Shot From The Hip: Performance Review 2012
Shot From The Hip has enjoyed mixed fortune this year. The 8-year-old started his 2012 campaign with a huge bang, sealing a comfortable triumph at Fairyhouse in January.
In the Irish Stallion Farms European Breeders Fund Beginners Chase, he displayed a fascinating show in the hands of Mark Walsh, beating Ninetieth Minute by half a length.
After taking a wonderful victory, the son of Monsun lost his momentum, and faced an awful loss at Leopardstown. The Grade 1, Dr. P.J. Moriarty Novice Chase saw him ending up last in the list. Under A. P. McCoy, he was unable to make an impression.
He redeemed respect by showing a decent act at the graded level. The Grade 2, Woodlands Park 100 Club Nas Na Riogh Novice Chase saw him finishing second at Naas on February 26th. The Mark Walsh-ridden could not trouble the 4-5 favourite, Rathlin,
but defeated the rest of the pack comprehensively.
Since he could not build on his good second, the spectators saw him doing nothing special in the following two appearances. After facing a defeat at Fairyhouse, he went to Punchestown in search of success, but unfortunately nothing good happened. In the
Grade 1, Ryanair Novice Chase, he could only seize the fifth position.
After suffering a couple of unlucky defeats in April, E. J. O'Grady’s charge got his act together, and delivered an outstanding performance in May. In Killarney’s www.themalton.com Chase which was relatively easier contest than the prior graded meetings,
Shot From The Hip beat Regal D'Estruval by a neck’s distance.
It was a thrilling contest. The 7-2 chance was prominent in the chasing group early on. With the help of a marvellous effort in the middle stages, he took narrow lead just before the wire, and stayed on well thereafter. Consequently, he bagged the first
prize in good style.
Bred by E. Bec De La Motte & P. Cavagnola, the bay gelding showed another good effort over fences in June, when missing the gold medal only by 2¼ lengths at Tipperary. He was last seen at Galway, where he pulled up after jumping left 6 out.
The John P. McManus-owned must have learnt a good lesson from his prior mistakes. So, one can expect him to come up with better figures next time. Good luck to him.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and do not reflect Bettor.com’s editorial policy.
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