Sam Thomas bides his time with Celtic Dino after his competitive effort chasing Wodhooh in the Ascot Hurdle.
Gordon Elliott’s mare has now won eight of her nine starts over hurdles, with her only defeat coming at Lossiemouth in the Aintree Hurdle in April, and finished two and a half lengths clear this weekend in what was Celtic Dino’s first attempt beyond two miles.
Thomas has opted not to confirm the six-year-old for Saturday’s Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle and will now see how that race goes before mapping out plans, but sees Celtic Dino’s long-term future in the chase atmosphere.
Thomas told Sky Sports Racing: “We had a game plan and Dylan (Johnston) gave him a great ride. They came over to try and get the side gate and she (Wodhooh) is an incredible mare, what can you say. She’s eight from nine starts and she probably had a little more in the tank, but it’s a nice position to be in with these youngsters we’ve got.”
“They are making progress every season and it will be interesting to see now in the Fighting Fifth where we go with him, but he will be close to 150 racing after this performance. He is just a sweet, sweet horse. Whatever he does now over fences will be a bonus as he will be a great two mile chaser.”
“He’s quite ground-dependent. He really gets a bit stuck in the mud. He’s such a nice mover, he covers the ground well. That’s a big thing for us. So we’ll really try to avoid that and that will determine where we go.”
“The Liverpool Hurdle towards the end of the season might be an option. Unfortunately we’re between a bit of a rock and a hard place. He’s a good horse but is he good enough to go and win the Grade Ones? I’m not sure and it will be difficult to lump top weight together in these big handicaps.”
“He’s had a good start to the season and we’re not going to overdo him. We’ll try to pick our battles wisely and look after him.”
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