Midweek Money Grab - Victor Chandler Chase

We don't get too involved on the horses during the jumps season but still watch plenty & keep track of the form of horses & stables as well as keeping track of prices for forthcoming races & looking at this weekend we think we've got a nice bet in the Victor Chandler Chase at Ascot - not huge odds but will surely be shorter come the day.

(Finian's Rainbow can show he's a cut above this field & a real Grade One chaser)

Nicky Henderson has his horses in great form with 9 winners from 36 runners in the last fortnight & he runs last year's Arkle second Finian's Rainbow in this £105k contest, he's a general 7/4 shot but available at 15/8 with SportingBet. A top class hurdler, beaten just twice, he mde up into one of the best novice chasers around last year with the Arkle the only time he's lost over fences from 6 tries, in fact all 3 of the races Finian's Rainbow has lost have been at the top level in Grade Ones. His only run this seson came in the Grade Two Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton & he won well in the end after a really bad blunder at the 4th last beating two of his rivals entered for Saturday in Wishfull Thinking & Oiseau de Nuit. With that race under its belt Finian's Rainbow should be much fitter now & has been given a sensible amount of time between races, they'll have worked on ironing out any kinks in his jumping too.

Chief rival in the market is Paul Nicholls' Al Ferof, a horse unbeaten in his last 5 races but with just two chases under its belt, the last hurdle win came in the Supreme Novices at Cheltenham - a race where all of the main protaganists seem to have gone chasing this year. On paper Al Ferof's chase successes look impressive with a Grade Two on debut & then a Grade One last time, but they were both in noice company & the last race at Sandown looked a particularly weak affair for the grade, Al Ferof was successful by just a neck at short odds. He did show battling qualities that day & the 2nd has since run Cue Card relatively close showing the form to be of a decent level but we'd not hesitate to say Finian's Rainbow would beat Cue Card out of sight & that sows what Al Ferof is up against. Nicholls' currentform is also a concern with one winner from 16 runners & a couple of disappointing ones, it may be noting but is worth bearing in mind.

(Gauvain - best of the rest?)

Of the others both Oiseau de Nuit & Wishfull Thinking look to have it all to do, they couldn't beat Finian's Rainbow with fitness on their side & a big mistake thrown in so can be discounted. Somersby has good placed form in top company but his best win came two years ago in a trappy 4 runner novice chase, his trainer Henrietta Knight had a welcome purple patch at the start of the month wih 3 winners in 5 days but in general the stable is very much on the wane & the days of Best Mate & Edredon Bleu are becoming a distant memory. Forpaddydeplasterer hasn't won since the 2009 Arkle & looks to have serious issues having finished 2nd 8 times in 11 runs since, plus 3 times in a row before the Arkle. David Pipe's I'm So Lucky simply looks overmatched. The one that could be capable of an upset is Nick Williams' Gauvain & we wouldn't write off at odds of 10/1 on Betfair, he's talented but has never realy fulfilled his promise & it could be getting a little late now, however if the selection falls he's right up there with the rest.

Overall we can see that this is for the most part a relatively even contest............. between the rest. Finian's Rainbow stands out on form & Sportingbet's 15/8 shouldn't stand up for long, we'd expect 6/4 on he day so get it now, he can this on his way to being a real Champion hase contender.

Selection:
Ascot, Saturday 21st January, Victor Chandler Chase - Finian's Rainbow at 15/8 (Sportingbet)