Gowran Park Big Race Selections For Thursday

The first big race selection of the afternoon at Gowran Park on Thursday is the Willie Mullins trained Klassical Dream, as this race should be a formality for him if wanting to win the Stayers' Hurdle at the Cheltenham festival in March.

Klassical Dream, once a Grade One Chanelle Pharma Novice Hurdle Supreme Novice Hurdle winner in 2019, is now one of the best staying hurdles in national hunt racing.

Having had a tremendous season in 18/19, he came back looking to be Willie Mullins Champion Hurdle contender but on both his runs at the back end of 2019 nothing went to plan.

He was then not seen for 18 months with problems off the track, but he returned at the Punchestown festival in April 2021, trying three miles for the first time in the Grade One Champion Stayers Hurdle and he went on to bolt up by nine lengths.

This made him a strong candidate for the Stayers' Hurdle at the Cheltenham festival this term and he enhanced those credentials on his first run this term when seeing off dual Grade One winner Flooring Porter to land the Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown.

Looking to get another run in before the festival in March this looks a perfect event for him and although carrying top weight should be tough to beat.

The feature race of the afternoon at Gowran Park on Thursday is the valuable Thyestes Handicap over 3m1f and we are sticking with last years winning trainer Gordon Elliott.

Gordon Elliott is never far away in this event having the winner of the race last term and 2018 and he has had another good go at the race with five runners.

We are siding with the £105,000 purchase Braeside for the Kim Muir winning connections KTDA Racing, with this son of Presenting looking a dangerous proposition in this race on a mark of 145.

The second season novice chaser finally got off the mark on seasonal debut at Cork over 3m4f showing that staying trips are his game and then last time out in the Paddy Power Handicap Chase at Leopardstown over Christmas he was a good fourth.

Only up 2lb in the handicap for this event he looks feasibly treated and having form of soft/heavy ground leaves him with a lot in his favour.

Big player at an each way price.