Life Of A Luso is on course for the £50,000
Showcase Trophy Handicap Chase (3.45pm), run over an extended three miles at
Cheltenham on the second day of The Showcase, Saturday, October 19.
The
nine-year-old scored impressively by 10 lengths in the Goldsmiths Handicap Chase
over an extended three miles and a furlong at The April Meeting when giving his
trainer Paul Henderson a first success at Cheltenham.
Life Of
A Luso returns to the Home of Jump Racing at the top of his game, having landed
a competitive handicap chase at Newton Abbot on September 24.
Henderson,
who trains at Whitsbury in Hampshire, said:
"Life Of A Luso goes to Cheltenham for the Showcase Trophy Handicap on the
Saturday. He seems fine after his win at Newton Abbot - he came home, ate
everything up and has taken it in his stride.
"I
thought he put in a good performance at Newton Abbot coming from last to first.
I like to run all my horses like that, unless they need to be ridden otherwise,
but that is certainly his preferred style and I think he has won all five of
his races coming from behind.
"He
wants a strong gallop and generally you would expect to get that in a
competitive race at Cheltenham. He has gone up to 134 in the weights - he was
rated 98 when I first ran him over fences - but I still think he can be
competitive.
"I
thought fast ground was important to him, but now the jockeys are saying that
he wants a bit of cut in the ground as he's got older and it was on the soft
side when he won at Cheltenham in April."
Saturday's
seven-race card also includes the £50,000 Equus-Fine Dining At The Festival
Handicap Chase (2.35pm) over two and a half miles, which serves as a trial for
the £160,000 Paddy Power Gold Cup at The Open on Saturday, November 16.
The
Showcase starts on Friday, October 18, the first racing at Cheltenham since
early May.
About
The Showcase
Cheltenham's
October meeting was renamed The Showcase in 2007 and moved to its present
Friday/Saturday slot. The popular two-day meeting, takes place on October 18
and 19, offering record prize money of £288,000 (up from £275,000 last year).
The Showcase is a natural starting point for horses returning from their summer
breaks and is often used in preparation for The Open (Friday, November 15 -
Sunday, November 17 inclusive) at Cheltenham.
Saturday's
card is headlined by two £50,000 handicap chases - the Equus-Fine Dining At
Festival Handicap Chase (2.35pm), which takes place over a similar distance as
the Grade Three Paddy Power Gold Cup at The Open, plus the Showcase Trophy
Handicap Chase (3.45pm), run over an extended three miles.
The
Showcase gives racegoers the chance to go behind the scenes and find about more
about Cheltenham and Jump Racing. There will be guided tours of the Parade Ring
and Weighing Room before racing, as well as various activities and displays in
Hurdlers' Hall.
The
gates open at noon on both days. The first race is at 2.10pm on Friday and
2.00pm on Saturday. Please find more details at www.cheltenham.co.uk and
through Twitter (@CheltenhamRaces) and Facebook www.facebook.com/thehomeofjumpracing
About
Cheltenham Racecourse
Cheltenham
Racecourse is situated in Prestbury on the outskirts of the historic spa town
of Cheltenham. The Home of Jump Racing, Cheltenham Racecourse is the venue for
the world's pre-eminent Jump Racing meeting, The Festival, which takes place in
March every year. Set against the beautiful backdrop of the Cotswolds,
Cheltenham Racecourse is a stunning natural amphitheatre and offers the
highest-quality action throughout the Jump season.
Cheltenham
Racecourse is part of The Jockey Club, which has been at the heart of British
racing for more than 260 years. Today the largest commercial group in the sport,
The Jockey Club runs the largest racecourse group in the UK by turnover (2012:
£142.1m), courses (15) including those at Aintree, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs and
Newmarket, attendances (2012: 1.8m), total prize money (2012: £35.3m),
contribution to prize money (2012: £16.5m) and quality racing (Group and Graded
races); more than 3,000 acres of world-class training grounds in Newmarket and
Lambourn; The National Stud breeding enterprise and education provider; and the
charity for racing's people in need, Racing Welfare. Governed by Royal Charter,
every penny The Jockey Club makes it puts back into British racing. More
information is available at www.thejockeyclub.co.uk
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