Betting tips / Editor / 24 November 2011 / Leave a comment Bet Now View Market

Paul McIvor of Timeform can't go past Great Endeavour in Saturday's Grade 3 Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury.

Champion trainer Paul Nicholls won the Hennessy Gold twice as a jockey, landing successive runnings in the 1980s aboard Broadheath and Playschool for David Barons.

Since successfully turning his attention to training, Nicholls has got his hands on the prize a further three times, with Strong Flow in 2003 and Denman in both 2007 and 2009.

Nicholls saddles a pair of fancied runners this time round with stable jockey Ruby Walsh getting the leg up on dual course winner Aiteen Thirtythree (7.2).

A winner of the Grade 2 Worcester Novices' Chase at this meeting a year ago, Aiteen Thirtythree warmed up for the Hennessy with a fine second behind the top-class Somersby over an inadequate two-and-a-half miles at Kempton last month and looks sure to play his part on Saturday.

The long-absent Michel Le Bon (9.8) is also set to represent Nicholls and he too is a previous winner of the Worcester Novices' Chase, that success coming at the Hennessy fixture back in 2009.

However, that has been his only start over fences so far and he has been absent since. While undoubtedly hugely talented, it would be some performance from both horse and trainer were he to win this race on just his return with such little fencing experience.

Challenging for favoritism is the David Pipe-trained Great Endeavour (7.6) , which bids to follow-up his win in the Paddy Power Gold Cup and complete a famous double, most recently achieved by Celestial Gold back in 2004 for Pipe's father Martin and Great Endeavour's owner David Johnson.

Although unproven over the Hennessy trip of three miles two and a half furlongs, the seven-year-old performed with credit over an extended three miles on soft ground at Cheltenham in his hurdles days and is reported to be a stronger individual this year. Great Endeavour is well in at the weights with just a 4 lb penalty for his Paddy Power win and sits 1lb clear at the head of the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings.

In recent history the Hennessy Gold Cup has often fallen to a second season chaser, with last year's winner Diamond Harry the latest to fall into that particular category. Two runners who appeal as likely sorts in terms of profile for this year's renewal are the Donald McCain-trained Wymott (8.2) and Ian Williams' Wayward Prince (10.5) .

A winner of his first three starts over fences last season, Wymott was found to have suffered a small fracture to his off-fore leg when failing to fire in the RSA Chase at the Festival.

Third in that race was Wayward Prince, which had also gone into that race unbeaten over fences. These two are old rivals with Wymott coming out on top in a close battle between the pair over hurdles at Haydock back in 2010, and he may have the upper hand once more as he races off a chase mark 4 lb lower than his hurdles rating, meaning he is receiving 6 lb from his old adversary.

Winner of the Scottish National on his final start of 2010/11, the Tim Vaughan-trained Beshabar (13.5) is on course to make his seasonal reappearance in Saturday's feature.

Second in the four-miler at the Festival prior to his Scottish National triumph, he is not one to discount from a handicap point of view but he may find a couple of his rivals a shade too sharp over this trip on his first run for seven months.

Although an impressive winner of a minor event at Carlisle last time, Sarando doesn't appear particularly well handicapped, a fact emphasised by him sitting second bottom of the nineteen left in at this stage on Timeform ratings.

It may come as a surprise to some to learn that second top on ratings is Tullamore Dew as the Nick Gifford-trained runner appears to have been overlooked in the market.

His novice campaign last season included a second place behind Medermit at Plumpton and a staying-on third at the Cheltenham Festival in the Centenary Novices' Handicap Chase. A faller behind Great Endeavour in the Paddy Power last time, Tullamore Dew (34) has stamina to prove could be worth chancing at current odds of 38.0.

The Irish challenge looks to be headed by Joncol, a former winner of the Irish Hennessy at Leopardstown. He made a successful return to action at Thurles earlier this month but it would be some performance to defy a BHA rating of 162, as only Denman has been able to overcome such a burden in the past ten years.

Seven-year olds have done well in recent renewals of this race, winning five out of the last ten runnings but hoping to strike a blow for the older brigade are Neptune Collonges, Planet of Sound, Blazing Bailey and Fair Along. However, they all appear to have their work cut out, with the possible exception of Planet of Sound, who as a former Grade 1 winner is not out of it if a breathing operation has had the desired effect.

So all in all, a long list of contenders in what is a typically competitive renewal of the Hennessy Gold Cup then and, although Tullamore Dew appears over priced, the two that make most appeal are Wymott and Great Endeavour as both could still be well handicapped and improving chasers.

Recommendations
Back Wymott @ 8.4
Back Great Endeavour @ 8.0