P'Tit Fute

P'Tit Fute wasn't favoured by the withdrawal of top weight Heavenly Blues in the Pertemps Qualifier at Leopardstown on Sunday and the consequent raising of the weights, which saw him carry top weight of 11st 7lb, but he made light of his burden and coped well with the softening ground to run out a ready winner. You could have named him as the winner from a long way out, as Mark Walsh was able to sit still until the approach to the last, and he always looked confident that he could make up the two lengths by which Kasimali led down to that obstacle.

This was P'Tit Fute's first attempt at three miles, although he had been beaten twice over two and a quarter, and he saw it out well. More than that, it is probable that he improved for the step up in trip. He will probably go up a fair bit from Sunday's rating of 123, but there is potential for a fair bit more if he is kept to three miles. Francis Flood did say afterwards that the Coral Cup was an option for him at Cheltenham, but surely, now that this previous GPT winner has proven that he stays, the Pertemps is the race for him in March. As long as the English handicapper doesn't go mad, he has to have a chance in that. He is versatile in terms of ground and course configuration.

11^th January, 2009

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