The Cheltenham Festival for 2009 gets underway at 1.30 on Tuesday in traditional fashion with the Supreme Novices' Hurdle, for which Cousin Vinny is many people's idea of the so-called "Irish banker".
Winner of the Champion Bumper at last year's Festival, Cousin Vinny looked set to take the Deloitte Novices' Hurdle at Leopardstown comfortably last time before dumping jockey Patrick Mullins having stumbled after jumping the final flight. According to the market Cousin Vinny's main rivals will be David Pipe's exciting juvenile Torphichen, who will receive an 8-lb concession and has strong form for all he's been lightly raced over hurdles so far, and Michael Flips, unseen since winning at Kempton on Boxing Day but another in possession of form that has worked out favourably.
The second race is the Arkle Novices' Chase, covered in depth in Race of The Day, which is followed by the first schedule change at this years' Festival, the William Hill Trophy Handicap Chase being brought forward to precede the Champion Hurdle. Current favourite is another previous Festival winner in Wichita Lineman, successful in the 2007 Spa Novices' Hurdle, but he has a lot to find on chasing form and more interesting are the likes of Possol, who is on a favourable mark and has caught the eye in wearing first-time cheekpieces, and Star de Mohaison, who is only 2 lb worse off with Possol for a 19-length beating of him in a similar event over Cheltenham's New Course in December.
Patsy Hall is also an intriguing entrant having been fourth in this race from a 4-lb higher mark last year and wearing first-time blinkers on this occasion, though his trainer Tony Martin, normally one to fear in the Festival handicaps, has been badly out of form of late.
The Champion Hurdle itself has been a one-horse story for most of the season, with last year's leading novice Binocular sweeping aside many of the division's main protagonists, including both reigning champion Katchit and ante-post second-favourite Celestial Halo, in the re-arranged International Hurdle at Ascot on his sole start in Graded open company to date. The softening underfoot conditions have been mooted as a potential banana skin for Nicky Henderson's charge, though he was arguably presented to challenge too soon given the conditions when meeting his sole hurdling defeat in last year's Supreme Novices' Hurdle. Last year's runner-up Osana shaped well on his reappearance and is sure to put up a bold showing once more, whilst the prospect of soft ground will excite few more than the connections of Brave Inca, the 2006 champion who has made a triumphant comeback having missed 2007/8 through injury.
The Cross-Country Chase follows the day's feature, and as seems is always the case these days Irish cross-country specialist Enda Bolger has a strong squad in the race, including ante-post market leaders L'Ami and Garde Champetre, second and first respectively in the corresponding race here in December.
The card closes with the second running of the David Nicholson Mares' Hurdle, which has an open look following the defection of last years' winner Whiteoak to the Champion Hurdle. The market is headed by another Irish raider in Quevega from the Willie Mullins yard. She remains unexposed over hurdles and won on her first attempt at this trip last month, leaving the impression that she's bound to improve further, for all the chances of that are more than reflected in her odds.
The standard is set by Lucy Wadham's United, who made the frame in both the Cheltenham and Punchestown three-mile championship events over hurdles before missing last season through injury. She has since shaped as though better than ever and will prove a tough nut to crack so genuine has she shown herself to be in the past. Chomba Womba was the beaten favourite in this race last year, and although she has shown improved form this season that has come over shorter for the most part (won a weak renewal of the Ascot Hurdle in November).