Neptune Preview - Festival Focus

Elementary - Red Sherlock is fancied to land the Neptune

The Neptune has produced some great winners over the years – Istabraq, Hardy Eustace and in recent years First Lieutenant, Peddlers Cross, Simonsig and The New One.

This year’s race looks set to unearth yet another superstar as a talented list of entries remain in the novice contest but with a hot ante-post favourite from Willie Mullins, the horse that appeals to me as the most likely winner still sits at a decent price in spite of his recent contraction.

My original ante-post pick Clondaw Court is not dead in the water yet and I do hope he runs here but with the favourite Faugheen in the same ownership it looks unlikely, and if a Cheltenham run is in Clondaw Court’s future it is more than likely going to be in the Albert Bartlett.

Therefore the unbeaten Red Sherlock is now my selection for the race as things stand, his recent battling win at Cheltenham in which he and Rathvinden (not far off being one of Mullins’ best novice hurdlers) pulled well clear of a decent field cementing that sentiment.