Blackbow and Paul Townend take a fall as Captain Guinness and Rachael Blackmore (nearside) head for victory at Navan© Photo Healy Racing
Very promising young Henry de Bromhead inmate, Captain Guinness, hasn’t been given the nod to head off on his summer holidays just yet, with connections hoping he’ll get an opportunity at Punchestown.
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has everything, including the racing schedule, up in the air at present. The jumping fraternity would like to think that all is not lost on the 2019/2020 campaign.
“We’re just waiting to see — there might be a race in Punchestown for him. If it goes ahead, behind closed doors even,” said Captain Guinness’ owner, Declan Landy.
“There’s no panic — he can take a break if he has to. We’re lucky we’re at the end of the season.
“We haven’t really got in to long term planning yet. The Arkle (Novices’ Chase, Cheltenham 2021) might be the job for him though. It would be the obvious way of thinking with him.”
An impressive winner first time out at Navan in mid-December, the Arakan gelding took the step-up, from maiden to Grade Two company, in his stride next time.
In January he yielded by only three parts of a length to Andy Dufresne in the Moscow Flyer at Punchestown, in advance of a trip to Cheltenham for the Supreme Novice.
As a 14/1 chance there, Captain Guinness raced in mid-division under Rachael Blackmore, before making headway when hampered three out.
The five-year-old was close up with every chance when badly hampered and brought down at the next. That incident was caused by the right-jumping eventual fourth placer, Asterion Forlonge.
“Rachael thought she would have definitely been in the shake-up anyway,” reflected Landy.
“To handle it as well as he did first time at Cheltenham — it wasn’t a bad run at all — there were plenty of positives to take out it, rather than the negative of what happened. We’ll just have to put up with that.
“Once the jockey and the horse came back safe we can’t complain too much.”
(EM)
