Abacadabras

Abacadabras ran a massive race in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle. Held up early on by Davy Russell, he travelled really well down the hill over the third last flight. He moved up in behind the leaders on the run to the second last, but the departure of Elixir D’Ainay and Captain Guinness there, and the wayward tendencies of Asterion Forlonge, left him in front as they straightened up for home, and that was probably earlier than his rider would have wanted. He did pick up impressively from the final flight and, despite the fact that he gave best to Shishkin, he ran all the way to the line, with the pair of them pulling well clear of their rivals.

Shishkin is a top-class novice hurdler and Abacadabras went down by just a head to him, with the pair of them finishing 11 lengths clear of their rivals in a messy race that was run in a fast time. Gordon Elliott’s horse is a top class novice himself, he split Ballymore Hurdle winner Envoi Allen and Champion Hurdle third Darver Star in the Royal Bond Hurdle in December, and he won all three other races over hurdles before Cheltenham, including the Grade 1 Future Champions Hurdle at Leopardstown’s Christmas Festival. He is all pace, and he would have done even better here if the race hadn’t developed as it did, leaving him in front earlier than ideal, or if the ground had been faster than soft. He is only six and he could make up into a genuine Champion Hurdle contender for next year.

Cheltenham 10^th March, 2020