Riders Onthe Storm© Photo Healy Racing
Part-owner Carl Hinchy is excited to see Riders Onthe Storm bid for glory in the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup at Cheltenham on Saturday week.
Formerly a high-class performer in Ireland for trainer Tom Taaffe, the six-year-old changed hands for 50,000 pounds at the Goffs UK Spring Sale in May and was subsequently sent to Nigel Twiston-Davies.
Riders Onthe Storm made an excellent start for his new connections when landing a lucrative prize at Aintree in early November — and despite a 13lb rise in the weights, Hinchy is hopeful he can continue his progress at Prestbury Park.
He said: “Riders Onthe Storm is in good form and the plan is for him to head to Cheltenham.
“It was great to see the form from his victory at Aintree boosted when the third, Oldgrangewood, won at Newbury last week.
“We expect him to have improved plenty for his first run. Nigel’s horses tend to come on from their first outing and, whilst he will have to improve given his rise in the weights, we are hopeful of a big run.”
Riders Onthe Storm has been allotted 11st 4lb for the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup.
The weights are currently headed by Kalashnikov, although his trainer Amy Murphy has already cast doubt over his participation, with the Newmarket handler not keen on the idea of running her stable star under the welter burden of 11st 12lb.
Other contenders include Kerry Lee’s BetVictor Gold Cup heroine Happy Diva (11st). She could bid to become the fourth horse to do the double after Pegwell Bay (1988), Senor El Betrutti (1997) and Exotic Dancer (2006).
