30 Entries For Victor Chandler Chase

Paul Nolan aiming Cloone River at £110,000 contest

The £110,000 Grade Two Victor Chandler Chase, to be run at Cheltenham on Saturday, January 28, has attracted 30 entries, it is announced today, Thursday, December 22.

This very prestigious two mile and half a furlong handicap chase usually takes places at Ascot but is being run at Cheltenham for the second and final time in 2006 while the Royal racecourse completes it redevelopment.

Trainer Paul Nicholls, successful with subsequent Queen Mother Champion Chase victor Call Equiname in 1999 and with Young Devereux four years later, dominates the entries with six to choose from. The Ditcheat handler´s half-dozen are Albuhera, Armaturk, the novice Cerium, recent Grade One Tingle Creek Chase victor Kauto Star, Le Seychellois and Le Volfoni, an easy winner on his last two starts in novice company.

Lambourn handler Nicky Henderson is also seeking his third win in the Victor Chandler Chase and has three entered this time around headed by Isio, successful in the 2004 renewal but only seen out twice subsequently, recent impressive Windsor scorer Saintsaire and Tysou, successful on his latest appearance when scoring by two lengths in the Jenny Mould Memorial Handicap Chase at Cheltenham on December 10.

There are three Irish entries and one from France in the shape of Thierry Doumen´s Foreman. Two of the three Irish entries are trained by Paul Nolan, who is looking forward to getting 2004 Galway Hurdle winner Cloone River back on a racecourse, with the Victor Chandler Chase as the likely target.

Cloone River has not been seen out since falling in the Galway Hurdle on July 28 when attempting to follow-up his previous year´s win, and would be making only his third start over fences in the extended two mile event.

Nolan said: 'The horse looks very well and appears to be in great form. We are getting a lot of work into him at the moment and if everything goes to plan he will go for the Victor Chandler Chase, before either going back to Cheltenham in March or Punchestown in April.

'Although he´s only had two races over fences, he won them both comfortably. He is a versatile sort, having won on good to firm and heavy ground, although he goes best on better ground.'

Nolan also has Say Again, another horse who is returning from a layoff, engaged in the Cheltenham race. He took the 2004 Grade One Swordlestown Cup at Punchestown, a race in which Kicking King was brought-down two fences from home when still in with every chance, but has not raced since finishing fifth of six runners behind Hardy Eustace in the Red Mills Trial Hurdle at Gowran Park on February 12 this year.

The County Wexford handler continued: 'Say Again is another possible for the Victor Chandler Chase and is in great shape at present, although he´ll need to do a bit more work yet, as he´s been off the track for about a year.

'He´s a bigger stamp of a horse than Cloone River, but he´s moving well and is a very high class animal on his day.

'There is a slight opening in the two-mile chase division at present, with Well Chief and Azertyuiop both out of action, although Moscow Flyer is still the one to beat and Kauto Star has looked very good.

'Saying that, if I can keep both my horses sound, I´m sure they´ll give some of the big guns a run for their money.'

A very interesting entry is the Nigel Twiston-Davies´ Fundamentalist, a leading performer as a novice last season and set to make his seasonal reappearance at Wetherby over Christmas. Other prominent contenders include the Mark Rimell-trained Oneway, an encouraging third on his comeback behind Kauto Star in the Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown and Tribal Dispute from the Tim Easterby yard, triumphant with Turgeonev in 2002, who ran a good race to chase home Tysou in the Jenny Mould Memorial Handicap Chase at Cheltenham.

Neal Wilkins, PR Manager for Victor Chandler, said: 'Once again we are delighted with the quanitity and quality of entries for the Victor Chandler Chase which has firmly established itself as one of the most important races in the lead up to the Cheltenahm Festival.'