2022 Long Distance Hurdle Tips
Proschema wasn’t particularly convincing when finishing well down the order in the Wasdell Group Silver Trophy Handicap Hurdle at Chepstow on 8 October, although the seven-year-old bounced back three weeks later when triumphing at Wetherby. The victory in the bet365 Hurdle on good to soft ground marks him out as a potential Stayers’ Hurdle winner at the Cheltenham Festival.
It was a ten length win at Wetherby, with Dan Skelton now hoping for a repeat performance and the bookies are now trading shorter than the 9/2 SP before he obliged last time out. Second in that race was Thomas Darby and the Olly Murphy-trained runner will line up in this contest and look to frank the form.
Champ will make his seasonal debut, with the ten-year-old running for Nicky Henderson. A third-placed finish at Aintree was the last time we saw the runner, with Sire De Berlais and Flooring Porter finishing a long way clear of the chasing pack. Previously, there was a fourth-placed finish in the 2022 Stayers’ Hurdle.
Paisley Park has enjoyed a superb career and has a Stayers’ Hurdle under his belt, although there has been just one win in the past eight outings and it’s easy to oppose the ten-year-old. In the Stayers’ Champion Hurdle at Punchestown in April, the horse finished behind four others and Dashel Drasher looks a better prospect from an each way point of view.