Aintree Day Two: De Boinville to star in Jockeys’ Cup finale

As the inaugural David Power Jockeys’ Cup concludes on Friday – with Harry Skelton in pole position to take home the £500,000 top prize – we take a look at the mounts of the leading riders on day two of Aintree’s Randox Grand National Festival with a possible 50 points up for grabs on the final day of the competition.   

Huyton Asphalt Franny Blennerhassett Memorial Mildmay Novices’ Chase 

Ben Jones will be confident of moving up the leaderboard with Handstands, however Harry Cobden will be hopeful of getting off on the right foot with Caldwell Potter who looked a different horse under positive tactics when winning at the Cheltenham Festival last month. He steps up in trip/out of handicap company here which should suit and Cobden can make up ground on Harry Skelton who doesn’t have a ride in the race. 

William Hill Handicap Hurdle 

Be Aware (Harry Skelton) was very well-fancied when only eighth at Cheltenham last month and still has something to prove in terms of this longer trip, unlike the mount of Nico de Boinville – Impose Toi – who was second in that Coral Cup and is building up a good profile of handicap performances. Despite a 4 lb rise, he is preferred of the pair. 

TrustATrader Top Novices’ Hurdle 

It’s no formality given the way that his mount Royal Infantry disappointed when last seen at Haydock in January, but Harry Skelton could extend his lead over his three closest rivals who don’t have rides in the race. Royal Infantry was always well-thought-of and has had a wind operation since his last run, so could pick up some place points for all the top three in the betting look pretty solid. 

My Pension Expert Melling Chase 

Just the four runners for the Melling this year, meaning points for Nico de Boinville and Harry Skelton are assured if they get their mounts – Jonbon and Protektorat – around without mishap. Last year’s winner Jonbon tried his best to get rid of his rider with a bad mistake at the ninth in the Champion Chase, but the way he rallied for second suggests that he should be very hard to beat now away from Cheltenham once more. Protektorat kept on for third in this last season and isn’t taken lightly, but he’s probably battling for second at best. 

Randox Supporting Prostate Cancer UK Topham Handicap Chase 

Irish runners dominate the betting here, so whilst Paul Townend might lead a late charge up the leaderboard from his lowly starting point, the leading Jockeys’ Cup contenders might be playing for points from placed efforts. This sort of test should suit Harry Cobden’s front-running mount Ginny’s Destiny, who tries cheekpieces for the first time, while Sam Twiston-Davies has his first ride of the day on Huntingdon specialist Lounge Lizard. Excello’s (Nico de Boinville) form is solid if unspectacular so first-time cheekpieces will need to spark some improvement if he is to feature prominently. 

Oddschecker Sefton Novices’ Hurdle 

“So, you’re telling me there’s a chance?” said Lloyd Christmas in Dumb And Dumber. Although it’s very unlikely given the magnitude of Harry Skelton’s lead at the start of this week, there could be a scenario in which he is cursing his agent from the sidelines as he doesn’t have a ride in this closing race in the 2024/25 David Power Jockeys’ Cup. Luckily for Skelton, however, neither does his closest rival Harry Cobden. Instead, Nico de Boinville looks in pole position to pick up the most points with recent Huntingdon winner Califet En Vol who represents the Nicky Henderson yard that won this race in 2018 with Santini and 2019 with Champ. Sam Twiston-Davies rides Ayr scorer Crest of Fortune who swaps blinkers for a tongue-tie as he steps up in class. 

Verdict 

Nico de Boinville looks best placed to pick up the most points on the final day of the 2024/25 David Power Jockeys’ Cup, but it won’t be enough to see him peg back leader Harry Skelton who should have little to worry about. He could, however, increase his share of the prize fund by a cool £100,000 by pipping Harry Cobden to second spot which would be a fine achievement given he has had easily the fewest number of rides of the top four riders in the standings.