CLOSE BROTHERS MARES' HURDLE - PREVIEW & TIPS
2:40 CHELTENHAM
CLOSE BROTHERS MARES' HURDLE (REGISTERED AS THE DAVID NICHOLSON MARES' HURDLE) (GRADE 1) (GBB RACE)
Woodhoh tipped to shine in the absence of Champion Hurdle star Lossiemouth.
MARES' HURDLE - PREVIEW
First run in 2008, the Mares’ Hurdle was introduced to give elite female hurdlers their own championship stage at the Cheltenham Festival and it has since become one of the most recognisable mares-only contests in the National Hunt calendar. The race’s history is dominated by Willie Mullins, above all through the remarkable Quevega, whose six consecutive wins between 2009 and 2014 remain one of the Festival’s most iconic records. Since then, the roll of honour has continued to reflect genuine top-class quality, with the likes of Apple’s Jade, Honeysuckle and Lossiemouth all adding their names to it. Now run in honour of David Nicholson, whose influence on jump racing was immense, the race has grown from a useful addition to the programme into a proper Grade 1 championship in its own right.
This year’s renewal has been changed significantly by the absence of Lossiemouth, whose late switch away from the race removes the obvious established star and leaves the division more open than it first appeared. That creates a clear opportunity for Wodhooh, whose profile is that of a mare still progressing into the top bracket, while last year’s runner-up Jade De Grugy returns to hurdling after a productive campaign over fences. Behind them, solid, battle-hardened mares such as Take No Chances and Feet Of A Dancer bring depth, but the overall shape of the race suggests this may develop into a test of whether proven Grade 1 class can repel an improver arriving with momentum.
MARES' HURDLE - RUNNER BY RUNNER GUIDE
DREAM ON BABY - 28/1
A steadily progressive mare who has done well to climb the ladder this season, winning a Listed event at Kempton before placing in better company at Leopardstown and Doncaster. She shapes as though this trip suits well enough and she arrives in form, but the bare substance of her form leaves her short of what is normally required in a race of this depth. She looks more the sort to plug on for minor money than one likely to threaten the principals.
FEET OF A DANCER - 9/1
A notably consistent mare who has continued to improve this term, adding a Listed success at Punchestown and a Grade 2 win at Doncaster to her record. She stays further than this, handles testing conditions and is the type to keep finding when others have cried enough. The issue is that Wodhooh gave her weight and still had her measure at Leopardstown and reproducing that form off level weights makes life difficult. She has solid place claims, but the balance of the evidence suggests she may be vulnerable for win purposes.
JADE DE GRUGY - 5/2
A high-class mare and the obvious danger. She chased home Lossiemouth in this race last year before landing a Grade 1 at Punchestown and her switch to fences this season has done nothing to dent the impression that she remains one of the best mares around. Her Thurles success over fences in January was authoritative and she is versatile in terms of trip and ground. The slight question is whether reverting from fences to hurdles against a race-fit specialist at this discipline leaves her just a shade vulnerable, but on raw ability and proven Grade 1 form she clearly commands major respect.
JETARA - 28/1
She ran a perfectly respectable race in this contest last year before holding her own in Grade 1 company later in the spring, but her current campaign has lacked that same edge. Her Doncaster third was sound enough without suggesting she was about to produce a career best and even first-time blinkers feel more like a search for improvement than a sign of confidence. She is talented enough to outrun her price if bouncing back, but the overall profile suggests she is up against it.
SUNSET MARQUESA - 80/1
A useful mare in her own grade who has run with credit in handicaps and Listed company and shaped well enough in a small-field Ascot Grade 2 last time. The return to this trip is a plus and she has shown a willing attitude, but this represents a substantial jump in class. She would need a career-best effort by some margin and in a field containing a genuine top-class mare, that makes her very hard to fancy.
TAKE NO CHANCES - 10/1
A reliable and likeable mare who was third in this race last year and has run to a slightly higher level in defeat several times since. She is tactically straightforward, stays the trip and usually gives her running, which is more than can be said for plenty in Festival Grade 1s. Another bold showing looks likely, but a repeat of last year’s third feels more plausible than outright victory.
WODHOOH - 4/5
She has the clearest and strongest profile in the field. Winner of last season’s Martin Pipe over this course and distance, she has taken her form to another level this term with polished wins at Ascot and Leopardstown and her only defeat over hurdles came when chasing home Lossiemouth in the Aintree Hurdle. That is elite form in the context of this race. She travels strongly, settles well, handles Cheltenham and stays this trip fully. In a year lacking the division’s outstanding champion, she looks the one most likely to take command of it.
MARES' HURDLE - FINAL THOUGHTS
This does not look a deep Mares’ Hurdle by the standards of the very best renewals, but it does feature one mare with a notably solid claim to dominate. Wodhooh has the Festival form, the current-season form and the tactical versatility that make her very hard to oppose and she sets a standard the others may struggle to reach unless something goes wrong.
Jade De Grugy is the chief threat and rates the clear second choice on class, while Take No Chances can again run well enough to make the frame in a race where consistency counts for plenty.