Horse in Profile: Ethical Diamond The £100,000 Scottish Champion Hurdle is the next major prize on Willie Mullins’ radar, as he takes aim at a second British Trainers’ Championship title. He’s still a couple of big pots behind Dan Skelton and will be looking to close the gap at Ayr on Saturday. Ethical Diamond is one of four runners in this race for the maestro of Closutton and the market has chosen this five-year-old as Mullins’ best chance of winning. Here we take a close look at his profile and what we can expect to see at Ayr. Back Ethical Dimaond in the Scottish Champion Hurdle: If you have already signed up to William Hill, check out more of the best betting sites and casino bonuses Ethical Diamond Scottish Champion Hurdle Odds Ethical Diamond to win the Scottish Champion Hurdle @ 3/1 with William Hill Kicking his career off on the Flat Ethical Diamond began life with trainer Michael O’Meara on the Flat and had three starts in that sphere, before Willie Mullins came knocking. He looked in need of the experience when a well beaten fourth in a 1m2f maiden at the Curragh on debut. It was a much improved display over slightly further at Roscommon on better ground and he kept on really nicely to finish third, despite rolling left briefly with 150 yards or so to go. The form is a bit of a mixed bag but a couple of subsequent winners have come out of it. The step up to an extended 1m4f worked like a charm at Limerick next time, as Ethical Diamond ran out a comfortable winner and the runner-up has since scored at Listed level, providing some substance to the form. Juvenile potential on show He failed to win in three starts as a juvenile hurdler but clearly Mullins saw something he looked on the gallops, as he was highly tried. Finishing a well beaten 11th on hurdling debut at Leopardstown, he was too keen early on and looked in need of the run. A step up to Grade 1 level then followed in the Spring Juvenile Hurdle and he was far from disgraced back in sixth. Cheltenham’s Triumph Hurdle proved a step too far next time but he then ran two good races on the Flat, including at Royal Ascot before going for an extended break. Major recent progress over hurdles After finishing well beaten at Leopardstown over Christmas, Mullins’ five-year-old eventually got off the mark with a 10-length victory in a maiden hurdle at Punchestown in February. Making all the running that day, he jumped to his left on occasion but still had plenty in hand over his rivals. Ethical Diamond produced a career-best display over hurdles to finish fourth in the County Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and kept on well to complete a 1-2-4 for Willie Mullins, with stablemates Kargese and Absurde ahead of him. Ayr to the Scottish Champion Hurdle throne? The British handicapper has responded with a 1lb rise, which is hard to argue with, and it’s not likely to hinder his chances. One potential negative is that it seems as if he wants a step up in trip, as he tends to stay on well despite getting outpaced over this sort of distance. That being said, if he was to produce a performance similar to the one at Cheltenham last time out, he could prove very hard to beat. Clearly he’s still lightly-raced over hurdles and further progress simply cannot be ruled out.
