Racing
El Clavel claims French Champion Hurdle honours
“If we’re ever going to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup, it’ll be with him!”
Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm's unexposed five-year-old El Clavel spoiled the Losange Bleu party when flying late up the near side rail to land a thrilling renewal of the Racing Tv Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil.Having finished eight lengths behind the defending champion Losange Bleu when runner-up in the Prix Léon Rambaud at Auteuil, El Clavel seemingly arrived back at the Parisian venue with something to find.
Johnny Charron kept things simple on Losange Bleu, who was sent out into a clear advantage as he bid to maintain his crown. Everything looked to be going smoothly for the Dominique Bressou-trained six-year-old as he jumped nicely from hurdle-to-hurdle out in front, while Shark Hanlon's Irish raider Hewick, who finished second in the contest twelve months ago, didn't look to be enjoying his experience back in France, struggling to keep tabs on the rest of the field from an early stage.
Entering the straight, Losange Bleu set sail for home towards the far side rail and picked up nicely to open a clear advantage on his rivals. El Cleval and Monmiral both headed off in hot pursuit, but in all truth, Losange Bleu looked on his way to retaining the crown.
However, the complexion of the contest was about to change as El Clavel, who was tackling the 5100m trip for the first time, began to make inroads into Losange Bleu's lead. Split by the width of the track, it quickly became clear that both Losange Bleu and El Clavel were about to embark on an epic battle. Neither horse was in a mood to be denied, but under an all-action James Reveley ride, El Clavel finished with a wet sail to get up by a length and a quarter. Imbatable Du Seuil stayed on best of the rest to finish eight lengths adrift in third.
"He's tireless – as we say in the trade, he's all grit! I've lost my voice from shouting in the home straight," said George, speaking to the PA.
"With him, we dreamed of the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris because he's got the physique for it. But that's for the future. What he's doing over hurdles already is incredible.
"I can't even train him properly in the mornings because he goes so fast and never gets tired. I can throw three pacesetters at him; he never blows and never sweats.
"I asked James Reveley to tuck him in behind Losange Bleu, and that's exactly what he did – he gave him a dream ride.
"Before the race, the stable manager kindly reminded me to go easy with him over hurdles, because he's destined to become a star over fences. But in the end, we won!
"El Clavel is a champion. As James and I say, if we're ever going to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup, it'll be with him!"
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