Supreme Novices' Hurdle Tips & Predictions
The Cheltenham Festival kicks off in textbook style with the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, a race famed for producing an outstanding prospect or two.
Constitution Hill was the most impressive winner in the race’s history three seasons ago and we have another potential star lining up in Kopek Des Bordes.
A field of 12 is set to assemble at Prestbury Park for the traditional curtain-raiser, and this running looks well up to scratch.
13:20 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (2m½f)
Kopek Des Bordes has been a short-priced favourite for the Supreme since bolting up at the Dublin Racing Festival, and he deserves that position in the market.
He stormed clear by 13 lengths under Paul Townend to produce the most taking performance of the season by a novice and clearly boasts a superb engine.
The Dublin Racing Festival Grade 1 he landed has been an excellent guide to the Cotswolds Festival in recent seasons and Kopek Des Bordes bids to become the sixth winner of that race since 2018 to follow up at Cheltenham.
There are, however, doubts surrounding how Kopek Des Bordes will cope with the raucous atmosphere of the festival.
He is a buzzy character, and Willie Mullins is fitting him with a first-time hood in a bid to conserve his energy. It remains to be seen what effect that will have, although Mullins did pull off that trick last season with Gaelic Warrior at his brilliant best in the Arkle.
While Kopek Des Bordes jumped better last time, he still has a bit to learn and there are a number of viable winners if the hot favourite boils over.
It is unlikely his stablemate Salvator Mundi is one of those. That horse’s victory in the Moscow Flyer is failing to work out, and a sporting each-way alternative at the prices is Workahead.
The Henry de Bromhead-trained seven-year-old looked a polished performer when sauntering home in a Leopardstown maiden hurdle on his previous outing over Christmas.
He recorded a near identical time to Kopek Des Bordes in the other division that day while carrying 8lb more and appeared to win with something in hand over William Munny, who has franked the form since and reopposes here.
It is unusual for a novice to be kept fresh with the Festival in mind after a sole maiden hurdle victory, but we should never doubt the methods of De Bromhead, who is no stranger to Grade 1 winners at the meeting and who saddled the 2024 Supreme winner.
Different approaches work for different horses and Workahead arrives as a seriously exciting proposition. Barry Connell saddled the 2023 winner and William Munny is not out of things after a more professional display at Punchestown last time, while Romeo Coolio boasts a strong piece of course form, having finished second in the 2024 Champion Bumper.
He appreciated a switch to more positive tactics at Leopardstown over Christmas after suffering a short-priced defeat in the Royal Bond and that makes him the only Grade 1 winner in the line-up aside from Kopek Des Bordes.
Selection: Workahead
