We look at which horses have been popular with Oddschecker punters over the last 90 days
Mengli Khan – 19.9% of all ante-post bets on the market
Gordon Elliott’s imposing five-year-old put together a sequence of three straight wins towards the end of last year including an impressive five length victory in the Grade 1 Royal Bond at Fairyhouse in early December. The former Hugo Palmer inmate had been given time by his new connections to learn his trade after two runs last season yielded a second and a fourth, crucially allowing him to remain a novice for a second season. That decision appears to have proved somewhat of a masterstroke with the only blip on this season’s CV coming last time out when he ran out during the Future Champions Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown. That misdemeanour saw him drift from 5/1 ante-post favourite to now best-price 10/1.
Claimantakinforgan – 11.39%
A smart bumper horse last season, he has form behind all the right horses. He’s since transferred that form to hurdles with two wins from his as many starts including in Grade 2 company last time out. An expected appearance in the Tolworth, for which he was ante-post favourite, failed to materialise and he’s likely to be seen again before the opening race of the Festival in March and is currently joint favourite with a number of bookmakers and best price 8/1.
Victory for CLAIMANTAKINFORGAN in the @SkyBet Supreme Trial Novices' Hurdle pic.twitter.com/QLLR4p77Lp
— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) December 22, 2017
Samcro – 7.12%
Owned and trained by the same connections as Mengli Khan, his odds range from 3/1 favourite to 16/1 relative outsider! Another who is two from two over hurdles this season, the hype around the six-year-old has been huge, although his owners have been keen to downplay the hysteria by insisting he isn’t the second coming of Christ. A winner of 2 miles and 2m4f this season, he could run in any of the three novice hurdle races with the Ballymore looking the most likely option - at least according to the bookmakers – with one firm quoting just 5/4 for the 2m5f contest.
Sharjah – 6.1%
Best price 10/1, the Willie Mullins five-year-old had looked set for Grade 1 glory over the festive period only to fall jumping the last. That was just his third run for connections having won the other two by a combined nine lengths. A winner of three of the last five runnings of the Supreme, Mullins also trained the beaten favourites in the other two (Min and Melon) and according to the bookies the Rich Ricci horse looks his main hope this time around.
Drama at @LeopardstownRC! Whiskey Sour wins an eventful Grade 1 Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle: pic.twitter.com/87R7GVFEbs
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) December 27, 2017
Real Steel – 5.26%
Upsides Sharjah when also falling at the last in the action-packed Future Novices Hurdle, the Mullins five-year-old was also looking to maintain an unbeaten record over hurdles for the Irish champion trainer after landing a maiden with the minimum of fuss at Thurles in November. He took a wander in the market following that fall in December having been 9/1 pre-race, he’s now best price 25/1.
