Staking A Claim Week 13 Tips – Boodles Juvenile Hurdle (8/1) and Hunters Chase (10/1) Selections

We move into the back end of January with two more Cheltenham Festival ante-post tips in our Staking A Claim series. This week’s picks are from the Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle and the Hunters Chase, previously the Foxhunters.

You can see all the existing selections in the table at the end of this article and there are also links to the write-ups for each week. That’s 22 ante-post tips already in the can for the 2023 Festival and although some have already fallen away, we hope to go into March with some nice ante-post prices and live chances.

All the selections will be recorded as a 1pt win or 0.5pts each-way and we haven’t restricted the tips to any particular bet so you can expect to see singles, doubles and even the odd treble for the tips.

You can also follow both Ciaran (@murphfinbarrs) and OB (@OB_14) on Twitter where they will be outlining all of their ante-post bets and thoughts ahead of the 2023 Cheltenham Festival.

 

Ciaran’s Week 13 Ante-post Tip

• Selection: Tekao (Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle)
• Current Odds: 8/1 with William Hill (NRNB)

I have to commend my friend OB’s week 12 selection. He did a lot right. He got the right owner with the right trainer in the right race. Unfortunately for him, he just picked the wrong horse. I was in Navan when TEKAO ran in his Maiden hurdle and he travelled supremely before getting tired and not finishing his race. The betting on the day suggested that he would need the run and at that time Willie was open on the fact that most of his would improve for their first outing. 

He followed this up by winning a competitive Maiden hurdle at the Leopardstown Christmas meeting. While initially I thought he had been extended to do so, I rewatched that race and I think Mark Walsh has done brilliantly to hide just how snuggly this horse has won. And it seems to have done the trick….he is entered in a Handicap hurdle in Thurles on Sunday off a mark of just 121.

He has to have one more run to qualify for the Boodles and it will either come here or at the Grade 1 juvenile hurdle at the DRF. The fact that he was given an entry for the latter shows me that he is held in high regard at Closutton. Either way, with English Handicapper Tax, he should get into the race with a mark in the mid to high 120s and this would fit the trends (14 of the 17 winners of the race were officially rated between 124 and 134). Add to this that Jp has had 2 of the last 3 winners and that he is French bred, Tekao ticks a lot of boxes. 

In recent years, the horses placed in this race have often been ones just short of Triumph class (Saint Sam, Aramax, Brazil, Gaelic Warrior) and I get the impression that Tekao wouldn’t look out of place in a Grade 1 contest. But with Willie already training the first 3 in the betting for the Triumph, I would be confident that he runs here. But as a bonus, the 8/1 NRNB price is just one point short of best available odds and is a nice bit of insurance. If he turns up on the day with Mark Walsh on his back, you can half those odds at least. 

Back TEKAO at 8/1 NRNB with William Hill.

 

OB’s Week 13 Ante-post Tip

• Selection: Chris’s Dream (Hunters Chase)
• Current Odds: 10/1 with Coral

Selection 13 sees me stay away from the graded races again and try to find value in one of the lower class races that we see at the festival. The Hunters Chase (previously known as The Foxhunters), is a race that I have been quite successful in over the years (ever since Baby Run won in 2010) and although it’s a tricky race to get a hold of with qualification rules and different kinds of form lines (from point to points or hunter chases), I think now is the time to put my selection up.

Chris’s Dream (10/1) of the Henry De Bromhead yard is the one that has caught my eye for this race and im pretty sure this is the plan for him now that he qualified by winning a 3m PTP at Carrigarostig at the weekend.

Rated in the 160s for the last few years, Chris’s Dream has mainly been seen competing in Grade 1 races or lugging top weight around in competitive handicaps (including the Grand National). At 11 Years Old and in the twilight of his career, the aim for this season has been based around PTP and Hunter chases. He has won both of his starts this season (3m PTP’s) and although they have been small fields, its good to see your horse winning and still enjoying the game

He has been to Cheltenham 3 times in his career and although he has disappointed on all 3 occasions, they have been in far superior races to what he will line up against on St Patricks Day. The drop in class is needed for him now and if he was to turn up then he should have a great chance based on his rating throughout his career.

Maxine O’Sullivan rides the horse and you would have thought she would keep the ride as she gets on with the horse so well. She is no stranger to the race and won the 2020 renewal on It Came to Pass. There wouldn’t be many better jockeys in the race than her and that’s a huge plus in amateur rider races.

The race has been won by 10/11 Year olds in the last 8 years and I believe the race will be going to another 11-year-old in 2023 in Chris’s Dream

Stake – 1pt win only Chris Dream (The Hunters Chase) 10/1 Coral.

 

Staking a Claim Tips so Far

	Ciaran	OB
Week 1	Galopin Des Champs (Cheltenham Gold Cup) & Allaho (Ryanair) ODDS: 12.5/1	Gaillard Du Mesnil (National Hunt Chase) Delta Work (Cross Country) ODDS: 15/1
Week 2	Dysart Dynamo (Arkle) ODDS: 16/1	Brandy Love (Mares Hurdle) ODDS: 5/1
Week 3	Honeysuckle (Champion Hurdle) ODDS: 4/1	Chapeau De Soleil (Champion Bumper) ODDS: 12/1
Week 4	Ashroe Diamond (Mares Novice) ODDS: 9/1	Blazing Khal (Stayers Hurdle) ODDS: 6/1
Week 5	Proschema EW (Stayers Hurdle) ODDS: 25/1	Jet Powered (Supreme Novices' Hurdle) ODDS: 14/1
Week 6	Grangeclare West (Ballymore) ODDS: 10/1	Telmesomethinggirl (Mares Chase) ODDS: 8/1
Week 7	James Du Berlais (Brown Advisory Chase) EW ODDS: 20/1	Lossiemouth (Triumph Hurdle) and Luccia (Mares novice hurdle) ODDS: 19/1 win double
Week 8	Hiddenvalley Lake (Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle) ODDS: 8/1	Three Stripe Life (Brown Advisory Novices Chase) ODDS: 14/1 win double
Week 9	Barry The Butcher (Champion Bumper) ODDS: 20/1	Impaire Et Passes (to win any race) ODDS: 6/1 win double
Week 10	Salvador Ziggy (Pertemps) ODDS: 25/1	Three Card Brag (Albert Bartlett) ODDS: 14/1
Week 11	Arctic Bresil Without Favile Vega (Supreme Novices' Hurdle) ODDS: 20/1	El Fabiolo (Turners) ODDS: 10/1
Week 12	Fascile Mode (Champion Bumper) ODDS: 12/1	Risk Belle (The Boodles Fred Winter) ODDS: 16/1
Week 13	Tekao (Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle) ODDS: 8/1 NRNB	Selection: Chris’s Dream (Hunters Chase) ODDS: 10/1
Week 14	Brandy Love (Mares Hurdle) ODDS: 4/1 NRNB	Threeunderthrufive (Ultima Handicap Chase) ODDS: 12/1 NRNB
Week 15	Galvin (Cross Country Chase) ODDS: 6/1	Gerri Colombe (Brown Advisory Chase) ODDS: 8/1
Week 16	Inothewayyourthinking (Martin Pipe) ODDS: 16/1	Spanish Harlem (Martin Pipe) ODDS: 20/1
Week 17	Coole Cody (Plate Handicap) EW ODDS: 40/1	Bravemansgame (Gold Cup) ODDS: 8/1
Week 18	Shanbally Kid (Albert Bartlett) ODDS: 25/1 EW	Camprond (Coral Cup) ODDS: 20/1
Week 19	Gerri Colombe (Brown Advisory) & Mighty Potter (Turners)double ODDS: 6/1	Sharjah (County Hurdle) ODDS: 10/1 EW
Week 20	Dino Blue (Grand Annual) ODDS: 7/1	Mighty Potter (Turners Chase) & Edwardstone (Champion Chase) ODDS: 11/2

Staking a Claim week 1 Selections

Staking a Claim week 2 Selections

Staking a Claim week 3 Selections

Staking a Claim week 4 Selections

Staking a Claim week 5 Selections

Staking a Claim week 6 Selections

Staking a Claim week 7 Selections

Staking a Claim week 8 Selections

Staking a Claim Week 9 Selections

Staking a Claim Week 10 & 11 Selections

Staking a Claim Week 12 Selections

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