15 Contenders in the Mix for King George

It appears as though an all-Kauto forecast bet is untenable at this point after upstart juvenile Kauto Stone withdrew from the 2011 King George at the latest declaration point. Wishfull Thinking was also amongst the withdrawals for the Boxing day Showpiece that has anchored one of the biggest cards on the National Hunt Calendar.

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Long Run continues to hold onto his position as the outright betting favourite for this one and his price is hovering just above odds-on with most major bookmakers. He's listed anywhere from 5/4 to 6/4 with a few 11/8's along the way.

After Kauto Star's dramatic Betfair Chase victory, his price for this one plummeted and he's trading as high as 5/1 but most bookmakers continue to list him at 4/1 odds. He's a good shout for this one considering how many times he's won it before and he'll be able to prove that the last outing was no fluke if he's able to get the better of Long Run again this time.

Kauto Star was the beneficiary of a brilliant ride last time out and he was physically much more ready than he looked at any point last year. Long Run didn't get the best of trips and didn't look to be firing on all cylinders – despite kicking on as gamely as he could on the run in.

Master Minded was a three-length winner of the Amlin Chase and he sits just a bit back from Kauto Star with an 11/2 listing. He needed the race on debut this year when he finished last to Alberta's Run in the Old Roan at Aintree. His Amlin score came carrying 11-11 and that was the second highest weight he's ever won at. Look for him to progress from there.

Captain Chris remains the interesting one and he's certainly in the frame at an 8/1 price nearly across the board. Look for him to press the pace a bit here and try to carry a good position throughout the contest. His resiliency is one the aces up his sleeve as he's shown the ability to run races when not jumping fluently at the start. He generally settles down a bit after he's been over a few fences and he tends to perform honestly when called upon. 10/1 would be a great price but 8/1 is about fair.

Amlin Chase runner-up Somersby is the next best-priced contender at a 16/1 listing. Several bookmakers have him as short as 12/1. Noble Prince trades anywhere from 20/1 to 25/1 while Weird Al boasts a very stark gulf amongst bookmakers with a low of 14/1 and a high of 25/1. Diamond Harry can be had at 20/1 to 33/1 while Medermit's listing is anywhere from 25/1 to 50/1.

Some interesting each-way selections or place-only options include Nacarat at 50s, Planet of Sound as high as 50/1 and The Giant Bolster at 40/1 to 150/1.