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Paul Nicholls five hurdlers to follow for the 2024/25 season
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Blueking D'Oroux can have a big season in the staying division
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Kabral Du Mathan the dark horse in the pack
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Monmiral aimed at successive Cheltenham Festival wins
The 2024/25 National Hunt season is now on the horizon and Betfair amabassador Paul Nicholls has outlined five hurdlers to keep on side during the campaign. The Ditcheat handler outlines their targets for the year whilst also going into depth on how they have summered during the off-season.
Afadil
"Afadil is a real fun handicap hurdler, who ran some really good races last year winning a good race at Musselburgh in the new year.
"He could start in the Silver Trophy at Chepstow or he could end up going to the first Cheltenham meeting in October with a view to having an entry in the Greatwood Hurdle."
Liairi
"Liari won three races last year and kept on improving. He was a little bit unlucky at Cheltenham when he was travelling well when the hurdle swung back in front of him and stopped him in his tracks and Harry (Cobden) wisely pulled him up.
"He is probably going to start at Chepstow in the 4YO only handicap hurdle and again he will have an entry in the obvious handicap hurdles throughout the season."
Blueking D'Oroux
"Blueking D'Oroux had a great season last year in his first season out of novice hurdles.
"On his debut he won very nicely at Cheltenham and then he won the Coral Hurdle at Ascot, again really nicely which was good form with the horse he beat winning a Grade 1 at Aintree in the Spring afterwards
"He ran very well in the Long Walk Hurdle for a 4YO, in history not too many 4YO's have won the Long Walk.
"We had a little setback with him mid-season and then he ended up running a good race being hugely disadvantaged at the weights at Sandown.
"I think the plan this year is to go in those long distance hurdle races being five and a year older and stronger that should suit him well and I suspect we will start him off, although no plans are set in stone, in the Coral Hurdle at Ascot and then perhaps look at the Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot.
"There are plenty of options for him but he really is an improving young horse who could have a really good season over hurdles before he goes chasing possibly in a year's time."
Kabral Du Mathan
"A very interesting 4YO that is eligble for handicap hurdles is Kabral Du Mathan. He has only run twice and has won twice and I think he has a mark of 123 which I think is very workable.
"He had a minor little setback after he won at Huntingdon so we could not run him again but all the time we lost off him and off 123 he could be very well handicapped.
Monmiral
"An obvious one for handicap hurdle races this year is Monmiral who did really well last year after we abandoned jumping fences which he does not like.
"He qualified for the Pertemps Final at Cheltenham finishing fourth at Chepstow where he just needed the run and he went on to win the Pertemps Final very nicely.
"He is in sort of no mans land a little bit with his handicap mark but I assume we will go down the handicap route and try and qualify him for Cheltenham again and the Pertemps Final will be his big target unless he improves quite a lot and then ran in some graded races.
"I don't quite see him as being a Grade 1 winning hurdler but he might improve enough to run in a Grade 2 somewhere"