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| Cheltenham Runners 2007 |
Philip Fenton excited about first Festival runners 08/03/07
Ireland's four-times champion amateur rider Philip Fenton, now training at Carrick-on-Suir in Co Tipperary, has nominated the mare Shirley Casper in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper as his best chance of success at next week's Cheltenham Festival.
Fenton, who as a jockey landed the National Hunt Chase at the Festival
in 1996 aboard Loving Around, is looking forward to saddling his first-ever
runners at racing's showpiece event, and expects Shirley Casper to put
up a bold show in a contest the Irish have taken 11 times since its inception
in 1992. Irish-bred horses have won all bar one of the 14 runnings.
The six-year-old daughter of Presenting - an impressive winner of a point-to-point at Dundrum in March, 2006, before finishing a good second of 24 in a Cork bumper the following month - cost just 3,700 euros as a yearling at the 2002 Tattersalls Ireland January Sale. She has made a big impression this year, scoring on her return at Fairyhouse on December 2 and going on to capture a Grade Two contest at Navan 15 days later, battling to a short-head victory over Mick The Man.
Fenton said: "Shirley Casper is bang on course for the Weatherbys
Champion Bumper. She did her last piece of work at the Curragh yesterday
morning, and it was very satisfactory. We also have Woodbine Willie in
the race, but won't make a final decision on his participation until
later this week.
"She has had plenty of time to recover from her last race and we were delighted with her performance. It was very heavy at Navan that day, and better ground would suit her. I would say that she has improved with every run and we are hoping for a big run at Cheltenham.
"We often start off our youngsters in point-to-points - as we did with Shirley Casper - as it is a quiet way to introduce them to racing. I'm not sure whether that experience will come into play at Cheltenham, but as a trainer it (point-to-pointing) can give you an idea on how much ability and potential a horse has."
Fenton also has high hopes at the Festival for two other ex point-to-pointers, Arrive Sir Clive, who was beaten only six lengths when third to Aran Concerto in the Grade One Deloitte Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown on February 10, and Vic Venturi, who chased home Mister Top Notch in the Grade One Dr P J Moriarty Novice Chase at the Dublin track the same day.
He continued: "Arrive Sir Clive is going for the Ballymore Properties Novices' Hurdle - unfortunately he has to go and take on Aran Concerto again! He looks like a future three-mile chaser and we'll be happy to be back at The Festival next year for the Royal & SunAlliance Chase.
"It was not a proper run race last time. He lost some momentum after Catch Me knocked him when unseating at the second last, and he could not get back into the race after that. Cheltenham will suit this horse, as will the step up in trip, but there is no reason to think we can turn the tables with Aran Concerto.
"Vic Venturi had very solid form - he has only finished out of the first three once in his career - but we always had it in the back of our minds that we might need to sort his wind out. He had an operation in December and he ran a great race on his first run back, staying on well at Leopardstown behind Mister Top Notch.
"He bounced out of his last race brilliantly - better than I thought he would. We have still not decided which race he will go for but I might just be favouring the Jewson Novices' Handicap Chase ahead of the Royal & SunAlliance Chase."
With 13 winners so far this campaign - two more than in 2005/06 - Fenton
has settled well into the training ranks, and is delighted to be going
to Cheltenham with some live chances.
He added: "This is my third full season as a trainer and thankfully
we have a good team of horses here with some very nice youngsters still
to come out. We only have one or two horses off the Flat - most are store
horses and they need time to develop. We have about 75 horses in all
at the moment, including point-to-pointers, and I'm happy with that number.
"These last couple of weeks have been a bit nervy - you are just waiting for the big day to arrive - but it is very exiting and we are going across the water with horses that deserve to take their chances.
"Riding a winner at Cheltenham was fantastic satisfaction. To ride a winner at Cheltenham is most jockeys' dream. Now I would love to get into that winners' enclosure as a trainer!
"I would say Shirley Casper would be my best chance at The Festival this year. She's a classy mare, who travels very well in her races, and it could just fall into place for her."
