The Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle (Sunday 13 January) is a Grade 2 Hurdle run over two-miles at Punchestown. It was first run as the Byrne Group Novice Hurdle in 2003, with the name changed to its current one in 2009. The race has been won by some of the stars of Irish Racing including the inaugural winner Kicking King. Other notable winners include Vautour, Douvan, and Min.
Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle Trends
- Willie Mullins has trained seven of the last 10 winners
- Ruby Walsh has ridden five of the last 10 winners
- Eight of the last 10 favourites have won
- SP’s of the winners have ranged from 1/7 to 6/1
- The last 10 winners have been aged five six, or seven
Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle Main Contenders
Commander Of Fleet
Winner of a point-to-point, bumper, and a hurdle race for Gordon Elliott, but blotted his copybook when finishing last of four last time out at Fairyhouse. He was beaten by two Willie Mullins trained horses there, so it’s a bit of a surprise to see him as the ante-post favourite, especially as he had to be withdrawn prior to his last run.
Buildmeupbuttercup
Winner of two of her four bumpers but made little impact when tried on the flat in listed races and group races for previous trainer Mick Channon. Has since been transferred to Willie Mullins for whom she made a winning start over hurdles at Navan despite having some room for improvement in the jumping department. Runner-up has been since finished only third but, though she has improvement to find, she could easily find it.
Prince D’Aubrelle
Winner of the last three of his five starts in bumpers for Willie Mullins with his last bumper win coming in October 2015. He then didn’t make his hurdles debut until May 2018, but it was a winning one after over 2½ years off the track. Runner-up hasn’t done anything for the form of that win but this nine-year-old is obviously highly-regarded having been kept in training for so long after being injured.
Harrie
A third possible string for Willie Mullins and this one was punted as though defeat was out of the question on his hurdles debut before just landing the odds from a less-fancied stablemate. Has the potential to be anything on just his third start for Willie Mullins, but that hurdles win did come over further.
Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle 2019 Summary
As Gordon Elliott has eight of the initial entries and Willie Mullins three, running plans for National Hunt’s two biggest stables aren’t crystal clear. However, as Gordon Elliott has yet to win this race and Willie Mullins has won seven of the last 10 renewals, it could be worth concentrating on the Willie Mullins trio. Buildmeupbuttercup is the most likely winner according to the market, but it could be worth chancing Prince D’Aubrelle, who is obviously highly-regarded having been kept in training by Mullins despite a lengthy injury.
Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle Tip
Prince D’Aubrelle (Each-Way)