World Crown Could Give Drever Deserved Retirement

Dual Ladbrokes World Hurdle winner Inglis Drever could be retired if notching a famous hat-trick of wins in the stayers´ championship at Cheltenham in two weeks´ time.

Howard Johnson is toying with the idea should the Graham Wylie-owned nine-year-old add to his victories of 2005 and 2007 in the Festival event, for which he is 4-5 favourite with the sponsors.

"I have had some good horses in my time, but he has kept me on the road," said Johnson.

"If he did win the stayers´ for a third time then I would have a word with Mr Wylie and think about retiring him as I wouldn´t want anything to happen to him."

Johnson´s stable star looked in rude health when leading up a team of the County Durham handler´s string under big-race jockey Denis O´Regan, and has seemingly emerged unscathed from the health scare affecting the yard.

"He worked three-quarter speed over a mile and came back fine, and he hasn´t been coughing, thankfully," Johnson continued.

"It was all down to a dusty batch of straw and I have changed it altogether so hopefully things will come right in time.

"I have not had any runners this week and every horse has been on a three-day course of treatment to try and sort them out. Scriptwriter could be my next runner at Kelso on Saturday."

Inglis Drever ? nicknamed ?Popeye´ by Johnson´s staff due to his bulging eyeballs ? was the third horse ever purchased by Wylie following on from Lord Transcend and Royal Rosa.

That trio were bought over a near two-year period but Wylie´s interest has exploded in recent times and he now has 96 National Hunt horses in training, 18 Flat performers, 16 store horses and an ever-expanding portfolio of broodmare and foals.

?The Drever´ heads Wylie´s powerful string and has become notorious for his lazy style of racing.

Johnson added: "He does hit a flat spot in his races at Cheltenham but he knows where the winning post is, which is what counts.

"He has not had a hard season and would weigh about 504 kilos now, but I´ll get him down to 493 for Cheltenham with some steady work.

"After he goes for a racecourse gallop this weekend that will be him about ready and he will probably just have the one school before the big race."

(C) PA Sport