3:35 – Monsieur Lecoq 7/2
Having won this race two years ago off a lowly mark of 122, he improved significantly last season, reaching a peak mark of 151 in the process.
A winner of the 2019 Welsh Champion Hurdle, he finished a narrow 3rd in the Greatwood off 145 and he was 2nd in a grade 3 handicap at Ascot off 150 behind the repeat winner, Not So Sleepy. Those efforts were separated by a great run in the International Hurdle.
By the time connections bravely went to Ireland for the Irish Champion Hurdle, he was probably over the top and he ended the season with a couple of disappointing runs.
He made his seasonal reappearance over fences where he was a tad disappointing before finishing 6th a listed race in France a couple of months ago. The 3rd that day has since won a Grade 3 where as the winner was 3rd in that same race so the form is reasonable and while Monsieur Lecoq was below par again, we’ve seen the trainers runners in France improve significantly when returning to the UK.
He’s won over course and distance and he’s also placed in an Imperial Cup while the testing ground will be right up his street. The likes of Totterdown & Highway One O Two will ensure there’s a strong pace, while the hooded Guard Your Dreams made all to win last time out.
This is the easiest race he’s encountered for a while and he’s dropped back to a workable mark. Conditions of the race look close to ideal and the yard are in flying form; her runners in December recorded form figures of: 12P1F12, with the faller trading at 1.15 in running when falling at the last. It’s also worth noting that she’s only ever had 4 runners at Sandown, resulting in one win and three 2nd place finishes.
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