2012 Long Distance Hurdle Betting Preview Part 2

Smad Place is an upstart five-year-old turning out from Alan King’s yard. These guys have tangled before - at Cheltenham and Aintree at the tail end of last season. He unseated Robert Thorton at Aintree and could only muster a nine-length defeat to finish third at Cheltenham when sent off at a 20/1 price tag.

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His last victory came at Ascot in January of 2012 when he scored by a seven length margin over Shoreacres. 

That victory came at a mere 2m3f and he just hasn’t really kicked on with as much verve when stretching out to 3m. He tends to run in the same areas as Big Buck’s and it will be interesting to see how that complicates affairs. 

He remains one of the chief threats from a ratings standpoint but still looks unproven at the distance though there is plenty of upside. 

Crack Away Jack put in a good shift to finish second to Tidal Bay in his last race at Wetherby. He really didn’t look 100% and likely needed the race but still put in a best-of-the-rest performance to get the better of a few other well-known contenders using the race to kick off their seasons. He hasn’t had much luck since winning at Sandown in a beginner’s chase all the way back in 2009. He has hit the board a number of times but really doesn’t look like getting the best of Big Buck’s barring some type of significant error. 

He’s in the hunt from a ratings standpoint as well but looks to be challenging for a place position only. However, in a situation where Big Buck’s was pulled up or brought down somehow, he would likely be the chief threat.