Ed Quigley is here with three fancies for Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival.
Thursday is a proper equine Rubik’s Cube for punters, where I think calling the winner of the Turners’ and the Stayers’ can be just as tricky as the Handicaps; so it is the bigger fields I am concentrating on for some value angles.
It would be fair to say that in recent times, the wheels haven’t just come off, but have been rolling down the street in recent times for Dame De Compagnie. However, every horse has a price, and I think the nine-year-old is not one to put on the ‘discard pile’ at the relevant price.
The silver lining of recent lacklustre displays means she has dropped to an official mark of 139 – now a pound lower than when winning the Coral Cup in 2020.
Cheekpieces go on for the first time, and if having the desired effect she definitely has the back class to be having a say in a race like this.
It is also worth noting that she often produces her best form when fresh – she has form figures over hurdles on the back of 60 days or more off the track of 12151; so arriving here after 81 days on the sidelines looks a wise move.
I like her claims in the win and place market with Aidan Coleman on board and any rain that arrives before racing will only help her cause.
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Sam Thomas is still in the relatively early stages of his training career but is having another fruitful season. In fact, if you had backed all of his Chasers blind this season, you would be £27.31 up to a £1 level stake.
Stolen Silver is still unexposed, and eased to a mark of 144, is one to take seriously here providing the ground doesn’t get too deep.
Freshened up after getting bogged down in the mud at Wincanton last time out he ticks a fair few boxes for a horse at his price.
Cheltenham holds no fears as we saw earlier in the season when he stormed up the hill to only be narrowly denied by Editor Du Gite, and I think he has a lot more to offer over this trip, so wouldn’t be shocked if he was far away.
Finally, I wouldn’t totally dismiss Janika from having a say in the Kim Muir at attractive odds.
He may be a spent force, but it is a cheap way to find out, and the nine-year-old just looks too handicapped to ignore with first-time blinkers added.
The former Haldon Gold Cup winner was rated 166 at his peak and gets in here off 143. He has some good Cheltenham Festival form to his name, the Nicky Henderson team are in fine fettle, and he has the services of Ben Bromley in the saddle – a jockey who is having a breakthrough season.
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