First Gold and Baracouda ready to run Francois Doumen is hoping that an outing over hurdles in France on Sunday will aid First Gold as he prepares to make another bid for Pertemps King George VI Chase glory at Kempton next month. Doumen is keen to keen to get a run into the J P McManus-owned 10-year-old, who has not been seen out in public since landing brace of Graded races at Aintree and Punchestown almost seven months ago, and the Frenchman intends to re-introduce the gelding in the Prix Jean Sens hurdle at Auteuil this weekend.Doumen said: 'As far as First Gold is concerned - it has always been difficult to find a pre-race before the King George or whatever target he may have. So this hurdles race on deep ground at Auteuil will be very helpful to bring him towards the condition I want him to be in for the King George - I really do look forward to going back to Kempton.' First Gold made every yard of the running when returning to form in the Martell Cognac Cup Chase at Aintree in April, before galloping some top-class rivals into the ground with a scintillating performance in the Heineken Gold Cup at Punchestown three weeks later. However, Doumen is confident that First Gold can adapt his style of running if there is insufficient pace on Sunday. He said: 'If there is a pacemaker it will help him - even if it is a good horse. If not, he will run his own race. He has met all his targets to date and so far, he is really looking good.' Doumen also confirmed that his dual Stayers Hurdle hero Baracouda is ready to do himself justice if he fulfils his engagement in the Ballymore Properties Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury on Saturday.'Baracouda should run on Saturday at Newbury. This is purely because he should have run at Ascot last Friday but the ground was not yet satisfactory enough. 'It is simply that everything has been put back one week and there have been no problems with his preparation. 'The Stayers Hurdle is his target at present but he is still only an eight-year-old - only fools never change their minds, but for the moment that is what we are looking at.'We are looking forward to the start of the season really and all that I can say is that I am very happy with the preparation of both horses.'Francois Doumen was talking to sports-live.
