Hopes high Alexei can resume winning ways in Molyneux

Owner Garth Broom is confident Alexei can show his class when he takes on  Mydaddypaddy in the renamed and rehomed William Hill Molyneux Hurdle at Aintree on Saturday.

Alexei enjoyed an excellent campaign last season for trainer Joe Tizzard, winning valuable handicaps at Ascot and Cheltenham and the Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton before stepping up to Grade One level.

He was fourth in the Champion Hurdle and third in the the Aintree Hurdle in the spring and while he has to concede weight to each of his four rivals in what was the Elite Hurdle and formerly staged at Wincanton, connections are expecting a bold showing from the six-year-old.

“I think he’s got a very good chance, Joe tells me he is very well in himself and he is very pleased with him,” said Broom, who alongside his wife Anne runs his horses under the Brocade Racing banner.

“We’re looking forward to seeing him again this season and luckily he handles faster ground so we can go to Aintree. They all seem rather keen on Mydaddypaddy and he’s a very good horse, but I would hope we’ll give him a good race.”

With regular partner Brendan Powell sidelined by a broken arm which also rules him out of Sunday’s ‘Racing Come Dancing’ fundraiser, Harry Cobden has been called up to partner Alexei for the first time.

Broom added: “We’ve got Harry on board who is not a bad substitute for poor Brendan, who we feel heartbroken for and as well as being out for a while, sadly it’s mucked up his dancing hasn’t it!

“We’ll know where we stand afterwards. This time last year Alexei had only had a couple of races and we were still in handicaps. It would be nice if he could keep progressing like last year, but there are no guarantees in life.

“It will be nice to see him back in action and I’m sure he will put up a good performance. We’ve spent the summer dreaming and now we get to see if the dreams come true.”

Mydaddypaddy was the star novice hurdler for champion trainer Dan Skelton last season, impressing with victories at Carlisle and Haydock before placing in the Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree on Boxing Day and the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March.

Skelton views the five-year-old as a potential Champion Hurdle contender this season, but does expect him to improve for his comeback run this weekend.

He told Sky Sports Racing: “I’ve never trained a Champion Hurdle winner so I don’t know if he’s one! I’m having a bit of a guess, but I think he could be.

“He’s very quick, he’s nimble, he’s sees out two miles very well, (but) he will improve on Saturday and it’s his first step out of novice company. He’s up against others with more experience and while he doesn’t have Lossiemouth (Champion Hurdle winner) to contend with he’s got (a lack of) experience to try and defy, which I think will be hard to do.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if he got beat, his season wouldn’t be over at all (if he did). I’ve done plenty with him and he’s not unfit, but he will step forward.

“You want to win all the time, of course you do, but I asked his owner which was the one race he wanted to win this season and he said the Champion Hurdle so we want him at his best then, not the first week in November.”

The potential fly in the ointment is Gordon Elliott’s Irish raider Mange Tout, who has won four of her five starts over hurdles to date and was last seen winning a Grade One over the course and distance at the Grand National meeting in April.

Nicky Henderson’s Lucky Place and Melon from the yard of Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero complete the field.