Me Voici

Me Voici ran a fine race on ground that would have been far too fast for him in the Matalan Anniversary four-year-old hurdle at Aintree on Thursday. Settled in mid-division by Daryl Jacob, he travelled well throughout until they rounded the home turn, when he just couldn’t quicken with Barizan and Sanctuaire when they went for home. He just kept on over the final two flights to finish sixth, beaten about 20 lengths by Orsippus and Barizan, but his knee action told you that he would be a different proposition with cut in the ground.

This was just his fifth run over hurdles. On his penultimate run before last Thursday, he ran out a really impressive winner of the Grade 1 juvenile hurdle at Chepstow’s Welsh Grand National meeting in December on heavy ground, and he again relished the testing conditions when staying on really well to beat Diktalina at Haydock in February. Nick Williams decided to skip the Triumph Hurdle with him because of the good ground, but it wasn’t any softer at Aintree. Stamina is his main attribute, and it was all too fast for him at Aintree, but he remains an exciting prospect. He will surely go chasing next season, he is made for jumping fences, and he will be a really exciting staying novice chaser if he does.

8th April 2010