Johnson excited by Sadler’s Risk

Jockey Richard Johnson believes Sadler’s Risk can improve on his brilliant hurdling debut at Kempton when he runs in JCB Triumph Hurdle Trial at Cheltenham on Saturday.

The four-year-old won twice on the Flat for Mark Johnston and could hardly have been more impressive on his first start over timber for Philip Hobbs earlier this month, winning by 17 lengths at Kempton.

He is now towards the head of the William Hill betting for Cheltenham Festival Triumph Hurdle itself in March and will get the chance to show he handles the track this weekend.

"Hopefully he runs on Saturday. I schooled him last week and this week and he has come out of his race really well," Richard Johnson told At The Races.

"We all feel he should have come on a bit for that run as he'd had a fair break off the Flat before Kempton. He jumped nicely and showed a very good attitude. He's a real strapping horse. You'd struggle to sit on him and realize he was a Flat horse, so that is a massive plus for a juvenile."