Fiercely Proud
14th-Feb-2026
I like Act Of Authority as a horse, he ran a big race at a big price in the Martin Pipe Hurdle at Cheltenham last March when we had him on side to finish second behind Wodhooh, and Wodhooh has obviously enhanced that form since. He was tempting here, but he is shorter than I thought he would be, and there is a chance that this race will bring him forward again. It is probable that the Martin Pipe Hurdle is his primary objective again this season, and that Olly Murphy is training him to peak at Cheltenham.
Lightningupourdays has a nice progressive profile, but he is up in class here and he is very short for all that.
I am taking a chance on Fiercely Proud. You have to forgive him his run in the big two-mile handicap hurdle at Ascot before Christmas, a race that he won last year. But he stopped very quickly in that race, as if something was amiss. He matched strides with the eventual winner Wilful for most of the race, before he faded as soon as they turned for home.
It may have been the cheekpieces. It was his second time to wear them, and his second time to run poorly in them.
Ben Pauling probably thought that he needed to eke out a little bit more from him, in order to get him to win another competitive handicap, and perhaps the cheekpieces were an attempt, but, cheekpieces off today, there is a chance that the step up in trip to almost two and a half miles will allow him take that step forward.
Importantly, his latest run notwithstanding, he goes well at Ascot. He won that race last year and, on his only other run there, he was challenging at the second last flight when he came down. He stays two miles well, he has won over two miles and a half a furlong, and there is every chance that he will stay today’s trip. He could even improve for it.
FIERCELY PROUD (ADV 11/1, SP 8/1)
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