JOHNSON PLANS HIS ROUTE Direct Route will miss the Queen Mother Champion Chase unless the ground at Cheltenham is genuinely good, Howard Johnson warned today.The top two-miler was involved in the race of the Festival when just losing out in a ding-dong battle with Edredon Bleu for the Champion Chase last year.But his preparation has been hampered this term by wet weather, restricting him to just two outings to date, both on unsuitably soft ground.And trainer Johnson is running out of options to get his stable-star ready, asking: 'Where can we go with him?'We could get him ready for the Elmbridge Chase at Sandown where he would get weight from Edredon Bleu but there is no point as the ground won`t dry out in a fortnight.'So hopefully he will have a spring campaign, racing at Liverpool and Punchestown.'He will only run at Cheltenham if it is genuinely good ground, he won`t run if it is good to soft.'I have decided not to run him again on the soft, there is no point.'
