Elite Hurdle Guide

Sceau Royal on the face of it looks the horse to beat in the Grade Two event on Saturday having made his seasonal debut in the Welsh Champion Hurdle at Ffos Las and landed the event emphatically.

The Alan King trained eight year old has been tried over both hurdles and fences during his career and although winning races like the Shloer Chase and Henry VIII Novices Chase over the bigger obstacles, last term showed that he was not good enough at the top level.

This has now seen his handler move him back to hurdles and it looks to be the right move off the back of his seasonal debut and having won this race already in his career it would not be a surprise if he did so again.

A recruit from France for the champion trainer Paul Nicholls, Solo made his British debut in the Grade 2 Adonis Hurdle and routed the field by 13 lengths.

He clearly didn’t need a run to acclimatise to the British way of racing and took the field apart with a blistering turn of foot that saw him receive a mark of 157.

He was then entered into the Grade One Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham festival where he was outclassed by the majority of the field, with it looking like he did not handle the track.

He should give a better showing here but this contest does look a hot one off the back of his latest run.

Diego Du Charmil is Paul Nicholls second chance in the event and the eight year old is another runner that has been tried over both hurdles and fences recently.

His chase form looks very strong having landed a Listed Handicap Chase at Ascot last season before then finishing a smart second behind stablemate Capeland over the same course and distance.

He was moved back to hurdles on his final start of the season in the Grade Two Kingwell Hurdle when finishing a narrow second behind the smart Song For Someone.

He returned to Kempton for his seasonal debut where he looked like he needed the run, finishing third behind Silver Streak who has landed the Listed event two years on the bounce.

Not out of the picture but others preferred.

Fergal O'Brien has been the trainer to follow so far this season fetching winners from all over the UK and he fields Teqany in this event.

The son of Dark Angel looks to be a strange runner over hurdles from his pedigree but has proved he enjoys the staying trip when winning a class 3 event at Bangor over two miles.

He was stepped up to Listed company last time out and was a long way behind the winner Silver Streak and now stepping up again in grade makes him vulnerable.

Colin Tizzard has not had the start to the season he was hoping for with two of his stable stars unfortunately passing away, but he will be hoping to kickstart the campaign with his runner in this Grade Two.

The six year old was a smart bumper horse landing a Listed event at Cheltenham ahead of the smart hurdler Thyme Hill before finishing fifth in the Grade Two event at the Grand National meeting.

Last season Master Debonair started his life over hurdles, finishing second at Cheltenham on his seasonal debut and off the back of that he landed two smart events at Ascot including a Grade Two event.

His last run came in February at Ascot again where he was third of four runners behind two smart types, but will have to better than that run to land this.

The final runner of the event looks opposable even on the best of his form and the eight year old will need a career best to go close.

Having ran in the Supreme Novices' Hurdle his career has since taking a backward step running on both the flat and over hurdles, being unplaced in five of his seven events.

He did go on to win twice at Market Rasen in lesser events during the summer but now shoved into a Grade Two event he looks exposed.