Seror.
Nicky Richards’ Florida Dreams got off the mark over hurdles at Ayr recently and will seek his second big victory at the Merseyside track, having claimed the Grade Two bumper there in the spring.
Chepstow scorer Jackpot D’Athou represents Paul Nicholls, while Alan King’s Favour And Fortune has already struck at Hereford and Wetherby over timber.
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Cannock Park is set to have his sights raised over the Christmas period when he heads to Aintree for the Formby Novices’ Hurdle.
The exciting prospect, who is the star of Borders handler Paul Robson’s fledgling string, was a convincing bumper winner at Bangor in October before immediately switching his attentions to timber and making a successful hurdling debut at Cheltenham the following month.
He downed some well-regarded opponents when making all at Prestbury Park and Robson is confident that there is more to come following an interrupted build-up to his jumping bow.
The handler is now keen to test the five-year-old’s big-race capabilities in Aintree’s Boxing Day Grade One, the feature of their newly-created Christmas meeting.
“He didn’t have the easiest of run-ups to the race, he had a small infection in his leg and he had a bit of an accident two or three weeks before,” explained Robson.
“He missed two or three weeks’ work going into Cheltenham, so I think there is definitely improvement to come on his fitness and he’s come back from Cheltenham all OK.
“I imagine we will now run him in what was the Tolworth at Aintree, I think a flat track will suit him best.”
In the immediate aftermath of Cannock Park’s Cheltenham victory, Robson was keen to keep things low-key and head to Wetherby for a simple novice event before thinking of bigger things.
Cannock Park and connections after winning at Cheltenham (Nigel French/PA)
However, a second look at the fixture list and an urge to find out just what is lurking under the exciting youngster’s bonnet has seen the lofty festive target enter the picture and a race that could help map out the rest of the gelding’s season.
Robson continued: “Looking at the race at Cheltenham, we think a flat track is going to be a lot better for his attributes and when we started looking at the programme, there wasn’t actually a race at Wetherby, funnily enough.
“When we looked at the calendar and saw the Tolworth had been moved to Aintree, it gives him a good chance to go there.
“I think we are right to say we would be dreaming to think he is a Supreme horse on the back of winning a Class Two maiden hurdle at Cheltenham, I think he certainly has to go and run in a high grade of race now to give us the nod whether he was good or not.
“Even if he was good enough, I think I would sidestep the Supreme and probably take him back to Aintree again in April – I think that would be more likely, but we will see.”
Despite shaping with real promise over the smaller obstacles, it appears the old cliché of ‘anything he achieves over hurdles is a bonus’ applies to Cannock Park and his training team are already looking forward to when their point winner jumps a fence in 12 months’ time.
“Before he ran at Cheltenham, we knew what we had and he was always going to be a better chaser than he was a hurdler – and the way he jumps would suggest that,” said Robson.
“So, we’re just along for the ride this season unless he turns out to be extra special, but we will find out in the Tolworth.
“He’s a very nice horse and we’re lucky to have him, he’s been a real find.”
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