King George VI Ante Post Preview

Paul Nicholls has already admitted to getting his tactics wrong in the seasonal debut for Master Minded – this is likely to cause the talented chasers odds for the King George VI to drift significantly over the next month or so as other contenders put in much more solid shifts. The Grade 2 Old Roan Chase only featured a trio of runners but Master Minded simply did not look fluent and weakened significantly two out from home.

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With Master Minded clearly looking a tired horse, Nicholls took full responsibility and admitted that they likely started him too soon. Speaking to the media, the leading National Hunt conditioner declared, “Hindsight is a wonderful thing and I wish we'd stuck to the plan and gone to Ascot at the end of November. The ground was obviously quick enough for him Saturday and he jumped a little bit hesitantly and right handed.”

Master Minded remains pointed firmly towards the 2011 King George VI – a race that saw the undoing of Kauto Star last year as Long Run raced home to score a hefty odds as the rescheduled race took place in mid-January as opposed to its usual boxing day iteration.

Nicholls was adamant that Master Minded would be ready for the race and that, if he was to have a bad outing this season, it was best to happen early as opposed to later on at festival time. “Remember you don't want these horses at their best at this time of year and he will improve plenty for that (The King George VI Chase).”

As it currently stands, Long Run trades at an odds-on price nearly across the board with only a few bookmakers still offering up a price of evens. Long Run not only earned major plaudits for winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup at 6, but the manner in which he did it – disposing of two NH legends in Denman and Kauto Star – that has seen his price plummet to the extent that it has.

Long Run has never finished outside of the top three finishers in any contest, winning 12 from 18 lifetime with five coming at Grade 1 level.

Captain Chris deserves plenty of respect and he's pointed at this one as well – trading at a solid 8/1 price tag with most major bookmakers. He put together a unique Cheltenham/Punchestown double, winning the Arkle and the Ryanair Novices. It will be interesting to see how he progresses onto the regular chasing scene having proved himself top novice of last season.