Hill to peak at Kempton
Howle Hill is a confident selection in the Bet Now At WBX.COM Graduation Chase at Kempton.
Alan King has started the season in tremendous fashion and this seven-year-old is unbeaten in two starts over fences.
He also loves good ground, which is likely to be prevalent on Tuesday, and has some smart hurdle form to boot.
It is always encouraging when a smart hurdler takes well to the bigger obstacles and the way he attacked his fences at the first attempt was most impressive at Fontwell.
The time after that he was upped in class, taking on the likes of Paul Nicholls’ Good Spirit, Nous Voila and Patman Du Charmil.
Despite conceding weight to all of his rivals, Howle Hill showed too much dash and comfortably won by three lengths – leaving the impression there was better to come.
King’s gelding has an absence of over a year to overcome but looks a class above his rivals.
Mount Sandel can be forgiven a rather lacklustre reappearance at Chepstow last time and holds all the aces in the Pertemps Handicap Hurdle (Series Qualifier).
Oliver Sherwood’s six-year-old has always been highly thought of and showed flashes of decent form last term, most notably when third behind the smart Sir Jimmy Shand in a decent event at Newbury.
He was upped in class after that for a Grade Two event at Haydock but was never travelling in the desperate conditions behind Amaretto Rose.
Mount Sandel had a recent pipe-opener in a valuable race at Chepstow, won by Don’t Push It, and this looks more like his level.
Carl Llewellyn has a host of promising novice hurdlers to go to war with this season and one that fits into that category is Kid Charlemagne.
He reportedly has the biggest heart of any of the Weathercock House inmates so should be good enough to win the WBX.com World Bet Exchange Novices’ Hurdle.
Paul Nicholls has been pleased with Petit Lord since his switch to fences and he is two from two.
It will be a surprise if he fails to land the Weatherbys Bloodstock Insurance Novices’ Chase at Exeter.
The champion trainer can bring up a double as he unleashes Predateur to the chasing game in the WBX.com 0% Commission On Big Races Beginners’ Chase .
Not beaten far by some of the best young hurdlers around last year, Nicholls expects him to take high rank among the novice chasers.
Punters at Sedgefield will have to wait a while for the best bet, which appears to be Little Lu in the concluding gg.com Standard Open NH Flat Race.
Alan Swinbank’s charge was surprisingly beaten last time but she had been off for over a year and will strip fitter for this event.
