Horse racing tips: Hurdlers to follow for the 2023/2024 season
The Jumps Season is getting into full swing, and renowned Tipster and Broadcaster Ed Quigley aka 'Longshot Ted' selects 5 horses who he thinks will pay to follow over the smaller obstacles throughout the next few months...
Hurdlers to watch out for - a quick overview
- Gala Marceau
- Ga Law
- Marie's Rock
- Springwell Bay
- You Oughta Know
Hurdlers to follow for the 2023/2024 jump season
Get in on the action at the jump season with the selected horses to watch out for. Bet on the horses with our best horse racing betting sites for the highest odds and best bonuses.
Gala Marceau
He won in impressive fashion at Kilbeggan in May, and once again got the job done when scoring at Galway in August. He clearly isn't devoid of gears, but looks as though he could easily move up in trip as he has looked a strong stayer in both bumper starts.
Connections of GALA MARCEAU are saying 'they will be working back from the Mares Hurdle', and I would be very surprised if the Willie Mullins trained individual really came into her own this season - now that I don't see connections swaying too far away from the 2m4f trip.
She looked fantastic when stepping up in distance to bolt up over an extended 2m3f in France last time out, in the Grade 1 French Champion field. She looked much happier upped in distance, powering clear in the closing stages in impressive fashion. The form of that race received a huge boost when the third placed horse, stablemate Zarak The Brave, came out and won the Galway Hurdle. Jockey Danny Mullins said she "was very happy with the extra test of stamina" so it is hard to see them coming back down in distance with Gala Marceau, especially when you see how hot the 2m Hurdling division is.
Antepost market leader for the Mares' Hurdle at Cheltenham is Lossiemouth, who clearly had the better of Gala Marceau on numerous occasions, but I would be fascinated to see Gala Marceau have another crack at Lossiemouth over two-and-a-half miles. Lossiemouth, for all her class, can be a bit of a buzzy type and at times a free-going sort and so I wouldn't have thought a stiff test over the intermediate trip would advantage her as much as it would do Gala Marceau.
There is plenty of water to pass under the bridge between now and the race, but at double-figures, I think she is a fair price to get to the top of the tree in her division.
Ga Law
Jamie Snowden has suggested that a switch back to Hurdles could well be on the cards for last season's Paddy Power Gold Cup winner GA LAW, and that could be a shrewd move.
He looks a little between a rock and a hard place in the sense that he is officially rated 152, and the staying Chase division looks very deep. As a contrast, the 3m Hurling scene looks wide-open, and so coming back over Hurdles could be a very smart move. Snowden has pencilled in the West Yorkshire Hurdle at Wetherby at the start of November as a first port of call.
Given that he also took a crashing fall last season, this could be a wise move, and he wouldn't be the first horse to blossom having shelved a chasing career. I'm looking forward to seeing how he progresses and being far from exposed, he could easily have a big impact in the division.
Marie's Rock
There was a lot of in-house debating last season as to whether MARIES' ROCK went for the Stayers Hurdle or defended her crown against her own sex at the 2023 Cheltenham Festival, and as we know, she went for the latter, and ran no sort of race, looking outpaced and performing well below her usual high-standards.
In the aftermath of her exploits at Prestbury Park, she stepped up to 3m at Aintree, and ran a race full of much more of her old zest when chasing home Sire Du Berlais.
One would imagine she will target all the top 3m events this season where she will look to test her stamina, but of course making the most of her Mares' allowance, and she looks the stand-out value in the market at the moment, in which the overall profile of the 3m Hurdle scene looks wide-open and a bit confusing.
Also, you have to factor in that the majority of the ante post leaders are trained in Ireland, so she might not have a great deal to beat this side of the Irish sea. It isn't hard to see her getting firmly in the shake-up of the Staying Hurdle scene.
Springwell Bay
SPRINGWELL BAY is an exciting prospect, and one we are likely to have seen the best of yet. The Jonjo O'Neill trained 6-year-old showed plenty of potential last season, winning three of his five starts over Hurdles, and was seen when finishing sixth in Grade 1 company at Aintree.
That result doesn't tell the whole story, as he didn't jump great and was hampered by a faller too, so in the circumstances that was a great run. Off 137, I have no doubt that he looks a well handicapped individual, and he can kick on this season.
He clearly isn't devoid of speed, but does have plenty of stamina in his pedigree, so once he learns to settle it would be no surprise if he were to flourish over longer distances.
He can start off small, and by the end of the campaign, I would be far from shocked if he was locking horns with rivals with some of the bigger names in the Hurdling scene.
You Oughta Know
Fans of Alanis Morrisette will probably be excited to see YOU OUGHTA KNOW over Hurdles this season. Unbeaten in both starts in bumpers, this five-year-old looks to have a great deal of potential now heading over the smaller obstacles. Obviously, Willie Mullins has an embarrassment of riches in his ranks, but it wouldn't be a shock if this son of Beat Hollow ended up dining at the top table this season.
It will be fascinating to see which way Mullins campaigns him, but either way, I expect him to be coming into the conversation for some of the top novice Hurdle contests this season.
Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:
- Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
- Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
- Never chase their losses
- Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to www.gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites.
