Alaivan books Cheltenham ticket

The Edward O'Grady trained Alaivan set himself up for his Triumph Hurdle bid with a comprehensive 17 lengths win in the Grade 2 Winning Fair Juvenile Hurdle at Fairyhouse today.

Confidently ridden by O'Grady's stable jockey Andrew McNamara, the son of Kalanisi took over the lead after two out, and quickened clear of rivals to win eased down.

Afterwards O'Grady reported “Alaivan disappointed us at Christmas but was obviously beaten by a very good horse. However, I think today's win, and his debut win, were better performances than his Christmas run and his jumping has improved too.”

He revealed “last Wednesday was actually the first day Alaivan really pleased me in a gallop since I got him and hopefully he can build on this.”

William Hill Bookmakers cut Alaivan to 6/1 (from 10/1) for the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham.