It has been reported by At The Races that trainer Nicky Henderson will wait until this weekend before deciding which of his hotshots will run at Aintree next week.
Henderson said:
They’ve got a bit of work to do over the weekend and we’ve got to be very happy with that, before finalise things. It’s just quite hard to read them, they can seem fresh and well and make you feel very happy in yourself, but you never quite know how much those races have take it out of them, nobody got a easy race at Cheltenham.
Champion Chase winner Altior could potentially step up to two-and-a-half miles for the first time in the Melling Chase. However, Henderson remains unsure for what road to take, as the eight-year-old could end up avoiding Aintree completely and go to Sandown instead.
Henderson said.
Altior has an option I think that’s the important thing. He also has the option to go to Sandown, which gives him two more weeks, and that must be pretty possible. We’re still monitoring, monitoring, monitoring the situation as we go.
Elsewhere, Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up Might Bite could be heading for the Betway Bowl at Aintree on the Thursday afternoon, should Henderson give the green light.
He said:
We’ve been schooling this morning, Might bite schooled along with Altior. Might Bite seems really well, actually. It’s this or nowhere for Might Bite.
Henderson also confirmed that Champion Hurdle winner Buveur D’Air has a strong option at Aintree – the Betway Aintree Hurdle – a race that could see him come up against Jessica Harrington’s Supasundae in a mouth-watering clash.
Buveur D’Air is in the same situation. He won’t be going to Punchestown, it will be this or nothing.
