squareintheair.com Handicap Chase |
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| Cheltenham 14:25 £100,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m 7f 199y, Class 2  |
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1 Calico 3/1
2 Matata
5/2F
3 Dancing On My Own 5/1
8 ran NR: Madara (not qualified), Royal Mer (withdrawn)
Distances: nk, 5½l, 4¾l Time: 3m 51.55s (fast by 0.45s)
That leap at the last ❤️
— CheltenhamRacecourse (@CheltenhamRaces) October 25, 2024
Calico fends off Matata in the https://t.co/sHH6onIVS9 Handicap Chase for @DSkeltonRacing pic.twitter.com/QXZROYoWad
Calico gave Dan Skelton a significant win, boosting his pursuit of a first trainers’ championship. After coming close last season, only to be edged out by Willie Mullins, Skelton has taken an early lead this time.
With over £50,000 for the winner in this two-mile event, Skelton had Calico ready to perform right out of the gate. Matata set a fast pace, demanding top-notch jumping. Calico was always travelling well and jumped impeccably, allowing Harry Skelton to challenge two fences from home.
Calico began to idle up the hill but managed to hold off a late surge from Matata, winning by a neck, with last year’s winner, Dancing On My Own, in third.
Skelton reflected, “He was just edged out by Triple Trade at the November meeting here last year. I knew how much he’d put into that first day and how empty he was up the run-in, so it’s taken him a season to get over it. The handicapper made it tougher, but today everything came together. Harry gave him a beautiful ride, and he even hurdled the ditch like I’ve never seen before.”
He added, “We’ll have to manage him carefully as he’s very good fresh and on decent ground. We’re considering the Desert Orchid at Kempton at Christmas, where the ground is usually decent. If it stays dry, we might fit in another run, but likely he’ll go straight to Kempton.”
squareintheair.com Handicap Chase
£60,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 2m, Class 2
8 ran
Going: Good
POS. DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 Calico 8 10-13 Dan Skelton Harry Skelton 3/1
2 nk Matata 6 11-8 Nigel Twiston-Davies Daryl Jacob 5/2F
3 5½ Dancing On My Own 10 12-0 Henry De Bromhead Darragh O'Keeffe 5/1
8 4¾ Coastguard Station 8 10-2 Henry Oliver David Noonan 14/1
7 3¼ Scarface 7 10-8 Joe Tizzard Brendan Powell 15/2
6 21 Triple Trade 8 10-10 Joe Tizzard Harry Cobden 13/2
PU Sir Tivo 10 10-2 Gary Hanmer Sean Bowen 66/1
PU
Arclight 5 10-11 Nicky Henderson Nico de Boinville 12/1
NR 10 Royal Mer 6 10-2 David Pipe NON RUNNER
NR 3 Madara 5 11-3 Keiran Burke NON RUNNER
