Contingency Plans For Mohaison

Star De Mohaison could wait for a valuable handicap at Cheltenham if he misses the John Smith's Future Stars Chase at Sandown on Friday.

Paul Nicholls' Royal & SunAlliance Chase winner, who also enjoyed a facile success at Cheltenham recently, is most likely to head to Esher and a possible clash with The Listener and Reveillez, but if the ground is very testing, connections may make other plans.

'He's entered Friday and is a possible,' he said. 'There is a #100,000 handicap at Cheltenham the week after (boylepoker.com Chase, December 8), and if it's bottomless ground on Friday, we could think about that ? it's worth a fair bit of money.

'The intention is to run on Friday, but he has a Grade One penalty. He's fit and well wherever he goes.'

Star De Mohaison did not take his chance in last weekend's Hennessy Gold Cup but Nicholls was keen not to dwell on what might have been.

'The ground was definitely on the soft side and we would have been a bit jittery about running him, but there's no point looking back,' he said.

Denman will be trying to follow the path trodden by Star De Mohaison last year at the festivals, but will not be seen for a while despite looking a picture after maintaining his unbeaten record over fences at Newbury on Sunday.

'He has probably come out of this race better than any of his races this season,' said Nicholls.

'He's probably fitter, but I still don't think we will run him again until the spring. He will probably have one run before Cheltenham, although you wouldn't worry if he didn't have a run as he goes well fresh.

'He's won three and I want to go to Cheltenham and Aintree with him.'

? PA Sport