King George VI Chase 2012

[Guest]

FatJockey King Georve VI Chase Stats & Videos



Seems as good a place as any to post this

David Pipe has decided to call time on Grands Crus' season following his disappointing display at the Cheltenham Festival.

The grey was considered one of the bankers of the week as he aimed to make it four out of four over fences in the RSA Chase, but he weakened quickly before the turn for home to finish fourth.

Pipe will now give his stable star a well-earned break before bringing him back for next season.

"He's going to be finished for the season. He didn't quite scope right but his blood is fine and we're calling it a day," said the Pond House handler.

[Sprinter]

At least 3 of the 6 at the top of betting wont show up imo.

[Forced Kin]

Kauto once more ...

Nicholls added that Kauto Star, pulled up in last month's Gold Cup at Cheltenham, was now "100% sound". "Obviously it was bitterly disappointing for him to have that fall in the build-up to the race and it can't have helped but in the seven years that we have been preparing him for big races we've usually been dealt so many lucky hands, so this just seemed to balance things out," he said.

"He had an easy time for 10 days after Cheltenham but Clifford [Baker, Nicholls' head lad] said then that, if he didn't take him for a canter soon, he would be coming back without a jockey as he was getting so fresh, so he has been out cantering again since.

"He's in good form at the moment but we'll gradually start to ease off on him over the weeks ahead before he has the summer off and Clive [Smith, the horse's owner] and I decide where his future lies.

"It won't be an easy decision to take. As of now, if you put Cheltenham aside, he's had a fantastic season and you'd have to say he appears to be as good as ever. He enjoys what he is doing, being the boss of the yard in box one and, as I've said, when you retire, everything changes."

[Sprinter]

Quote from Nick Henderson ...

"The idea would be to step Finian's Rainbow up in trip and really have a look at him. He'd be heading King George way, but then so will Long Run and Riverside Theatre.

"There has to be a clash in the King George I fear, so that's a headache, but it's nice. It's pressure but it's pressure we like dealing with."

[mayo]

Flemenstar to have a go ?

Flemenstar will return to training next week

Exciting chaser Flemenstar is set to return to training next week as trainer Peter Casey plots a route towards the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

The seven-year-old enjoyed a fantastic novice campaign over fences, building on a promising debut second to Bog Warrior at Navan with five consecutive victories, including two at Grade One level.

He rounded off his campaign in style in the Powers Gold Cup at Fairyhouse and although plans for the autumn are fluid, Casey is eyeing the blue riband event at Prestbury Park as his major target.

"He's going to come back into training next week, but the owner has been doing a bit of work with him at home and tells me he's in great form," said Casey.

"We don't know where we're going to start him off yet. There is a Flat race in Navan and a chase in Navan, there are races at Punchestown and in the north (Down Royal) as well, so we have options for him.

"After that we'll probably take him to England for something, bring home again and then go back for the big one.

"We hope he's a Gold Cup horse, but we'll see how we get on with him."

Although Flemenstar was the subject of plenty of interest last season, Casey is confident his stable star will not be sold.

"I don't think the owner would sell him now. He had offers last season and didn't take them, so hopefully he'll be staying with us," said Casey.

[mayo]

Another six-year-old whom the trainer is confident will produce the goods is Silviniaco Conti, runaway winner of the Grade Two John Smith's Mildmay Novices' Chase at Aintree in April.

"Silviniaco Conti won Wincanton's Rising Stars' Novices' Chase and was second in the Feltham splitting Grand Crus and Bobs Worth before running nowhere near his best at Ascot in February but then being so impressive at Aintree. He has to step up again this season and could be a Cheltenham Gold Cup horse in 2014 rather than 2013. He'll start in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby and will have a King George entry but we are not ruling anything in or out with him."

[mayo]

Five pages of it on Monday, there were, all emanating from Paul Nicholls’s owners’ open day at the weekend. And there they all are, Denman and Master Minded and Neptune Collonges may be gone, but Big Buck’s and Zarkandar and Sanctuaire and Al Ferof and Silviniaco Conti are all there, raring to go. Ring any bells?

Then there is Kauto Star. What to do with Kauto Star? The 12-year-old Kauto Star, 16-time Grade 1 winner Kauto Star, quintuple King George winner Kauto Star. Retire him or not – what would you do if you owned him?

The person who actually does own him, Clive Smith, says that he has been to Wimbledon this year and to the British Open and to the Olympics, and that the people to whom he has spoken at these events all want him to retire Kauto Star. You can see their angle. Kauto Star is an institution, the best steeplechaser since Arkle and possibly the most versatile ever. The last thing you want is for something bad to happen to him, either on the gallops at Ditcheat or, God forbid, on the racecourse in full public glare.

Remember when Desert Orchid took a mother and father of a fall at the third last fence in the 1991 King George, and it looked for a little while as if he wouldn’t get up? (You don’t? You were too busy playing with your Commodore 64 that Santa had brought?) Or when Kauto himself fell at the fourth last fence in the 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup? It was heart in mouth stuff, and it would be a disaster from every single conceivable point of view if Kauto were to incur a bad injury on the racecourse or in training.

Here’s the thing though: Kauto Star apparently loves to gallop and race. Some racehorses just don’t do retirement very well, and he could be one of those. So what is the cruel thing to do and what is the kind thing to do by the horse?

It’s a tough decision. He has raced 41 times, and he has come back safely – if sometimes a little sore – every time. What if the 42nd time is the one from which he doesn’t return safely though? Or the 43rd?

The plan at the moment is apparently to get Kauto back into training, have Paul Nicholls and his long-serving lad Clifford Baker tighten a few screws a little, see if he is still up for it, if he still has the old verve. If he does, the King George is a realistic possible target. He was always pretty much unbeatable around Kempton when he was in his pomp. If he doesn’t, then get the green woolly cardigan out and put it around his shoulders.

History is against a King George tilt. No 12-year-old has won the Kempton feature since Southern Hero beat just three rivals in the very first renewal in 1937.

History was against him before.

[Sefton]

Paddy Power then Kempton for Hunt ball

Keiran Burke's stable star rattled off a remarkable seven wins last term that culminated with a stunning eight-length victory at The Festival in the Listed Pulteney Land Investments Novices' Handicap Chase, run over the same course and distance as the Paddy Power Gold Cup.

The seven-year-old started his novice campaign racing off a mark of 69 and ended the season with a fine third in the Grade One Betfred Bowl at Aintree in April - a performance that elevated his official rating to 157.

Burke said: "I am very happy with Hunt Ball. He has come back from the summer bigger and stronger and he looks better than ever.

"I hope there is plenty more to come from him. He has obviously got to improve a fair bit to compete with the big boys, but in his last run at Aintree he was still showing improvement even after the long hard season he had.

"He ran a cracker at Aintree and I think if that had been his fourth or fifth race of the year, he would have probably gone and won as he came there very strongly but was just feeling the effects of a long season towards the end of the race.

"I'm pretty sure there is more improvement to come and he will start this season in the Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham. I think he probably wants to go further than that, but the Paddy Power Gold Cup will suit him and then after that we will look at all the big races.

"He will go for the King George at Kempton and then the owner has got a lot of money on him for the Gold Cup, so he will probably go there or the Ryanair, but I'm not sure what he will do in between.

"I think he can win the Paddy Power Gold Cup off his mark, but he is not the easiest horse to get fit as he is big horse. He will take a fair bit of work and we will give him a few racecourse gallops beforehand and try and get him as fit as we can."

[Lester]

Sounds like Nicholls wants to retire Kauto now but needs to clear it up with Clive Smith.

[ABU]

Exciting prospect Flemenstar is likely to kick off his campaign in the Fortria Chase at Navan on November 11th.
Peter Casey's pride and joy enjoyed a superb novice campaign over fences, winning five of his six starts and signing off with a brilliant performance in the Powers Gold Cup at Fairyhouse.

He is as short as 12/1 for this season's Cheltenham Gold Cup, but is set to come back in trip for his eagerly anticipated seasonal reappearance.

Casey said: "He came back to us a while ago and he looks super. He has strengthened up a lot and the plan is to start him off at Navan.

"He'll head to The Curragh tomorrow for a bit of work up the Old Vic (Gallop) and that should leave him right for Navan.

"We'll try and get a racecourse school into him somewhere beforehand. After that, I'd say that he'll go for something like the (John) Durkan Chase at Punchestown."

*

[Sprinter]

Boycie on ATR Jumps mini site ...first go to spot for me these days

A great profile for an antepost race for me, not least because I don’t like four of the front five in the betting. I think the up and coming bunch of second season chasers this year are exceptional and expect them to cut a swathe through a lot of the dead wood ahead of them.

Long Run universally the ante post favourite for the race but makes no appeal to me. If Long Run lined up on his own you’d still be hopeful of getting him beaten but against a good field he looks extremely vulnerable and I’d be very surprised if anyone backing him at this stage ends up looking like they have value come Boxing Day.

I stuck my neck out about Grand Crus on the Cheltenham Festival preview circuit making a lay of him one of my plays of the meeting when many were calling him a banker. I maintain he was towed into the Feltham by a suicidal early pace and I still feel he lacks the crucial gears to be a genuinely top-class chaser. He’s a very very good horse but not quite as good as his many fans think.

Finian's Rainbow is another horse I’ve always been keen to take on as I just felt he was always being treated with kid gloves for a reason. I’m still not convinced he’s bomb proof but he is hugely talented and must be respected. He is one of the market leaders that I am not confidently opposing. He’s a player.

I’d want 10/1 about Kauto Star lining up never mind winning the race. He’s proved me wrong before of course and he’s won my undying admiration in doing so. Paul Nicholls deserves a medal for the career he has finessed out of this horse, he has literally re-written the book on training top class staying chasers with this lad but I just don’t see the final chapter in the fairytale being written here. Happy to be proved wrong and to pay for the privilege too but I must swerve the great horse here.

Riverside Theatre ended up being a very solid percentage call and therefore a well backed favourite for the Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. That wasn’t a great race though and he had to bust a gut to win it. It was no surprise to see him struggle at Aintree on his next start after such a titanic effort. Good horse from a top yard but quite easy to oppose against the up and coming generation.

A really wonderful staying chaser for this year is Bobs Worth. He has a brilliant attitude but I do wonder if the King George is the right target for him. He struggled in the Feltham and looked much more at home at Cheltenham where he was brilliant when winning the RSA. If he lined up I’d be scared of him but I do think the safer option might be to assume he’l go a different route.

Al Ferof is a really likeable individual and he boasts a terrific attitude. I just wonder if he is absolutely mustard at this sort of level and feel he’s slightly too short in most lists to warrant consideration as an ante post play.

I’m really excited about the prospect of seeing CUE CARD stepping up in trip this season and think it will be the making of him. He has some outstanding form and is clearly very talented. If he stays well, and my hunch is he will, he is going to be an absolutely key player in the top prizes this season. He’s 25/1 with some firms for the King George. Compare that with the single figure quotes about Bobs Worth, whom he failed by only a short head to give half a stone to at Newbury last year. If his first outing goes well, this is his target and I can see him lining up at Kempton at a fraction of his current odds and going close.

Yes, I know, I know about CAPTAIN CHRIS. I nailed my colours to this horse for most of last year and he repeatedly let me down. One thing we know for sure now though is that there is no point at all running him left handed. He is a very talented horse but for whatever reason he wants to go right at every fence. I think aiming him at this is probably a no brainer and he’s simply too big a price for his ability.

Sir Des Champ is the most exciting second season chaser around for the coming season and ante post favourite for the Gold Cup. If at any point a trip to Kempton becomes part of his schedule he would have to enter our portfolio too but for now a watching brief as he has other options back home.

The King George could well be a great race this year and two take my eye at the prices. Cue Card I think is a very good ante post bet to take at the current odds. We know the horse is being aimed at the race, we know his form is outstanding and we hope he’ll be a force over three miles.

Captain Chris is a hugely talented horse who will surely be campaigned right handed this year and who still has scope to show us what he’s really capable of.
Sean's Advised Bets
King George VI Chase (Kempton, Wednesday 26 December)

1pt win Captain Chris (25/1 Coral, Stan James)
2pts win Cue Card (25/1 Bet Victor, Paddy Power, Stans James)

[Old Vic]

Colin Tizzard's stable star Cue Card will return to action in the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter next month.

The trainer had been considering various options for his charge including the Charlie Hall at Wetherby, but he was not keen to run him over three miles first time out this season.

Tizzard is keen to step his six-year-old up in trip, however, with a crack at the King George on Boxing Day on the agenda.

"We're going to the Haldon Gold Cup, that's what we've decided," Tizzard told At The Races.


"Do you want to run him over three miles first time out and maybe bottom him? I'm not so sure.

"Exeter's a lovely place to start off, it's just down the road, and we can step him up to three miles at Kempton.

"Two miles and a furlong there in soft ground is nearly like two and a half miles anyway."

[Rhinestone Cowboy]

Champion Court one of the two that beat For Non Stop

T

rainer Martin Keighley reports his stable star to be working nicely ahead of his intended return to action.

"He goes to Kempton on November 5 for the graduation chase," said the Condicote-based handler.

"The plan is then to go for the King George back there on Boxing Day.

"He's in top form. He schooled this morning and jumped very well. We were delighted with him."

The seven-year-old had a fine first season over the bigger obstacles, winning twice and finishing second in Grade Two novice events at the Cheltenham and Aintree Festivals.

[Lester]

Surprised bobs worth entered ...right handed and all that


Nicholls targets King George

Paul Nicholls has five William Hill King George VI Chase entries, headed by Silviniaco Conti, as he bids to repeat last year's win with

Whilst Silviniaco Conti impressed in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby, Nicholls' two other Saturday winners, Cristal Bonus and Kauto Stone, have been left in at the latest entry stage along with stablemates Al Ferof and Poquelin.

Title rival Nicky Henderson has a strong team for the Boxing Day feature at Kempton headed by 2010 winner Long Run, which also includes the Cheltenham winners Riverside Theatre, Finian's Rainbow and Bobs Worth.

Colin Tizzard's recent Exeter winner Cue Card, the Philip Hobbs' trio Wishfull Thinking, Menorah and Captain Chris, and Mouse Morris' First Lieutenant are other interesting entries, whilst Ireland could also rely on Willie Mullins' current Gold Cup favourite Sir Des Champs as well as Henry De Bromhead's star Sizing Europe.

Other notable entries include Martin Keighley's Champion Court, Nick Williams' For Non Stop, David Pipe's Grands Crus, former Gold Cup hero Imperial Commander and last year's Cheltenham runner-up The Giant Bolster.

Barney Clifford, Kempton's head of racing and clerk of the course, said: "These entries delight us in terms of the depth of quality.

"Kauto Star will be a hard act to follow, but there will be huge support for the popular Long Run as he bids to regain his William Hill King George VI Chase crown.

"And we have the new kids on the block coming through and taking on the established champions - both Cue Card and Grands Crus will be admirable additions to the King George mix.

[Lester]

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