Open Hearted and Toner D’Oudairies to collide in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham
The Class 2 Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle is to get hosted by Cheltenham over two miles, four furlongs and 110 yards on Friday, 16th March. The race has assembled twenty-four runners while the purse is worth £28, 152. The lineup is tricky and talented with two entries who have been unbeaten in the last three attempts and another who has won through the last two that came his way.
Open Hearted, Generous’ five-year-old bay gelding out of mare Romantic Dream, is by far the brightest contender specially as far as maintaining consistency is concerned.
Out of the last five starts, falling in one disrupted his winning flow otherwise he refused to miss out on any of the races that he ventured in.
He cracked into the new season by being the 4/6 favourite winner of the JJ Taxis Folkestone Novices’ Hurdle on 31st January at Folkestone over two miles and six and a half furlongs.
Nicky Henderson’s trainee was ridden by Andrew Tinkler and the two grabbed onto victory by a narrow margin of a length by which the runner up, Likeable Rogue, was closing in.
Finishing third behind the winner was Knight Flight.
Checking defeat off his profile, Open Hearted won the European Breeders’ Fund “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle (Qualifier) on 17th February at Fakenham over two miles and four furlongs.
This time he was paired up with Jeremiah McGrath and the two pulled it up by a margin of 1 ¾ lengths. Following closely at the heels of the winner was Kuilsriver. Castle Conflict settled into the third position.
The season that he came out of saw him winning the Welshpool Branch Bluefin Insurance Solutions Intermediate Open National Hunt Flat Race on 10th November at Ludlow. His final win of the 2011 season was in the Crownhotel – Bawtry.Com Maiden Hurdle on 29th December at Doncaster.
Even though unbeaten and highly capable, Open Hearted, will have to stay at guard from Toner D’Oudairies who will be up to defending the title that he won last year. The five-year-old bay gelding has been winless ever since the last six starts and might just want to swing back into action in today’s race.
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