2023 Ireland Novice Hurdle Betting Odds at Leopardstown racecourse

Sunday, 05 February 2023

It would be a major shock if Facile Vega wasn’t able to secure another success when lining up at Leopardstown on 5 February. The six-year-old has been racking up the wins for trainer Willie Mullins and the horse racing betting sites are keen to avoid taking on this horse. The runner’s main challengers are likely to come in the form of High Definition and Impaire Et Passe.

This is a Grade One encounter over two miles and Mullins currently has three of the first four in the betting. Il Etait Temps is the most experienced who is running for this legendary trainer, with Facile Vega the one who is setting the benchmark at the moment and the horse is ignored at your peril.

2023 Ireland Novice Hurdle Betting Tips

Facile Vega has enjoyed six consecutive victories and it’s hard to see any other horse tarnishing this 100% record when it comes to this Novice Hurdle. The six-year-old has been bolting up since trainer Willie Mullins let him loose at a racecourse, with the runner really kicking on after claiming the spoils in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper by nearly four lengths.

The horse then won the Race & Stay At Punchestown Champion I.N.H. Flat Race before starting to go over hurdles this season. There was a facile fourteen-length win over his rivals at Fairyhouse, while another smart performance was produced to win the Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle by four lengths.

The runner that finished second on that occasion was Il Etait Temps, with the horse actually running fairly well to get within four lengths of his stablemate. With a smarter round of jumping, perhaps this horse is capable of pulling off some kind of shock and we like the charge from an each-way perspective. Look out for extra places on this front.

High Definition runs for trainer Joseph O’Brien and the five-year-old is something of an unknown quantity, with the horse having previously been run on the flat before a smart Maiden Hurdle win at Leopardstown. A victory by over four lengths was pretty solid, with Impaire Et Passe another runner who has to be respected.