TERRIFIED bookies are counting the cost of Cheltenham Festival – with the layers certain one horse has already won.
Sir Gino looked an absolute machine when disposing of the awesome Ballyburn with ease at Kempton on Boxing Day.
PAPunters who took the early prices about Sir Gino look like they’re onto a good thing in the Arkle[/caption]
And, having been backed at as big as 8-1 for the Arkle, punters who took the price look like they’re onto a big value winner.
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Bet Victor‘s Sam Boswell said: “It feels like his backers are likely to collect come the Tuesday of the Festival.”
The superstar novice chaser – who won the Fighting Fifth Hurdle when stepping in for stablemate Constitution Hill – is one of their five biggest losers in the book.
He has been hammered into as short as 8-11 for the Arkle – while his stablemate is another giving bookies sleepless nights.
The Christmas Hurdle was built up as the big showdown behind former Champion Hurdle king Constitution Hill and pretender to the throne, Lossiemouth.
But Willie Mullins’ mare failed to fire and Constitution Hill showed he can still mix it in the top flight with an easy win.
Some have fired warning shots over the quality of the win – and Templegate has a 33-1 Champion Hurdle pick he fancies – but there is no denying Constitution Hill has been supported well for the day one feature.
He was as big as 9-2 in November after his Newbury gallop but is now 4-6.
Elsewhere, it’s three Willie Mullins horses the bookies are desperate to get beat.
Summing up the state of their ante-post liabilities, Boswell said: “The most significant loser in our book is Constitution Hill.
“We laid Nicky Henderson’s stable star at a price as big as 9-2 back in November, following the publicised gallop at Newbury.
“He’s now odds on at 4-6 having returned to his best in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day.
“We’ll be hopeful that Brighterdaysahead at 4-1, who was so impressive over Christmas, also opts for the Champion Hurdle and that we can get him beat in March.
“It’s another Nicky Henderson horse that has us running for cover in the Arkle.
“We saw plenty of conflicting ideas about where Sir Gino would end up but those who backed him for the two-mile novice chase at as big as 8/1 are very much on the right side of a good ante-post bet.
“He’s now 8-11 having blown away a disappointing Ballyburn at Kempton in the Wayward Lad, producing one of the most impressive chase debuts of recent times in the process.
“It feels like his backers are likely to collect come the Tuesday of the Festival.
“The Seven Barrows pair winning would be a nasty start to the festival for us.
“We are currently offering four places each-way on the Supreme, Turners and Albert Bartlett, and as a result we have seen several each-way liabilities.
“It’s another familiar trainer whose horses are giving our traders sleepless nights, with the worst being Willie Mullins-trained Kaid d’Authie.
“A faller on stable debut, he improved when going up in trip at Leopardstown over Christmas, impressing many.
“As a result, he’s 8-1 from 33-1 for the Supreme as it is anticipated he will drop back to two miles.
“Another Closutton inmate that won at Leopardstown and that we are keen to keep onside moving forward is Kopek Des Bordes, who is 12-1 from 25-1 for the Turners.
“Whilst we didn’t see much of his win in the fog, what the punters did manage to see clearly caught the eye.
“The final horse of a Mullins trio that could prove costly for us is Willy De Houelle in the Triumph market.
“This horse was the talk of the town long before his debut in December for the top trainer in Ireland, but he’s yet to live up to the hype and seems poised to be one that us bookmakers have ended up the right side of for once!”
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