Route to head Direct to Cheltenham

Howard Johnson`s star chaser Direct Route is reported to be in good form but he will not run over the Christmas period and his seasonal bow is likely to be in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.

The 10-year-old has not been seen out since finishing third to Fadalko when bidding to win the Mumm Melling Chase at Aintree in April for the third time, a race his jockey Norman Williamson felt he would have won had ground conditions been in his favour.

And fear of soft ground this winter persuaded Johnson to play a waiting game, as his wife Sue explained.

'The two races he could have gone for would have been at Sandown and Ascot,' she said. 'But the ground would not have been right for him at either so he would not have run anyway and it would have been a waste of time getting him fired up and ready and then having to let him down.'

So fingers are now crossed that 2002 will see a dry spring with some fast ground and Mrs Johnson added: 'We would obviously like to have a go at the Queen Mother Champion Chase again, he went so close the season before last when beaten only short head by Edredon Blue.

'Then of course we would hope to go to Aintree for the Mumm Melling Chase again and then we would think of Punchestown - but it all depends on the weather of course'!

'We would not have done anything differently if he had only been a six-year-old, it is only fair that conditions are in his favour when he is going for such good races.

'He is in work of course, but taking things a bit more leisurely at the moment than he would normally, and the only problem is that he gets very woolly and had to be clipped quite regularly - and when that happens he thinks he is going racing and his adrenaline gets going!'