The Cesarewitch has recently been run largely for the benefit of National Hunt trainers with the likes of Messrs Henderson and Pipe enjoying considerable success. Henderson is back in search of more with his admirably consistent handicapper Lieutenant Miller but there are some classy horses in opposition.
Tiger Claw runs in the same colours as Lieutenant Miller and has not run since winning the Ebor for Lady Cecil. He is set to race off a 6lbs higher mark but connections have not been phased by that or by the prospect of lumping 9st 10lb between Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. Clearly both horses are fit and fancied with Ryan Moore an eye-catching booking for Henderson’s charge.
The Irish are not averse to the occasional tilt at this valuable prize and plenty of punters see Domination as a likely winner after two easy wins over hurdles. I am slightly put off by the fact that he has risen 18lbs since winning here in the Cesarewitch Trial just over a year ago. Pallasator was considered a possible for the Ebor earlier in the season but did not reappear until Haydock last month when staying on dourly behind Platinum. He is still lightly-raced and bookmakers are always wary of Sir Mark Prescott’s runners in the big handicaps.
However, they are presently running scared after a plunge on French raider Smoky Hill. The horse has halved in price since trainer Mikel Delzangles declared his intention to run whatever the conditions. By coincidence, Delzangles had just started working for Jimmy Fitzgerald when Trainglot won the race in 1990 in the same colours that are to be carried on Saturday by Smoky Hill.
He has stated that the horse is very well handicapped, something that is quickly apparent when looking at his last run. He finished fourth in the Prix Gladiateur, a Group 3 race. To get some idea of the form lines, trailing in his wake were Genzy (104) and Aiken (112). Smoky Hill gets in here with a rating of just 91. Earlier in the season he had finished only a couple of lengths behind Melbourne Cup hope and Gold Cup third Top Trip (113).
It appears that he has about 10lbs in hand, if the official figures are correct. His trainer has confirmed that he’ll run irrespective of the ground conditions so 10-1 looks too good to refuse.
Smoky Hill 10-1 (Sportingbet)
