Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle Betting Tips, Odds, & Preview

Martin Pennington

December 21st, 2018

Url copied!

Quick Tips

• Back La Sorelita Each-Way at 6/1 with Ladbrokes
• Bet On Got Trumped Each-Way at 10/1 with 888 Sport

Trainer Gordon Elliott appears to hold the key to Leopardstown's Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle saddling both favourites in the betting this Christmas.

With a strong hand in the juvenile hurdle division, Elliott's Chief Justice (5/2 William Hill) and Coeur Sublime (6/4 Coral) head the Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle betting, which is set to be the first big race on December 26, showcased live on RTE2 in Ireland.

The Grade 2 is worth €50,000 and Elliott can take comfort from the fact that the last two favourites have won the 2m hurdle, can the in-experienced Coeur Sublime make it three in a row?

Elliott's Juvenile Hurdle Favourites

The Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle betting leader Coeur Sublime (6/4 Coral) lacks the Flat racing experience of some of his rivals, having had just one start (which he won), but his price tag of €260,000 tells what new owner Chris Jones thinks of the three-year-old's jumping potential.

The son of Elusive Pimpernel won his hurdling debut at Down Royal (good-to-yielding) last month, prior to his first showdown with stablemate Chief Justice at Fairyhouse in a Grade 3.

Coeur Sublime had to give best to his rival that day, but he went down fighting, with a short-head defeat on good ground enforcing a belief that there is very little between the two.

The much more experienced Chief Justice (5/2 William Hill) was making his seventh Flat start when refusing to race at Beverley in May and he has since gone on to make six starts over hurdles, including four since joining Gordon Elliott.

His Grade 3 victory on good ground at Fairyhouse marked the most recent of those and while Chief Justice is clearly a tough sort, he is vulnerable to a potential improver and the betting reflects that, placing him inferior to the favourite at 5/2. He's the one to have, if you must pick from the top two in the betting, but there are much better bets.

>> Back Coeur Sublime to Win at 6/4 with Coral

Best Bet In Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle:

While Elliott has three others engaged in the Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle, it would seem unlikely that all will run and a more profitable ploy may be to side with the Willie Mullins-trained filly La Sorelita (6/1 Ladbrokes), who has ran twice in France when trained by Guillaume Macaire.

Mullins has won this race three times since 2012, including with the filly Apple's Jade in 2015, who like La Sorelita had won over hurdles in France and was running for the first time in Ireland - and outside France.

La Sorelita ran to a good level of form when taking a fillies contest over 2m1f at Clairefontaine on soft going in early July. She suffered a defeat next time out, but that did come at the hands of Dianakova, who represented another powerful yard in French horse racing.

The form of that victory has been boosted since with the runner-up Kaplina going on to score in a valuable hurdle at Compeigne. The fourth and sixth horses have also gone on to win, so while it’s difficult to compare the form of La Sorelita with the front two in the betting directly, she represents a top yard and is clearly a filly of some promise.

There is a question about the ground, as it's set to be very testing at Leopardstown, and she has only won on French soft, but her breeding suggests she will handle it with her sire Martaline producing plenty who have revelled in mud. She's the best bet in the Knight Frank Juvenile hurdle, against more experienced, and more exposed rivals.

>> Back La Sorelita Each-Way at 6/1 with Ladbrokes

Is There Another Bet?

Trainer Jessica Harrington has yet to win the Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle, but has a decent bet with Punchestown maiden hurdle winner Got Trumped (10/1 888 Sport). The son of Thewayyouare was second on his hurdles debut at Fairyhouse and improved on that effort to win last time out.

The form that maiden hurdle success looks decent, with the comprehensively beaten third having placed previously over hurdles, and the fifth, Bachelor, going on to be second in a large field maiden event at Fairyhouse, having taken a 23-length beating by Got Trumped.

Both of this tip's hurdles starts have come on a sound surface, but he did prove that he handles softer going when finishing runner-up in a 1m4f maiden on heavy ground at Listowel in September, a run which was his racecourse debut.

With further improvement from his latest hurdles runs on the cards, Got Trumped looks capable of performing well above the 10/1 odds offered, and with bookmakers paying down to third place, he's worth a bet.

>> Bet On Got Trumped Each-Way at 10/1 with 888 Sport