Prospect of steady early pace could scupper Royal Charm's chance at Exeter today
There's no doubt at all that Royal Charm is the one to beat as he bids to land the Betfair Graduation Chase for the second year running at Exeter this afternoon.
Always held in high regard by trainer Paul Nicholls, the French import has won all four starts at this Somerset venue, including twice over C&D. And the six-year-old was still going strongly when falling at the fourth-last on his reappearance at Sandown.
However, while the son of Cadoudal is proven over this trip, I'm convinced that he needs a stiffer test now. The way he travelled in the aforementioned race at Sandown, which was over 3m 110yds, lends credibility to this theory. Consequently, at around the 4-7 mark, I'm inclined to take Royal Charm on this afternoon, as there's a good chance that this four-runner affair could get tactical.
Though Richard Johnson aboard Rougham is likely to ensure they don't crawl in the early stages, with the prospect of an easy lead I am pretty confident that Philip Hobbs' charge will not be ridden aggressively given that conditions will be testing, and this race could be teed-up nicely for TORPHICHEN who boasts an excellent record on soft/heavy going.
The Alhaarth gelding has had just two starts since joining Alan King, and has shaped well on each occasion, latterly finishing sixth in a competitive Ascot handicap in which he was tried in a first-time visor. Connections have opted to reapply cheekpieces today, which looks a good move, since he acts well in that headgear, and the 7-2 on offer with Boylesports at the time of writing looks pretty generous to me.
Cool Friend, the remaining contender of the quartet set to go to post, has scored twice at this track over hurdles but is likely to struggle, despite receiving weight all round.