The Tolworth Hurdle is a good marker to some of the novice events at the Cheltenham Festival and has often been a stepping stone to greater things over the years.
The contest is run at Sandown Park over a distance of 2 miles and 110 yards with a generous first prize of almost £30,000. The race was abandoned in 2009 & 2010 and in 2014 was rescheduled to Kempton.
Recent winners of the Tolworth Hurdle include Summerville Boy, Finian’s Oscar and Elixir De Nutz, and if you search through the archives you will even find the great Desert Orchid listed.
The 2018 Tolworth winner, Summerville Boy, went on to take the Supreme Novices' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, just proving that this Sandown feature is a key race in the future development of a high-class jumps horse.
Nicky Henderson and Paul Nicholls have pretty much ruled the roost between them since the turn of the millennium, with Nicholls winning the race on four occasions since 2000, while Henderson has saddled the winner four times in the last nine years.
Dorset-trainer Colin Tizzard however has recently got in on the act and has sent out the winner twice in the last three years.
Tolworth Hurdle: Trends
- Nicky Henderson is the most successful trainer in the history of the Tolworth Hurdle and has recorded five victories - New York Rainbow (1992), Minella Class (2011), Captain Conan (2012), Royal Boy (2014) and L'Ami Serge (2015).
- Nine of the last ten winners had at least had one win over hurdles already.
- Eight of the last ten winners have either been aged five or six.
- Eight of the last ten winners had won their last race prior to running in the Tolworth Hurdle.
- Six of the last ten winners have come from the top three in the horse racing betting with five favourites coming home first in that period.
- Five of the last ten winners were officially rated 135 or higher.
Here is your runner-by-runner guide to the first renewal of this decade:
Ballycloven Beat (Gary Moore)
This son of Beat Hollow has been sent off at odds of 150-1, 25-1 and 20-1 on his last three runs and it would be one of the major shocks of this very New Year if he were to land this race.
Pulled-up behind Fred at Kempton on Boxing, this five-year-old simply hasn’t shown enough so far to rank as a threat.
Calva D’Auge (Paul Nicholls)
This French recruit made a winning start for the Owners Group in heavy conditions at Plumpton in November. He ran reasonably well next time out finishing second to Thebannerkingrebel in a Listed race at Haydock despite losing a shoe.
There should be more wins to come out of him this season but it’s unlikely that this race will be one of them.
Fiddlerontheroof (Colin Tizzard)
Colin Tizzard might just make you a rich man on Saturday afternoon if his exciting six-year-old can bring home the spoils. Yet to finish out of the top two places on his last five runs, Fiddlerontheroof is certainly holding his form well at the moment.
He was beaten on his first two starts over hurdles, but he ran into the excellent Thyme Hill at Chepstow and his next race at Wincanton has yielded three other runners being victorious on their next outing.
His win at Sandown in the first week of December should see him spot on for this.
Hang In There (Emma Lavelle)
Hang In There has flourished since joining Emma Lavelle from and has won his last two starts. He scored at Exeter before hosing up in the Grade 2 Supreme Trial Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham in November.
Andrew Gemmell and Tim Syder are the co-owners of the six-year-old and Gemmell is no stranger to big races successes, namely with Paisley Park in the Stayers’ Hurdle last year.
With Gemmell as your lucky charm, who would bet against another win here for the Lavelle-trained gelding?
Logan Rocks (Amy Murphy)
This son of Yeats looks to be a solid performer when you first glance at the horse racing news and his form figures, but after carefully dissecting them you will find that he is just a pretty average horse.
His maiden hurdle win at Huntingdon was a Class 4 event and then he looked one paced in a Class 3 at Doncaster. He’s right up against it here.
Silver Hallmark (Fergal O’Brien)
Silver Hallmark is held in high regard by his trainer Fergal O’Brien and his £115,000 purchase price at the sales was justified when he won a competitive maiden hurdle at Chepstow last time.
Owned by Mr and Mrs Bill Rucker, he looks typically like the staying type they have traditionally gone for in the past, so the end game isn’t necessarily a race like this – it would however be a nice bonus along the way.
Son Of Camas (Nicky Henderson)
Given Henderson’s record in this race you cannot afford to ignore his five-year-old and he will be a popular pick for many. A bumper win at Newbury was followed up a debut hurdles victory at the same venue and the runner-up has gone on to win since.
He is a speedy type and he could well find his rivals tapped for toe if he steals any kind of a march on them.
Jeremys Flame (Gavin Cromwell)
The Irish-raider comes into this race with a 7lb mares' allowance which can only enhance her chances. The six-year-old has run solid races in defeat this season, finishing a close up second to two odds-on winners in Daylight Katie and Floressa.
She tasted victory herself at Listowel back in September and could easily end up being the fly in the ointment in this big Sandown Saturday feature.
Tolworth Hurdle: Prediction
A trappy little affair for the first big test of 2020 for the hurdlers, but preference just goes to Emma Lavelle’s Hang In There (nap) who you can easily envisage following up at The Festival.
888sport suggests: Hang In There (win).
*Credit for the main photo belongs to Patrick Semansky / AP Photo*
