Jonjo O'Neill's Paddy Power Gold Cup hero Johns Spirit
is among 35 entries for the £100,000 December Gold Cup, run at Cheltenham on
the second day of The International, Saturday, December 14.
O'Neill
completed the Paddy Power Gold Cup and December Gold Cup double in 2006 with
Exotic Dancer, who became only the third horse to win both contests in the same
season after Senor El Betrutti (1997) and Pegwell Bay (1988).
Johns
Spirit, owned by Christopher Johnston, is unbeaten in two starts this season at
Cheltenham under Richie McLernon, having also captured the £50,000 Equus-Fine
Dining At The Festival Handicap Chase impressively at The Showcase on October
19.
The
six-year-old will be attempting a unique Cheltenham handicap chase treble if he
goes for the December Gold Cup, following his victory in the £160,000 Paddy
Power Gold Cup, feature race of The Open, by three quarters of a length on
Saturday, November 16.
O'Neill,who
trains not far from Cheltenham Racecourse at Jackdaws Castle,reported: "I
don't know if Johns Spirit will run in the December Gold Cup - it is too early
to say.
"We
will wait and see how he gets over the Paddy Power Gold Cup first. So far he
seems OK, but he has not really done anything since.
"Obviously,
we were delighted with his performance in the Paddy Power Gold Cup, but he has
gone up nine pounds and that is a lot of weight.
"I
don't think he has improved this year, he has just got stronger. He is a
six-year-old and is still a relatively young horse."
Entries
for the December Gold Cup, run over two miles and five furlongs, also include Colour
Squadron, Attaglance and Rajdhani Express, who finished
second, fourth and fifth in the Paddy Power Gold Cup.
Another
local trainer Tom George has entered French import Mail De Bievre
following a promising fourth on his seasonal reappearance at Auteuil, France,
on November 10. The eight-year-old posted some high-class efforts over fences
during the spring of 2010 when trained in France by Jehan Bertran de
Balanda, winning a Grade Three by 15 lengths and a Grade Two by eight lengths.
He
finished fourth on his debut for George in the Grade Two Denman Chase over
three miles at Newbury in February, 2013, after almost 18 months off the track,
but proved no match for Sprinter Sacre in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at
The Festival in March.
George, based
in Slad, revealed: "We have given Mail De Bievre an entry in the December
Gold Cup and we are thinking about the race. The handicapper has given him a
bit of a chance after dropping him a few more pounds, so that has opened up a
few more options.
"He
has come out of Auteuil OK. He was still there jumping the last and just got a
bit tired on the run-in. It was a platform to build on and that's what we need
to do.
"He
has only had two runs in Britain and we have not seen the best of him because
they were on the back of an 18-month break due to an injury.
"The
handicapper has given him a chance, but he needed to and now the horse wants
two or three good runs under his belt to get back into the swing of
things."
Champion
Jump trainer Nicky Henderson has five entries, the most of any handler, headed
by Shloer Chase victor Kid Cassidy and Captain Conan, who was
last seen beating Tap Night by three and a quarter lengths in the Grade
One Betfred Manifesto Novices' Chase at Aintree in April. The Lambourn handler
is the most successful current trainer in the December Gold Cup with three
victories, courtesy of Quantitativeeasing (2011), Iris Royal (2003) and
Fondmort (2002).
Last
year's winner Unioniste is among a strong quartet for trainer Paul
Nicholls. He could be joined by Down Royal Grade Two scorer Rolling Aces,
former smart novice Ghizao and Grandioso, who has not been seen
since annexing the Grade Two Pendil Novices' Chase at Kempton Park in February.
2012
Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up The Giant Bolster has been given
an entry, while Champion Court may bid to bounce back from a
disappointing seventh when favourite for the Paddy Power Gold Cup.
Venetia
Williams could be represented by Katenko and impressive Sandown victor Kapga
de Cerisy, both owned by Andrew Brooks.
The
Paul Nolan-trained Noble Prince, who landed the Jewson Novices' Chase at
The Festival in 2011, is one of two Irish-trained entries and returned to form
with a comfortable success in a Listed chase at Thurles on November 7. He could
joined by Irish Grand National third Home Farm from the stable of Arthur
Moore. The last Irish-trained winner of the December Gold Cup was Sir Oj in
2005.
Other
notable entries include course scorer Wishfull Thinking, the Allan
Stennett-owned pair of Ballynagour and Salut Flo, and Easter
Meteor, who held every chance when falling at the penultimate fence in the
Paddy Power Gold Cup.
Weights
for the December Gold Cup are revealed on Wednesday, December 4.
About
The International
The
International takes place at Cheltenham on Friday, December 13 and Saturday,
December 14, offering more than £520,000 in prize money over the two days.
Key
races include the £130,000 Grade Two StanJames.com International, a leading
trial for the Stan James Champion Hurdle at The Festival, the £100,000 Grade
Three December Gold Cup, the £45,000 Grade Three Majordomo Hospitality Handicap
Chase and the £40,000 Grade Two Osborne House Relkeel Hurdle.
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