2022 Cheltenham Handicaps Friday Tips – DS

by Dave Stevos | Mar 13, 2022

2022 Cheltenham Handicaps: Friday Tips

The final declarations for Day 1 were revealed earlier today. Sickeningly, neither of my handicap fancies are running. The Wolf wasn’t declared so that could be a sign that the owners are expecting a big run from Kiltealy Briggs. Saint Riquier was declared but unfortunately he missed the cut narrowly. Hopefully we get a run from our Day 5 selections. Check out Dave Stevos’ Cheltenham Handicaps Friday tips below.

County Hurdle

As ever, the County Hurdle looks an extremely difficult puzzle to solve. Judging by the performance of Surprise Package at Sandown, the Irish handicappers might have an edge. Incidentally, Peter Fahey won this race last season with Belfast Banter off 129. While he has two entered this season, I am instead going to side with a horse that hails from another shrewd operation.

Denis Hogan is a trainer well able to line one up for the big day. I think Bua Boy could be well handicapped for him here off a mark of 135. This horse needs just six to come out to get a run so hopefully he’ll sneak in off a nice racing weight. His last two runs are probably why he is as big as 50/1 for this. However, on three of his previous four efforts, he showed he is more than capable of winning a big handicap.

Strong Form

This 7yo has won three of his fifteen starts. He landed a maiden hurdle on his debut at Cork in April 2019 (16f gd/yld) and that’s the type of ground the son of Doyen relishes. It took him a few runs to get used to the hustle and bustle of handicaps but once he did, he landed successive races at Galway and Sligo off 108 and 113 in July/August 2020. His final start of the season saw him run a cracker in a quality handicap at Listowel on ground too soft for him off 121.

He wasn’t sighted again until February of last year when he had a quiet run at Naas on soft ground. After a 152 break he turned up at the Galway Festival and went almightily close off 123 behind Arcadian Sunrise. A month later he chased home Dysart Diamond (then rated 131) in another valuable handicap at Listowel off 127, finishing 1.5L back in 2nd. They could re-oppose here and Hogan’s horse is 4lbs better off with that rival.

This horse didn’t run well on his only previous visit to Cheltenham. However, he has solid form at Galway and Sligo, two tracks with uphill finishes. He has also run well going left handed so the track should hold no fears. His reappearance run at Leopardstown had prep run written all over it. So, he should take a big step forward from that. He is as big as 50/1 with a couple of firms and at those odds, Bua Boy is worth chancing each way.

2022 Cheltenham Handicaps Thursday Tips: Bua Boy e/w @ 50/1 (5 Places NRNB)

Martin Pipe Conditional Jockey’s Handicap

Peter Fahey is making a name for himself in these big UK handicaps. In Freedom To Dream he could have another extremely well treated horse. This 7yo son of Secret Singer is also in the Albert Bartlett and if he ran in that and got nice ground he’d probably have an outside place chance. However, on decent ground in a handicap off 135? Surely he would have a winning chance.

This horse is unexposed and he has some seriously good form in the book. On his second start he chased Champion Hurdle 2nd fav Appreciate It home in a bumper, beaten just 6L. Then, on his hurdling debut at Punchestown he beat Sam’s Choice by half a length (21f gd/yld). When you consider it was bottomless on his next outing at Limerick he ran very well to finish 2nd in a Grade 2, 7L behind Eric Bloodaxe.

Deep End

Fahey decided to pitch this horse in at the deep end on his next outing at the Dublin Racing Festival. He could only manage 4th in that Grade 1 (22f yld). However, he was up against some quality animals and he did manage to reverse that Limerick form with Eric Bloodaxe emphatically. When you consider that it was only his 3rd run over hurdles it was a superb effort and he gets 8lbs from Hollow Games (if he runs in this), who was 12L ahead of him in 3rd at Leopardstown.

I think that the better ground at Cheltenham is going to bring out the best in this horse. His sire, Secret Singer, isn’t that well known but the best horse he has produced so far, Volnay De Thaix, relished nice ground. Coincidentally, he was beaten 6L into 5th in the Coral Cup off 158 in 2015 on good. Hopefully Freedom To Dream can do something similar. At odds of 33/1, he is the each way pick.