Irish Independent Arkle

2m – Grade 1

Irish raider Captain Cee Bee (11/4, Ladbrokes) returns to the scene of his finest hour and the 2008 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle hero arrives at Cheltenham with the hopes of the Irish weighing heavily on his shoulders.  If Dunguib were to land the first race of the Festival then the Irish money could force Captain Cee Bee into an even shorter price and there is no doubt that he is a classy individual.  That being said, he is not the best jumper in the field by any stretch of the imagination and Tony McCoy will have to be at his finest to get the horse round without mistakes.  People will argue that he would have beaten SIZING EUROPE (nb) (5/1, Ladbrokes) in a Grade One at Leopardstown on Boxing Day but whether he would or wouldn’t is neither here nor there and the result told the story – Captain Cee Bee didn’t complete the race and Sizing Europe did, and won.

Unbeaten over fences, Sizing Europe heads to Cheltenham with pundits and punters seemingly unwilling to forgive him his defeat in the Champion Hurdle two years ago and it is alarming to see so many people happily drawing a line through his chances next week.  People were happy to come to the conclusion that it was the hill that defeated Henry De Bromhead’s superstar that day and he quickly developed a reputation for being a fragile underachiever.

However, the same people that labelled him with the tag must have let his victory in the 2007 Greatwood Hurdle escape their mind.  Racing under a big weight on soft ground at Cheltenham, Sizing Europe flew up the hill doing his best work late on in a bloodless victory over quality opposition and punters that dismiss the horse’s chances based on his delicateness are advised to watch the replay of that race.

His break from the track will serve him well and his ability to quicken and relentless engine were on show in an impressive racecourse gallop last week.  It is easy to see why his trainer is extremely bullish and he too believes that Cheltenham will suit Sizing Europe much better than Leopardstown. He is an extremely classy horse and his price already makes him a very attractive each-way betting proposition.

The home challenge is led by Henrietta Knight’s Somersby (4/1, Ladbrokes) who was an impressive winner of the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase last year.  He is a highly regarded sort and Tony McCoy has made no secret about the fact he finds it hard to split him from Captain Cee Bee.  However, he is far from the finished article and it is debatable how his form stacks up against rivals of this quality, with the likes of Sports Line (8/1, Boylesports) and Riverside Theatre (15/2, Paddy Power) both set to line up in opposition.

Selection - Sizing Europe (5/1, Ladbrokes)