Utopie Des Bordes ridden by Barry Geraghty clears the last fence as Twigline ridden by RubyWalsh falls in the Jane Seymour Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle Race(Listed) on Royal Artillery Gold Cup Day at Sandown Park Racecourse. Photo: Tony Marshall/EMPICS

By Simon Jackson, London24’s horse racing correspondent at Sandown


Sunday, February 17, 2013
4:06 PM

Horse Talk: Top horse-racing tips and the latest news

Nicky Henderson has revealed that the three mile Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle is the target for Cheltenham hopeful Utopie Des Bordes, winner of the £20,000 Listed race at Sandown on Friday.

The five-year-old mare is unbeaten in two starts since joining Henderson after a lucrative 17 race career in France that netted four wins and close to £300,000 in prize money, culminating with victory in a valuable Grade 1 at Auteuil in November.

The daughter of Antarctique followed up with an easy win in a Class 4 at Doncaster on February 4 at her first start for Henderson, who revealed that she will be prepared for the Albert Bartlett, in preference to the shorter OLBG Mares’ Hurdle or Neptune Investment Management Novices’ Hurdle.

“She jumps great and she has been jumping great around Auteuil and will go for the Albert Bartlett I would think,” Henderson said.

“Barry [Geraghty – jockey] said she gets three miles, she stays and that actually all she’s done in front is prick her ears. She was funny; sometimes she made it in France, but in one race I watched, she was 100 yards behind the field going down the back strait at Auteuil but still won.

“We spoke to Philip Carberry, who rides in France, and he said you could actually do anything with her.

“We always thought that the Albert Bartlett would be the one for her. She is in the two and a half and the three mile races and the mares, but the Albert Bartlett would have to be the one.”

Meanwhile, the Royal Artillery Gold Cup Chase, which was first staged in 1863, was won by the Paul Nicholls trained Gwanako who provided a fillip for his trainer following the news that Grand National top weight Tidal Bay was injured and would miss the remainder of the season.

“We had just started cantering him again when his work rider said he didn’t feel right,” Nicholls said.

“We got him down to Newmarket for an MRI scan and he has a tiny stress fracture of the lower cannon bone on his right hind leg.

“He needs a month’s box rest, so that rules out the National.”

“What I suspect is that [in his victory in the Lexus Chase on December 28] at Leopardstown, he hit a guard rail.”

However the champion trainer has no doubt that Tidal Bay, the winner of over £750,000 in prize money, will return to the track.

“If you left him for two days he would be sound,” Nicholls said. “He will definitely be back for next year.”

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