O’Neill duo being lined up for post-Cheltenham targets

Two of the O’Neill stable’s talented prospects are likely to skip the Cheltenham Festival in favour of alternative targets further down the line.

Bill Joyce, who contested the Champion Bumper at the meeting last year, made a pleasing start to life as a novice hurdler when winning his first two assignments.

The latter of those runs was a Grade Two success in the Winter Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown, after which he stepped up to Grade One level for the Challow at Newbury to finish third to The New Lion.

His next outing was a return to Grade Two class at Cheltenham, where he was third again behind Fergal O’Brien’s Sixmilebridge and Potters Charm from the Nigel Twiston-Davies yard.

Bill Joyce is not pencilled in to return to Prestbury Park for the showpiece meeting in March, however, with connections preferring to give him a break and focus on Aintree instead.

Jonjo O’Neill jr, in the saddle each time this season, told Sporting Life in the second of their David Power Jockeys’ Cup podcast series: “We felt he ran a little bit flat at Cheltenham, he just didn’t gallop to the line like he did when he won at Sandown. Maybe the Challow Hurdle took a bit more out of him than we thought.

“We were looking towards the Albert Bartlett, but Cheltenham and Aintree are only 19 days away from each other this year instead of a month, which means if you’re running at Cheltenham, you’re going to be having a hard race and you’re probably not going to make Aintree.

“So, we will probably freshen him up instead.”

O’Neill added: “He’s surpassed what we thought he would do as a hurdler, as we always thought he was a strapping chaser.

“So, we don’t really want to go to the well too many times with him and he’s had four runs already this year. He could head to Punchestown after Aintree.”

Red Dirt Road, who also races in the white and red colours of Dan Walker, is set to head to Uttoxeter the day after the Cheltenham Festival, with connections targeting a win in a valuable £100,000 handicap hurdle on Midlands Grand National Day – and O’Neill eyeing up 10 points in the David Power Jockeys’ Cup.

He explained: “Red Dirt Road loves the mud and he’s come out of Saturday’s win at Sandown well. He’s not qualified for the Pertemps Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham, but the money’s nearly the same for that and the Uttoxeter race.

“We always thought a bit of the horse, he’s just not been that easy to train, but thankfully this year, he’s done pretty well.

“He’s only an eight-year-old, but he beat Corbetts Cross in a point-to-point and has got good form in the book.

“We always thought he had ability – he obviously missed all of last year – but he’s paying it back now.”