Willie Mullins looking to Batman to be Imperial superhero

Batman Girac could serve up a tasty appetiser for Willie Mullins ahead of the Cheltenham Festival when he takes a swing at Saturday’s Betfair Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle at Sandown.

A legion of Closutton stars are poised for action next week, but long before Galopin Des Champs bids for a Cheltenham Gold Cup hat-trick, Mullins will saddle his first runner in the Imperial Cup since Wicklow Brave was pulled up in 2015.

Wicklow Brave went on to scoop the County Hurdle the following week and although Batman Girac is entered in that Prestbury Park event, the focus is firmly on the Esher track’s £100,000 feature event.

“It’s a bit of a speculative run and he’s not been an easy horse in his career as he pulls so hard, but he was running an encouraging race with J J (Slevin) at the Dublin Racing Festival when he came down at the last,” said Anthony Bromley, racing manager to Batman Girac’s owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede.

“He might have run on into a place and we just felt the Imperial Cup offered a slightly easier chance than the County Hurdle and we would roll the dice and see how we got on. There’s not many two-mile handicap hurdles in Ireland, but two in a week here in England and of the two this felt the best option to try.

“The County looks much tougher and the prize-money on offer at Sandown is very attractive, so we have decided on this one rather than the County where it could be very difficult and he definitely wouldn’t be 10-1.

“It’s a bit speculative, but the horse is fine after his fall and fit and well and we will see how he gets on.”

Nicky Henderson is another looking for a boost ahead of Constitution Hill and Jonbon flying the flag for Seven Barrows at Cheltenham and he sends out the talented Bo Zenith, while 14-time champion trainer Paul Nicholls will be double-handed with Afadil and Sorceleur.

Defending champion Go Dante has dropped to a mark 2lb lower than his winning figure and although conditions could prove very different to the testing ground on which he thrived 12 months ago, trainer Olly Murphy is hoping the London air will revitalise his charge.

“He’s in very good form and has been trained for the race,” said Murphy.

“I would have loved a bit more rain around because the softer the ground the better he is, but it’s just the way it is and he handles good to soft.

“He just hasn’t reproduced his form from last year yet this season and he has actually disappointed me on a few occasions. He showed a little bit more at Newbury the last day and a little bit to a point at Windsor beforehand, but we have been hoping going to an old stomping ground in Sandown will suit.

“We’ve been kind of hanging our coat on the ground being very soft which it’s not, but he’s fit and well and off a nice mark. It looks a competitive race as always, but he couldn’t be in better form and I think he’s got a good each-way chance.”

There is a £100,000 bonus on offer if the Imperial Cup winner can then follow up in any race at the Festival and one trainer who could go in search of that bounty is the in-form Sam Thomas.

Thomas, who rode Denman to Gold Cup glory during his time as a jockey, has been the man to follow in big Saturday handicaps of late and hopes his William Hill Hurdle runner-up Lump Sum can go one better than when bumping into Mares’ Hurdle-bound Joyeuse at Newbury.

He said: “He felt good before his last run at Newbury and ended up running well there carrying another big weight. This is another big ask but if he is in the same sort of form as Newbury, he should go well. We’ve had some big Saturday winners this season, but we have some lovely horses in the yard

“He does hold an entry in the County Hurdle at Cheltenham, but he started way back in October so he has had a long season. However, that will be a discussion we have with the boss (Dai Walters, owner) should he win on Saturday.

“He has got to carry a lot of weight on Saturday, which will make it hard, but it is great to have a horse to compete in races like this.”

Others with claims include Ben Clarke’s Ooh Betty, who was third in Grade Two company at Ascot in January, and Jonjo and AJ O’Neill’s Wreckless Eric, while Nigel Twiston-Davies will saddle both Spirits Bay and Big Ginge, with the former facing a considerably easier task than his last assignment when up against Constitution Hill.

“I think he’s on the right side of the handicapper and the course will suit him with a stiff finish, he stayed on well up the Cheltenham hill in the Constitution Hill race,” said Willy Twiston-Davies, assistant to his father.

“He’s a decent horse in his own right and what we’ve been expecting of him he hasn’t probably shown yet, but he’s working well and he’s certainly a nice horse.

“We won’t be looking any further than Saturday and this has been the plan for quite a long time and the horse’s ability is definitely there, so I think he has a great chance.”