5:20 Leopardstown – Monty’s Star
After enduring a lean period over Christmas, the Henry De Bromhead team are back in form with a 21% strike rate in the last 14-days. MONTY’S STAR is a very well-bred son of leading National Hunt stallion Walk in the Park. A half-brother to 5 winners, most notably Monalee, who ran so well for the same connections and finished 2nd twice at the Cheltenham festival, there is plenty of reason for optimism that Monty’s Star can make up into a nice horse. He finished 2nd on his final start in Point-to-Points at Lingstown in December, form that has been boosted by the 4th placed horse who has won in the interim. Although there look to be some good recruits in this field from Messrs. Mullins and Elliott, he makes a lot of appeal and is likely to be a bigger price than he should be because of the pedigrees and price-tags of his main rivals. David Roche has ridden 22 winners for the yard and is a very capable pilot and hopefully Monty’s Star can prove to be a name to look out for in the future.
1:45 Wetherby – Miss Wachit
A mare’s maiden hurdle, over an extended 2-miles 5-furlongs on ground that is forecast to be Heavy, this race is going to require some serious stamina and that could bring MISS WACHIT into play. Alex Hales 6-year-old has finished 4th on both career starts to date, in a Southwell bumper last April and then on her hurdles debut at Market Rasen last month. On both occasions she has travelled nicely but been readily outpaced when the sprint for home has begun. Given her pedigree, it is not surprising that she is now tried up in trip, as her sire Flemensfirth is not particularly renowned for 2-mile speed and most of the winners in the family were 3-mile chasers and point-to-point winners. This race is likely to be run to suit and the extra distance should bring about a marked improvement.
