JCB Triumph Hurdle Trial |
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| (Registered As The Finesse Juvenile Hurdle) Grade 2, Cheltenham 12:05 £80,000 guaranteed, 4yo only, 2m 1f, Class 1  |
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1 Sir Gino 5/4
2 Burdett Road 6/5F
3 Milan Tino 6/1
7 ran Distances: 10l, 1l, ½l
Time: 4m 13.06s (slow by 16.06s)
He's made Burdett Road look ordinary 🤯
— CheltenhamRacecourse (@CheltenhamRaces) January 27, 2024
Sir Gino is sensational in the JCB Triumph Trial 👏 pic.twitter.com/nrHFMlmgVl
Trained by Nicky Henderson, Sir Gino had previously caught attention with a successful hurdling debut at Kempton. However, he faced a more formidable opponent this time in Burdett Road, a Royal Ascot winner trained by James Owen.
Burdett Road had demonstrated proficiency in hurdles with two prior wins over obstacles, and jockey Harry Cobden aimed to keep him anchored at the back of the pack due to his enthusiasm in his first race since November.
As the two leading contenders closed in on the long-time leader Milan Tino turning into the straight, Sir Gino, ridden by James Bowen, displayed a significant burst of acceleration, pulling two lengths ahead of his main rival. The most impressive aspect, perhaps, came after the final hurdle, where Sir Gino surged 10 lengths clear of the 6-5 favorite Burdett Road.
Following this victory, Sir Gino is now the 6-4 favorite for the Triumph Hurdle according to Quinnbet, a notable shift from the previous odds of 9-2.
“He’s very good and has always sort of told us that,” said Henderson.
“That was impressive and in which case he is pretty smart and is a very talented individual – he always has been since the day we started with him. Jerry McGrath found him in France for Joe and Marie (Donnelly).
“I think he learnt a lot at Kempton, he was a bit novicey and he was very green when he hit the front at Kempton, but knew exactly what he needed to do today. James said he gave him one ‘let’s go’ and the acceleration was considerable.
“He jumped much slicker today than Kempton and we’ve been practising a bit. He’s got the hang of it now.
“I think we’ve all been quite bullish but rather reluctant to say too much in case we end up with egg on our face, which you invariably do, but he’s good.
“He’s got all the attributes and shows it to you, we were just going to find out today and I think we have.
“He’s got scope and we’ve got to go through the motions, he’s a four-year-old, but he knows his job.
“We always said we would come here and at the time I think we thought Burdett Road might go elsewhere. I think he just comes straight back (for the Triumph Hurdle) now.
“I don’t think he needs any more practice. He would jump a fence, so you have got to look after the future as well as the present.”
Owen is still planning to head to the Festival with Burdett Road, although he admits his charge will have to take a leap forward if he is to trouble Sir Gino in a rematch.
He said: “It is disappointing to get beaten but that is horseracing. I think we have bumped into a very good horse there and it is going to be hard to beat him in the Triumph Hurdle.
“I was quite pleased with how my horse settled today, and he jumped a lot better. He just got a bit keen as there was no pace from halfway, but I’m not making any excuses.
“He will need to improve a lot to beat Sir Gino, but I’m happy enough we still have got a good horse.
“It will be different conditions (in the Triumph), there will be more runners and there will be a lot more pace on, so we will give it another go at him.”
JCB Triumph Hurdle Trial
(Registered As The Finesse Juvenile Hurdle) (Grade 2)
£80,000 guaranteed, 4yo only, 2m 179y, Class 1
7 ran
Going: Good to Soft
POS. DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 Sir Gino 4 11-5 Nicky Henderson James Bowen 5/4
2 10 Burdett Road 4 11-5 James Owen Harry Cobden 6/5F
3 1 Milan Tino 4 11-0 Noel George & Amanda Zetterholm Jonjo O'Neill Jr 6/1
4 ½ Excelero 4 11-0 Jane Williams David Noonan 25/1
5 14 Le Fauve 4 11-0 Dan Skelton Fergus Gillard 33/1
6 16 Ellerton 4 11-0 Syd Hosie Sam Twiston-Davies 250/1
7 54 Cosmic Soul 4 11-0 Patrick Neville Craig Nichol 150/1
Year Horse Owner Trainer Weight Jockey SP
1990 Sayyure Brian Lovrey Nigel Tinkler 11-08 Graham McCourt 3/1
1991 Hopscotch Pipe Scudamore Racing Martin Pipe 11-02 Peter Scudamore 8/11 f
1992 Abandoned
1993 Major Bugler Colin Buckle Toby Balding 11-00 Adrian Maguire 13/2
1994 Pridwell Pond House Racing Martin Pipe 11-00 Richard Dunwoody 3/1
1995 Brave Tornado Bridget Swire Toby Balding 11-04 AP McCoy 7/2
1996 Abandoned
1997 Shooting Light John Brown Pat Murphy 11-00 Richard Dunwoody 10/11 f
1998 Zafarabad Elaine Baines David Nicholson 11-00 Richard Johnson 1/3 f
1999 Hors La Loi III John Martin Francois Doumen FR 11-08 Thierry Doumen 5/2
2000 Mister Banjo Million In Mind P’ship Nicky Henderson 11-08 Mick Fitzgerald 2/7 f
2001 Jair Du Cochet Miriam Montauban Guillaume Macaire FR 11-08 Jacques Ricou Evens f
2002 Vol Solitaire Barry Marshall Paul Nicholls 11-00 Joe Tizzard 11/1
2003 Moneytrain Tina Hamann Christian Von Der Recke GER 11-00 Robert Thornton 25/1
2004 Mondul Let’s Live Racing Milton Harris 11-08 Ollie McPhail 11/2
2005 Akilak Ada Partnership Howard Johnson 11-00 Graham Lee 50/1
2006 Abandoned
2007 Katchit D S J P Syndicate Alan King 11-07 Robert Thornton 2/1 f
2008 Franchoek J P McManus Alan King 11-07 Robert Thornton 10/11 f
2009 Walkon McNeill Racing Alan King 11-07 Robert Thornton 6/5 f
2010 Baccalaureate The Yes No Wait Sorries Nigel Twiston-Davies 11-00 Paddy Brennan 100/1
2011 Local Hero Phil Martin Steve Gollings 11-04 Tony McCoy 15/8 f
2012 Grumeti* The McNeill Family Alan King 11-04 Wayne Hutchinson 7/4 jf
2013 Rolling Star Michael Buckley & Vestey Family Nicky Henderson 11-07 Barry Geraghty 5/2
2014 Le Rocher John White & Anne Underhill Nick Williams 11-07 Richard Johnson 2/1
2015 Peace And Co Simon Munir & Isaac Souede Nicky Henderson 11-07 Barry Geraghty 4/9 f
2016 Protek Des Flos Potensis Bloodstock Ltd Nicky Henderson 11-00 Noel Fehily 25/1
2017 Defi Du Seuil J P McManus Philip Hobbs 11-07 Barry Geraghty 1/5 f
2018 Apple’s Shakira J P McManus Nicky Henderson 10-12 Barry Geraghty 1/7 f
2019 Fakir D'Oudairies M L Bloodstock Joseph O’Brien IRE 11-00 J J Slevin 4/1
2020 Galahad Quest Holt, Macnabb, Robinson & Jeffrey Nick Williams 11-0 Harry Cobden 6/1
2021 ABANDONED
2022 Pied Piper Caldwell Construction Ltd Gordon Elliott 11-0 Davy Russell 11/8F
2023 Comfort Zone John P McManus Joseph O'Brien 11-5 Jonjo O'Neill Jr 2/1F
