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Skelton fears chances may go up in smoke
The Journal
|April 26, 2025
HOE Joly Smoke will fly the flag for Dan Skelton, as he attempts to defy the odds and fend off the Willie Mullins invasion in the £175,000 bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown on Saturday.
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The Closutton handler is responsible for half of the 20-strong field and with Grand National third Grangeclare West topping the weights, it means Skelton’s course winner will have to race from out of the handicap and with the trainer's brother Harry Skelton at his near minimum weight to ride.
However, the Lodge Hill team are hopeful the decision to skip the Scottish Grand National will pay dividend as they bid to keep trainers’ title dreams alive in a race that could prove crucial.
“We never entered him in the Scottish National, rightly or wrongly, because I always felt this was the right race for him. We didn’t expect Grangeclare West to turn up, but that’s happened because of circumstances and we're 12Ib wrong before we start,’ said Skelton.
This story is from the April 26, 2025 edition of The Journal.
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