King George VI Chase

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No weather worries this year for King George VI Chase


Kempton’s clerk of the course Barney Clifford was in bullish move a week prior to the big race of the season at the Sunbury track, the Grade 1 William King George VI Chase, having seen the seven-day weather forecast that strongly suggests there should be no repeat of the disaster last term when the great race had to be postponed for 21 days due to frost and snow, writes Elliot Slater.

Last year the unusually severe winter weather put paid to any hopes of staging the King George on Boxing Day as temperatures plummeted to -8 degrees and the ground was frozen solid. When eventually the race did take place on January 15 it saw the Nicky Henderson-trained Long Run come of age as he trounced his stable companion Riverside Theatre by 12-lengths, with the four-time former race winner Kauto Star some way further back in third place.

This season’s renewal is one of the most eagerly anticipated in many a long year with Long Run, (who went on to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March beating both Denman and Kauto Star), set to be opposed by Kauto Star once again, the Paul Nicholls-trained veteran having defied all his critics at the age of very nearly 12-years-old by coming out with all guns blazing on his seasonal reappearance to slam Long Run by eight-lengths in the Grade 1 Betfair Chase at Haydock last month. People following the best Kempton odds will know this.

With the weather forecast suggesting that temperatures are unlikely to fall below freezing in the days prior to the big race, Clifford expects the race to be run on ‘Good to Soft’ ground, a surface that should offer a level playing field for all concerned and contribute towards providing optimum conditions for what will surely be a race to remember.

Long Run remains a strong 11/8 favourite, Kauto Star is offered at 4/1, his stablemate Master Minded is an 11/2 chance, Captain Chris can be backed at 8/1, and they offer 12/1 bar the front four in the market.

Best Price Promise on the King George VI Chase at bet365.com

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