Zarkandar to step up in trip Champion trainer Paul Nicholls is likely to step Zarkandar up in trip following his fourth-placed finish in the Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. The two-and-a-half-mile John Smith's Aintree Hurdle in April could be his first assignment over a longer distance. Nicholls told the Daily Mail: "At the very highest level, he lacks a bit of toe. "He was flat-out down the hill and he uses everything he has got to stay in touch with them. "He will still win plenty of races, but we can see from this he is just shy of being a top two-miler. "We will have to look elsewhere and a step up in trip will suit him."
