Queen Mother Champion Chase 2021

[Lobos]

Don't forget he's also entered in the hurdle on Sunday as well.
Not normally what you'd be doing if you were targetting a champion chase.
However, what's normal these days.

He ran over flat and hurdles until December last season. Must be the way they tune him up for the proper races. Unusual strategy but if it worked last year and ended in a festival victory.......

[Dessie the great]

Have any of you followed me in on Chosen Mate? Have just watched his Grand Annual win back again. Cruised up to them 2 out and would have won even cosier had he not got in tight to the last. Very good performance in view of it was just his 4th chase outing. His winning time was a fair bit quicker than Politolouge's Champion Chase win albeit carrying 6lb less. That said with expected improvement this season he could take high rank amongst the 2 mile chasers. They are running him earlier than most over flat and hurdles ( as they did last season) and presumably will test him against the best chasers from late December onwards. He surprised connections winning as he did at the Fez and hopefully will keep on surprising them. I liked his entry v PTKO at the weekend which shows to me they think a lot of him. He was probably pulled out in view of expected heavy rain as he is ground dependant and is much better on a faster surface which is good news as far as the Fez is concerned. At 33/1 I think he is worth jumping on in a very open Champion Chase year.

He may develop into a Champion Chase prospect but he would need a fair step up in form imo.

You cant really compare his run in the hcap with that of Politalogue as they were on different tracks and Chosen Mates run was on much faster ground.

Elliot doesnt normally campaign horses he considers potential G1 horses by mixing them over hurdles and fences. I reckon he considers him a G2 or G3 horse and may line him up for a tilt at the Grand Annual again

[robith]

Endured the latest Final Furlong podcast, and in between dickhead talking endlessly about his sore throat, they all seemed fairly adamant that PTKO would be targeted at the Mare's Chase

I guess the big issue with that pod is the close connection with Betfair these days. Yer man spent half the pod talking about Envoi Allen for the bloody Arkle ffs

[Faugheen_Machine]

Endured the latest Final Furlong podcast, and in between dickhead talking endlessly about his sore throat, they all seemed fairly adamant that PTKO would be targeted at the Mare's Chase

I guess the big issue with that pod is the close connection with Betfair these days. Yer man spent half the pod talking about Envoi Allen for the bloody Arkle ffs

It was Paul Ferguson who kept banging on about the Mares Chase but I really can't see it, unless she disappoints early in the season.

[Lobos]

It was Paul Ferguson who kept banging on about the Mares Chase but I really can't see it, unless she disappoints early in the season.

It sort of makes sense with HDB having Notebook and APT that could drop down. That said, the owners are a bunch of lads who went against the trainers advice last season and went for the Arkle instead of the Novice Chase. That paid off bigtime so they will be aiming for the CC in March. Clearly, if she doesn't come up to scratch , the Mares Chase is a great race to fall back on. She is still available at 12/1 any race which covers every eventuality.....apart from her not turning up of course! I've backed her for the CC and TWAR just in case but do think she'll end up in the big one.

[RufusFlynn]

I know there are question marks but is Altior at 7/1 worth a dart? it is the biggest price he has been since his final bumper run at Punchestown in 2015.

The CC is generally a small field and not always the highest quality & NH is the right man to bring him back to regain his title. If he'd ran this year surely he would have beaten Politologue and been a 3 x winner of the race and would be no where near the current price.

Also doubts about DDS stepping up to Ryanair and we know CPS is fragile so no guarantees. PTKO looks a strong contender but again, the novices don't always step up.

Convinced myself that something been there and done it is the way to go - it's either here or nowhere and don't think his price will drift any bigger.

[Lobos]

Altior is a year older and is so fragile these days. If I do back him it will be when NRNB comes in and not before.

[BookieBasher]

Altior is a year older and is so fragile these days. If I do back him it will be when NRNB comes in and not before.

Yes whilst Altior is another year older, I wouldn’t exactly put him in the fragile category. In a race that can very easily end up with a small field I think 8/1 is great value. If I had a free £50 bet to put on either Altior or Chacun it wouldn’t even be a contest.....

By the time he’s won his first race of the season and when NRNB kicks in 8/1 will be long gone

[charlie]

Altior is a year older and is so fragile these days. If I do back him it will be when NRNB comes in and not before.

I think it's unfair to label Altior as fragile. He failed to recover from a dormant splint that had never caused him any problems before, and is 4/4 in the years leading up to 2020, which is fairly remarkable and tough. Chacun, IMO, is far more fragile, having raced 4 times in 4 years and had loads of problem. When I take Chacun as a false favourite and then combine that with the number of 10 & 11 (even 12) year olds that have won the Champion Chase, I actually think Altior @ 8/1 is a decent bet as the market currently stands.

[Lobos]

PTKO available at 3/1 for tomorrow. That's a great price.

[Ray]

PTKO available at 3/1 for tomorrow. That's a great price.

Ill be backing the storyteller at those prices, with race fitness on his side, double with quilixios should be a nice go

[Lobos]

Ill be backing the storyteller at those prices, with race fitness on his side, double with quilixios should be a nice go

If PTKO can't win that tomorrow then my CC bets are in tatters !

[Lobos]

Money coming for PTKO now. HDB used the race tomorrow 4 years in a row as a seasonal debut for his Champion Chase winner Sizing Europe. Think that speaks volumes.

[Ray]

Yeah good luck mate! i said to my pals a couple of weeks ago when the storyteller won that it would probably be the last time we saw him
Win until cheltenham most likely! But i fancy him tommorow with the race fitness on side i think maybe they knew he could win some money over the summer

[Dessie the great]

If PTKO can't win that tomorrow then my CC bets are in tatters !

I wouldnt say that. It will take a fair effort for her to win tomorrow without the mares allowance. There are two horses rated 4 or 5 lbs higher than her running off level weights. If either of those run to their mark she will need to run to about 165 plus (including mares allowance) to win. That would be a fair effort on her first run of the season over a trip that may or may not suit. If only beaten a length or two id still give her the same chance in a QMCC over her best trip. She is on the upgrade so has another 6 months improvement in her.