Evan Williams hoping for soft ground for his Betfair Hurdle hope Clyne while Paul Nicholls is expecting a good run from both Zubayr and Movewiththetimes
Clyne proved he could cut it with the best as he ran The New One all the way to the line on his last start in the Grade 2 Champion Hurdle Trial at Haydock
EVAN WILLIAMS is hoping Saturday’s Betfair Hurdle will be the soft option.
His Clyne – second to The New One at Haydock a couple of weeks ago – has thrived on testing ground.
With the Newbury covers already down to protect the turf from frost it’s hard to imagine the ground will be anything other than the current soft description at the weekend.
Clyne completed a four-timer in barely-raceable fog just before Christmas. His winning streak may have come to end in the Champion Hurdle Trial last time but there’s little doubt it was a personal best.
The handicapper shoved him up 5lb for that effort. As the weights had already closed for Newbury’s £155,000 thriller he will be well in on Saturday.
Williams said: “He ran a great race last time and the handicapper thinks the same. Hopefully the five pounds will help us massively.
“There’s no secrets with Clyne - we’ve all seen how good he is last time. He’s proven that he’s better than a handicapper.
CONSUL DE THAIX MISSES NEWBURY
Consul De Thaix will NOT run in the Betfair Hurdle after trainer Nicky Henderson revealed the five-year-old has met with a slight setback.
Henderson tweeted: "Consul De Thaix has some inflammation that requires medication so will NOT run in the Betfair Hurdle."
Consul De Thaix, who was fourth favourite in some books at a top-priced 8-1, has finished second behind stablemate Brain Power in both his starts this season.
“As long as there’s soft in the description he’ll be grand but the softer the better. It would help him a lot more than it would help others. He handles it very well.”
Champion trainer Paul Nicholls is hoping for the best of Times in the £155,000 Newbury thriller.
His smart novice Movewiththetimes is a leading player. He won well at Wincanton after finishing fifth behind Supreme Novices’ Hurdle fancy Moon Racer at Cheltenham in November.
Nicholls said: “He’s big strong horse who’s going to make a lovely chaser.
“He was beaten three-and-a-half lengths by Moon Racer at Cheltenham in November when he couldn’t get into more trouble if he tried. He got an awful run.
“It's a hard job running in a race like that for a horse like him because he hasn't got the experience and it's a good fast, furious gallop so they have to be at their very best jumping wise so you're at a disadvantage experience wise but with a horse like this who knows where he might end up.
“One thing is sure, he's going to be a really smart chaser in time and we like him a lot.”
Given the way the race is likely to be run Nicholls also expects a big run from Zubayr.
He’s been hit and miss since making a wining debut on his British debut at Kempton last year.
Nicholls said: “He’s been crying out for a fast-run handicap. He did a nice piece of work with Movewiththetimes last week. The best of him is yet to come.”