Wrath of Titans to get Bryan Cooper back with a bang
Tony McCoy aboard Champagne Present in the Mitie Handicap Hurdle on day one of the Christmas Meeting at Ascot yesterday. David Davies/PA Wire.
It is indicative of how frustratingly little jump racing there has been at home this month that Bryan Cooper's four-day improper riding ban only expires at Thurles tomorrow, a full fortnight after it began.
The talented Tralee native will be glad to get back in the groove before another four-day mini hiatus ahead of the busy Christmas schedule, and he is expected to do so with a victory aboard Wrath Of Titans.
Sandra Hughes' point-to-point and bumper-winning five-year-old must concede weight all round in the two-mile-six-furlong maiden hurdle. However, it isn't nearly as good a race as the one that he contested at Fairyhouse last month, so he is trusted to deliver the nap vote at the sixth time of asking over flights.
Placed in three of his previous hurdle outings, Wrath Of Titans split subsequent winners Keppols Queen and Brandon Hill when third to the high-class Shaneshill on his most recent outing. That was over two-and-a-half miles, and the suspicion is that he will be better still over this longer trip.
In the €15,000 conditions hurdle, relatively local Templemore-based handler John Ryan might gain some compensation for Draycott Place's unceremonious exit at Navan last Sunday. Ryan Treacy's mount was still in a commanding position when running out at the third-last on his chasing debut.
Despite possessing the top rating, Draycott Place may not find this four-runner affair straightforward, but he should have enough quality to see off main rivals Kauto Grand Mogul and Bosman Rule.
The same firm could also plunder the €15,000 handicap hurdle with Kilcarry Bridge, a consistent seven-year-old that has been second in three of its four completed starts at the north Tipperary venue.
In the Molony Cup Handicap Chase, Its The Ice I Like ought to take a bit of stopping for Robert Tyner and Mark Walsh. This is undoubtedly a competitive affair comprising 18 runners, but the manner in which Its The Ice I Like sluiced up at Navan a fortnight ago would suggest that he has the scope to defy an eight-pound penalty.
Willie and Patrick Mullins could combine for a brace with Lyrical Theatre and the bumper debutant Pylonthepressure. Lyrical Theatre goes jumping for a first time in the mares' maiden hurdle. A daughter of King's Theatre that hosed up in three of her four bumpers, the half-sister to Bright New Dawn is a deeply promising prospect. If he she enjoys a clear round here, she really should win.
