Gaming News

"Quel dommage" as Esprit runs out of time for Aintree

It seems only a matter of time before the classy Willie Mullins-trained Quel Esprit will be officially confirmed a non-runner in Saturday’s John Smith’s Grand National having failed to recover in time since meeting a setback in training prior to an intended bid for the Cheltenham Gold Cup last month, writes Elliot Slater.

The talented eight-year-old had been one of six entries for the champion Irish trainer in the race, but along with former Grand National odds favourite Prince de Beauchene, (who has suffered a training injury that has ruled him out of action for the rest of the season), will not be ready in time to tackle the daunting challenge of the four-an-a-half-mile Aintree course, not to mention the 30 awesome fences. Nothing less than 100% fitness is good enough when a horse is being prepared for the ‘world’s greatest steeplechase’ and sadly for connections, Quel Esprit, despite the best efforts of all concerned, appears to have come up short of the mark on this occasion.

Having ended last term with an astonishing sequence of luckless performances that saw the grey fall twice in Grade 1 company when holding every chance at the business end of the contest before being brought down on his final start when favourite at the Punchestown Festival, this season couldn’t have gone better for the gelded son of Saint des Saints who made a winning return at Naas in November before landing a Grade 3 affair at Thurles in January.

Sent off favourite for the Grade 1 Hennessy Gold Cup at Leopardstown a month later, Quel Esprit made no mistake and completed a fine seasonal hattrick with a comfortable success over Roberto Goldback, a win that put him very much in the frame for the Gold Cup.

A below-par gallop just a couple of days before the race ruled Mullins’ charge out of the blue riband contest, and it seems that whatever has been ailing him has failed to leave Quel Esprit in time for him to have a crack at this weekend’s Grand National, forcing punters to look elsewhere for value in the horse betting markets.