Kevin Doyle on Amen Kate's Cheltenham Chances - 'She's overpriced at 40-1'

Former professional footballer, Kevin Doyle, spoke to irishracing.com on his hopes of breeding a Festival winner this year and why he believes Amen Kate is overpriced in the Mares' Novice Hurdle.

Doyle gives his view on Constitution Hill switching codes from National Hunt to Flat and

Your dad bred Holywell, who won twice at the Cheltenham Festival, how much would it mean to you to emulate him and breed a Festival winner?

My dad mentions breeding Holywell and winning twice at Cheltenham a lot. It’s a very, very difficult thing to do and he’s been breeding horses for a very long time and that’s the only one. It would be gold to win at Cheltenham at the festival. I’ve had a win at Cheltenham but it wasn’t at the festival.

When you’re breeding national hunt race horses that’s where you want to see them run and I have one running, if she stays fit, called Amen Kate that I bred, bought by Bryan Cooper for his dad Tom Cooper to train and she really impressed when winning her bumper and beat some good horses in that bumper. She then had a few little issues which held her back when she went racing after her initial bumper win.

From what I’ve been told they have her back to where they thought she was going to be a year ago. She won her listed hurdle before Christmas and I think she’s in the Mares' Novice Hurdle.

She's 40/1 and I think that’s a good each-way bet. She has some real good ability. She hasn’t ran since the middle of December because she’s been kept for Cheltenham so she’s aiming for this race and I think 40/1 is a good each way bet for her. She has half a chance. Hopefully for me anyway.

Will Baby Kate make it to Cheltenham this year? (Kevin bred her and she is entered in the Mares' Hurdle)

So Amen Kate is Baby Kate’s half sister and Baby Kate is entered in Cheltenham but she’s not going to run. Her other half sister Cousin Kate was entered in the same race but she picked up an injury.

She ran at the Dublin Racing Festival in February and won a big race but picked up an injury so she’s out as well. I’m hanging all my hopes on Amen Kate. I went from having three possibly running to just one but even that one runner means I have half a chance. That’s what you hope for. That you can have a runner there and hopefully do well.

Will you go over to Cheltenham for any of the days? If not, where will you watch the racing?

I probably won’t. If more than one of the Kate’s had been running then I would have gone because they were all entered on the same day. My local pub is a five minute walk from my house.

It doesn’t really suit me to be away from home around this time of year because I’ll be busy keeping an eye on things here and I’ll just stroll down the local pub and watch the racing alongside a few bets. I’ve been to Cheltenham plenty of times over the years.

So I’ve been there, done that and now I’m just happy to watch it all on the telly.

What do you make of the decision to not run Constitution Hill in this year’s Champion Hurdle?

It’s probably the right decision. Everyone would be watching that with their heart in their mouth over every hurdle praying he gets over them. It’s probably the right decision for the optics of it all. If he fell there it would have been huge pressure on the owner and on Nicky Henderson.

I don’t think from the people that are involved in horse racing but just the wider public spectators of horse racing. There would have been so much pressure for him to not fall and injure himself.

He’s shown he can run at a competitive level on the flat. Probably not a top flat horse but at a comforting level for the next few years where they won’t have their hearts in their mouths watching him possibly falling.

Which horse are you most looking forward to seeing race at Cheltenham?

It's got to be Amen Kate, my own horse. Look I’m a breeder and I’m biased, but I think she has unfulfilled potential. I don’t think we’ve seen the best of her. The first day she ran she beat a good horse in her bumper.

Speaking to the trainer, she had some issues that they only recently got to the bottom of, so I'm looking forward to her running. Other than that - Gaelic Warrior has had a tough Christmas and has been pipped in a few big races over the last couple of months. Let’s see if he can bounce back if he goes to the Gold Cup, which I think is the race he will run in. I like him because he’s a feisty, fun horse to watch run.

What is your banker bet for the Festival?

If Lossiemouth runs in the Mares Hurdle she could be a banker's bet. She could be going to the Champion Hurdle but If Lossiemouth runs in the Mares' Hurdle she’s the banker.