Punchestown Day 3: Harry Cobden has three rides, a Henderson raider and our best bet

Thursday marks Day 3 of the Punchestown Festival and it’s going to be another cracking day of racing action. We have eight more races to enjoy and the best of the bunch is the Grade 1 Ladbrokes Champion Stayers Hurdle, for a which a smart field of eight has been declared.

Here are some of the most notable angles from Punchestown; including a decent book of rides for Harry Cobden, a single Nicky Henderson runner, our best bet of the day and we’ve also had a look at Mullins’ best chances on the day. Check out our free tips page for daily content across British and Irish racing.

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Harry Cobden has three rides

Cobden will become JP McManus’ main man next season, in both Britain and Ireland, and he has already ridden plenty of horses in the green and gold silks at the back end of the season. He’ll be on board Stayers’ Hurdle third Honesty Policy in the big race of the day on Thursday.

18:05

Punchestown

Honesty Policy

Analysis

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Birdie Or Bust is an interesting outsider in the two-mile handicap chase and is definitely capable of more than what we saw at Fairyhouse last time out.

16:50

Punchestown

Birdie Or Bust

Analysis

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Kopek Des Bordes is obviously the one to beat in the Barberstown Castle Novice Chase but if his jumping lets him down, stablemate Salvator Mundi has the ability to pick up the pieces.

17:25

Punchestown

Salvator Mundi

Analysis

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Nicky Henderson sends one runner

It’s interesting that Nicky Henderson has sent the somewhat disappointing Ionian over for the opening novice hurdle on Thursday. He’s yet to win in four starts over hurdles and has only  managed to finish second on one occasion. Clearly connections think he’s capable of much better performances.

14:30

Punchestown

Ionian

Analysis

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Outsider of the day

Minella Sixo (28/1, bet365) didn’t quite manage to execute the plan connections concocted for the Pertemps Final at Cheltenham last time out but this race provides a second chance. Jack Kennedy rides and it would be no surprise if he outruns his substantial price here.

16:15

Punchestown

Minella Sixo

Analysis

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Can Mullins follow up after a Day 1 treble?

Leader d’Allier will be fancied by many, although he has a point to prove after a disappointing display at Fairyhouse last time out. Kopek Des Bordes is the obvious candidate and he’s going to be very hard to beat in the Grade 1 novice chase, although he did flop at this meeting last year. Quiryn was last seen finishing sixth in the Champion Bumper and should go well in this much weaker race.

17:25

Punchestown

Kopek Des Bordes

Analysis

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Best bet of the day

Gordon Elliott will need Grade 1 successes this week if he’s to beat Mullins to the trainers’ championship and one of his best chances is Teahupoo. His course record is excellent and having won this race for the last two years, we can expect another rock-solid performance here.

18:05

Punchestown

Teahupoo

Analysis

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If you back any of our selections you can watch them live on the free Racing Post app or racingpost.com. Simply log in to one of your bookmaker accounts and click ‘Watch live’ on the racecards.

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Place a min £10 bet on Sportsbook on Cheltenham on odds of min EVS (2.0), get 6x £10 in Free Bet Builders, Accumulators or multiples to use on any sport. Rewards valid for 30 days. Only deposits via Pay by Bank, Apple Pay or Debit Card will qualify. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly.